This ambitious volume is the first in a sweeping series devoted to the history of the Caribbean. Subsequent volumes promise to take on the histories of Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, the non-Hispanic Caribbean, and finally, a comparative study of the region. Organized thematically and comprised of chapters by a variety of Cuba scholars, it offers both an encyclopedic rehearsal of significant events and a series of analytical perspectives on particular themes. Readers looking for one or the other may be frustrated, but those prepared for a range of approaches will reap considerable rewards.
Six sections take on themes including economy, society, politics, culture, and science. Within those sections, the authors proceed chronologically, most stopping short of the 1959 revolution, which gets its own brief chapter to close. The most interesting essays engage current historiographic conversations. Alejandro de la Fuente makes the case for a diversified economy prior to the...
