The History of Argentina

by Daniel K. Lewis

Argentina is a country of enormous potential and challenging problems. In recent decades, violence and military dictatorships have upset the political system, and economic instability has held in check efforts to develop the country's industries. Covering the entire sweep of Argentina's history from pre-Columbian times to 2001, the narrative outlines the connections between the colonial era and the 19th century and focuses closely on the last three decades of the twentieth century, during which Argentina dealt with the legacies of Peronism and of military dictatorship, as well as the challenges of establishing a stable democracy. Also included are a timeline of historic events in Argentina, biographical sketches of key people in its history, a glossary of terms, and a bibliographic essay of works in English for further study. All libraries should update their collection of Latin American histories with this work, which is ideal for students and travelers.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

256 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

Reviews

[J.M. Hushour · Rating 1 out of 5]

"Don't cry for me Argentina...no wait, cry for me now that I'm done reading this book."

If you're one of the two or three people that have followed my critical journey through reading a history of every country in the world (that has one), you're likely to have noticed a recurring theme that goes something like this:
Book starts off great. Book is great until post-WWII (doesn't matter where the hell in the world it is). Book devolves into mind-numbing orgy of economic factoids and meaninglessnesses.
This one takes that last bit and expands it into an excruciating, torturous miasma of economic and political messes. It's a shame because Argentina, who shouldn't cry for us, seems like a really fascinating place! Borges! The Pampas! The best 20th century war=The Falklands "War" (in it's obligatory quotes)! Madonna! Operation Condor! All those crazy wars with its neighbors!
Well, none of that is to be found here. Seriously, folks, how can you discuss The Dirty War and not mention US complicity in Operation Condor? How can you expand mind-numbing economic matters to fill most of a book? And totally leave out culture? Or Argentinians other than stupid politicians?

[Nick Girvin · Rating 4 out of 5]

To put it simply, The History of Argentina is precisely how a brief overview of a country should look. These books that tackle an entire nation’s history (especially in less than 200 pages) tend to be dicey, mostly because it’s usually a bit too simplified or misses important context. Author Daniel K Lewis did not have this issue.

Starting just before the colonial era, this covers a very broad spectrum of events all the way up until 2000 that paints the nations growth and history in a wonderfully objective way, with context to basically everything. Each section would relate back to the previous one to give events the proper tone that led to them, something that many authors are bad at. It managed to stay focused through the entire work, honing in heavily on colonialism, wars, politics, economy, and of course the niche things to Argentina’s character such as Peronism and the “Conquest of the Wilderness.” It covered just the right amount of detail for this type of thing around leaders like Rosas or Perón, and my only real gripe is that the last 30 pages were tough to get through. After the Falkland conflict and the so called “dirty wars,” this was basically a collection of how the economy was doing each year and who the people liked or didn’t like. I suppose the lack of activity meant better things for the population. A few other moments felt a little dull, but otherwise I really couldn’t recommend this enough for folks interested in a focused, nuanced look at Argentina’s existence.

[John Crippen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Finished this on the flight here early this morning. I still think Brown's A Brief History of Argentina is the best of the few single-volume histories I've had time to read, but this shorter volume does also include a handy "Notable People" section in the back along with a bibliographic essay (which includes a work by Jeffrey Szuchman's father!), so I'm happy to have it on the reference shelf too.

[Sandy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was okay. Not an exciting read, but if you're looking for a general picture of what happened when, with names and dates, this will give you the basic info.

[Wendy Jackson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is part of pre-trip swotting before going to Argentina later this year. I was looking for a broad history of the country, with enough detail to help me understand modern Argentine politics and society, but not so much as to overwhelm. This book was just right on that front. The only down point is the timeline ends around 2001 - the library did not have any newer books, other than deep examinations of the Dirty War - so I need to get more info on the past 17 years. However, I feel I know enough about Argentine history to contextualise modern developments, and to see if they follow a similar trajectory (in a nutshell, tumultuous rotations between civilian and military rule, with shifts caused by economic turmoil). Next stop on the swot tour: the Peron legacy!

[Joaquín · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dreadful. Just absolutely dreadful. The most dry thing I have ever read. It almost seemed as if the author was forced to write this book or had to be bribed to do so

[Glenn Robinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very quick overview of the history of Argentina from the 1500's to the current times. Not indepth, but good for quick overview of the many different era's from when Buenos Aires was secondary to Lima in the Spanish Empire, to independence to the many different presidents.
This book concentrates on the presidencies, the power changes, wars and none on the cultures, the arts, and very little on the many other aspects of what makes up Argentina. For a quick overview, this book serves its purpose. To gain a great depth of Argentina, this book does not make it.

[Terry · Rating 1 out of 5]

The history of Argentina is fascinating: full of big personalities and crazy conflicts. Somehow this book managed to relate it all in a kind of bland reportage, a catalog of the names of presidents, history with no story. Only neurotic compulsion got me to the end.