The Banana Wars

by Alan Grostephan

Winner of the Dzanc Prize
for Fiction



Urabá, Colombia, 1990: A violent strike at plantations
across the banana zone leads to crops in flames, managers murdered, and the local
economy teetering on the brink. In retaliation, the banana producers finance
right-wing paramilitaries to cleanse the zone of guerrillas and their supposed
collaborators.



Through the intertwined lives of four
characters—a banana worker making a play for power in the guerrillas, a
decadent Colombian banana planter who runs his business from the safety of
Medellín, a widow in Urabá struggling to stay on the right side of the local
paramilitaries, and an American banana executive wading ever deeper into
troubled waters—The Banana Wars charts
the struggle to survive in impossible conditions, in a place where no one is to
be trusted and one false move can lead to death.



Starkly drawn from the true history of Urabá and
this period of conflict, including the unseen role of US corporate interests,
celebrated author Alan Grostephan’s latest is an incandescent historical novel
for fans of Jesmyn Ward, Roberto Bolaño, and Fernanda Melchor.

Genres: Fiction, Novels, Historical Fiction

279 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 14, 2024

About the author

Alan Grostephan is the author of "The Banana Wars" and "Bogotá", a novel chosen by the Wall Street Journal as one of the best ten books of fiction in 2013 and longlisted for the Pen/Robert W. Bingham Prize. He is also the editor and translator of "Stories of Life and Death", a collection of writing by emerging Colombian writers. He holds an M.F.A. in creative writing from UC Irvine and is a professor at Agnes Scott College. He lived for years in Colombia where he travels extensively and is currently writing about work, dispossession, and land restitution in Latin America. He resides in Decatur, Georgia and is married to the visual artist María Korol.

Reviews

[Brian Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Taking a shot at my first review more for my own memory and notes, so here it goes:
Why I picked this?
(a) it was in the Wall Street Journal summer reading list
(b) I know several people from Colombia so it would be a good conversation piece to discuss this period of history with them (the 1990's)
Why I rated it 3 stars:
3 stars is a mediocre rating for me which means I didn't think it was that good. I did learn a few things about the Banana Wars which were interesting but I didn't really like any of the characters including the "gringo" from Ohio which also happens to be where I live. I also didn't think the author explained well enough the relationships between the gov't, owners, paramilitary groups and guerillas though each are prominent in the book and what each group was really after. The time periods also seemed to jump around a bit and the quality of the writing wasn't literary. Even though I didn't like this that much I'll still probably read his other book called Bogota' as I like reading about Latin America and Colombia.

[Carol Thomas · Rating 2 out of 5]

A Book Club pick.

I wouldn't have chosen this book to read. I'm not acquainted with the Spanish language and there are quite a few Spanish phrases included which left me out of the loop.

I do feel this is an important book because it's information we need to know. The USA is complicit in the violence in the banana industry. It's a frightening area of the world, with many people having to adjust their daily roles to stay safe.

Was this an enjoyable book? I'd have to say no. It was tough for me to keep up with the author's meanderings through the topic. Maybe it was intentional because that's the life these people lead: tough to keep up with what's going on.

[Bill · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a fan of historical fiction, I had high hopes for this book.
For me personally, not enough historical, and too much fiction.
I never got a sense of the overall conflict, and how the characters fit into it. Or the different warring factions.
Very descriptive book though, and got better knowledge of life in this region of Colombia during these years.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Well-written novel set in 1990 Columbia during the Banana Wars, a time when plantation owners hire paramilitary armies to drive out the FARC guerrillas who are attacking their plantations. Events unfold through the eyes of four main characters - a banana worker who joins the guerrillas, a Columbian planter who runs his business from the safety of Medellin, a widow struggling to make a living while staying on the right side of the group in power and an American executive who gets in over his head..

[Ernest Spoon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! Melancholy. Real. Not a comedy or tragedy in the classic sense. I guess that's life.

[Helena M · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book had me hooked although there were many nights that I had to put it down. I couldn't bear reading about the next painful experience for the characters. The emotions felt real even if the experience of lawlessness is not relatable. The author created characters who embody the human spirit that enables them to survive and thrive in the most horrific circumstances. Their survival comes at a price, a loss of part of their humanity. He weaves the stories of these pawns and those who victimize them, showing the indifference of the men behind the banana trade. The personal and selfish gains are incomparable to the losses faced by those who do not have opportunity to choose their means of survival.