A Short History of Brazil: From Pre-Colonial Peoples to Modern Economic Miracle

by Gordon Kerr

Host of the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympics, the fifth largest country in the world is the perfect topic for the next title in the Short History series Discovered by Portuguese sailor and explorer Pedro Álvares Cabral more than 500 years ago, Brazil's history since then has been turbulent, blighted by rebellion, cruelty, dictatorship, and poverty. But, it is also a vibrant, exciting, and ethnically diverse nation that has, in the face of great adversity, emerged as one of the world's fastest growing major economies. This book examines the events that have led to Brazil's ascendancy, looking at the indigenous peoples who populated the territory until its discovery in 1500 and chronicling the tempestuous years since, leading to the economic miracle of recent years. It covers the three centuries of Portuguese colonial rule when sugar became the main export, produced with the help of around three million slaves who were forced to make the deadly crossing of the Atlantic from Africa. It describes how Brazil declared independence from Portugal as a monarchy in 1822, the monarchy being replaced by a republic in 1889, and details the pattern of boom and bust in the Brazilian economy since then, covering the lives of some of the authoritarian rulers that seized power along the way. Finally, it looks at the many difficulties Brazil faces in the 21st century—the devastating social problems resulting from its dramatic economic inequality and the often ruthless exploitation of the country's natural resources. With the eyes of the world currently focused on this immense South American country, there could be no better time to examine the dramatic and fascinating history that has brought it to this point.

Genres: Nonfiction, History

160 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2014

About the author

Gordon Kerr was born in the Scottish new town of East Kilbride and worked in the wine trade and then bookselling and publishing before becoming a full-time writer. He is the author of numerous books in a variety of genres, including art, history, true crime, travel and humour. He has a wife and two children and lives in Hampshire and—when he can—South West France.

Reviews

[Venla · Rating 3 out of 5]

An Informative look to the history of Brazil and I do recommend reading this if you are interested in the topic. However, at some points, the content was little too much about just names and dates which made forming a bigger picture really hard.

[Camila · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite superficial but covers a lot of ground and gives you an idea of the main events and people that shaped Brazil. Felt like the ending was very rushed, with barely any pages covering the dictatorship. Also, ironic some of the stuff about the 2000 to 2015 period, because lacked the context of the last 10 years. Overall, was good to understand where so many street names came from.

[Sarah M · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gave a good introductory and broad synopsis of important events and people throughout Brazilian history from pre-Colonial history to the 21st century.

There were some moments where the writing was awkward or could have been revised.

[Bill Perrin]

Too much to cover in 120 pages. Superficial and not worth the time reading it. Mostly seems a cut and paste from other better books on Brazil.

[Konstantin Ivanov · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a good overall history of Brazil without going too much into dept. Gets quite name heavy and a bit self-referential at the end but it's concise.

[Sophia Sidoli · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very helpful, short book that helps give a guide to the country's history and allows you to understand the timeline of Brazil. However, to say it discussed pre colonial times would be incorrect as it is just a few short pages. It is good but lacks depth and sometimes just feels like you are reading paragraphs of facts: dates and names.