3.57/5
Author: Madison Smartt Bell
Publication Date: Jan 8, 2008
Formats: PDF,Paperback,Hardcover,Kindle
Rating: 3.57/5 out of 121
Publisher: ModernVintageRadio
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Jul 12, 2009
I don't care for this author at all, he's just not a very good writer. That aside the book appears to be fairly well researched and from what I can tell is an accurate and balanced portrait of Toussaint Louverture.Sep 26, 2012
"Toussaint Louverture" (Pantheon, 333 pages, $27) is a beautifully composed discourse on a revolutionary world, a work in a class all its own. Madison Smart Bell's sentences seem suffused with the steamy intrigue and violence of Saint Domingue, the French name for 18th century Haiti.Feb 18, 2008
I first heard of Toussaint Loverture through an interview I had with Chris Webber, star forward for the NBA's Golden State Warriors. He owns manuscript documents penned by Louverture, a General in the French Army on Saint Domingue, now known as Haiti. Louverture is considered a hero for his advocacy of the abolition of black servitude on that Island.Nov 02, 2011
I approached this book through American history, somewhat fascinated by the idea that the mysterious Toussaint Louverture was busily leading a slave rebellion only several hundreds of miles away from the U.S., where the issue of slavery was waiting like a ticking time bomb.Jan 18, 2010
I really wanted to read up on the history of Haiti, and fast! So I read whatever was closest. This is what I would call a mainstream history; that is, it's a well-researched history based on common assumptions about how the world should work--- that capitalism is good, with a general sense of historical positivism, and that the state is necessary. I would say that you'll come out the other side of this book with a greater understanding about Haiti's troubled past, but I would of course recommend I really wanted to read up on the history of Haiti, and fast! So I read whatever was closest. This is what I would call a mainstream history; that is, it's a well-researched history based on common assumptions about how the world should work--- that capitalism is good, with a general sense of historical positivism, and that the state is necessary. I would say that you'll come out the other side of this book with a greater understanding about Haiti's troubled past, but I would of course recommend a lot of critical thinking while reading it.Feb 05, 2009
Madison Smartt Bell's extensive work on Haitian history makes him the right man to tackle Louverture, an elusive but significant figure. Critics felt, however, that since so little is known about him prior to age 50 (something even Bell himself concedes), Bell might have better served his subject with historical fiction. Instead, he devotes much of the book to dry, academic information instead of dramatic storytelling. Bell's forthright presentation of Louverture's multifaceted personality and
Madison Smartt Bell's extensive work on Haitian history makes him the right man to tackle Louverture, an elusive but significant figure. Critics felt, however, that since so little is known about him prior to age 50 (something even Bell himself concedes), Bell might have better served his subject with historical fiction. Instead, he devotes much of the book to dry, academic information instead of dramatic storytelling. Bell's forthright presentation of Louverture's multifaceted personality and contradictions, however, intrigued critics the most. While reviewers debated the quality of previous biographies, all felt the necessity for something new on Louverture, especially considering his legacy in Haitian and African American cultures and his effect on Napoleonic expansion.
This is an excerpt from a review published in Bookmarks magazine.
...moreMar 31, 2007
Whew!! It took awhile (3+ months), but I finally finished!! This history of the founder of Haiti, Toussaint Louverture, and the struggle for independence of the first independent black nation was worth plowing through, but, for me, a bit too serious. Too much history, not enough just plain story, I guess. Still, I discovered some interesting insights into "how Haiti got that way", and Martin Smartt Bell, a well-known Haiti scholar and novelist, gives an even-handed treatment of the enigmatic Whew!! It took awhile (3+ months), but I finally finished!! This history of the founder of Haiti, Toussaint Louverture, and the struggle for independence of the first independent black nation was worth plowing through, but, for me, a bit too serious. Too much history, not enough just plain story, I guess. Still, I discovered some interesting insights into "how Haiti got that way", and Martin Smartt Bell, a well-known Haiti scholar and novelist, gives an even-handed treatment of the enigmatic Louverture. I enjoyed reading about places I've actually been and some of the events that shaped the Haiti I have loved for the last 10 years. ...moreNov 22, 2007
Where's the 3.5 star review option? This was a pretty good book about a fascinating subject, and it gave me a great deal of insight into Haiti that I had never had before. Toussaint, the father of the Haitian nation, is a tough figure to write about historically because the record about him is very poor. Most of what has been written is by Europeans, and such a polemical figure inspires demonization or beatification but rarely lucid, even-handed prose. The second half was better than the first, Where's the 3.5 star review option? This was a pretty good book about a fascinating subject, and it gave me a great deal of insight into Haiti that I had never had before. Toussaint, the father of the Haitian nation, is a tough figure to write about historically because the record about him is very poor. Most of what has been written is by Europeans, and such a polemical figure inspires demonization or beatification but rarely lucid, even-handed prose. The second half was better than the first, and I would be prepared to skim parts of this book. ...moreFeb 13, 2009
Brave attempt at untangling the amazingly complex factions in the war of Haitian independence. Readable popular but not potboiler history. If Toussaint et al. hadn't fought France to a standstill in Haiti, Napoleon would not have needed to sell Louisiana to Jefferson. And then slavery would have been crammed into just the small scope of the old slave states. And then, no launch pad for Mexican-American War. And then, no Civil War. You get my drift. Bell lets us know that the little sugar island Brave attempt at untangling the amazingly complex factions in the war of Haitian independence. Readable popular but not potboiler history. If Toussaint et al. hadn't fought France to a standstill in Haiti, Napoleon would not have needed to sell Louisiana to Jefferson. And then slavery would have been crammed into just the small scope of the old slave states. And then, no launch pad for Mexican-American War. And then, no Civil War. You get my drift. Bell lets us know that the little sugar island was inadvertantly in the middle of crucial imperial politics. ...moreNov 28, 2009
Eh. Interesting story, but the biography was just not that well written. The chronology was weird so I had a hard time keeping track of the timeline, and Bell would often use redundant phrases (sometimes whole sentences) a few paragraphs apart, which I found really annoying. I could have gotten more (and probably would have been less confused) reading the wikipedia page. Maybe I'm spoiled because I'm also slogging my way through Chernow's Alexander Hamilton bio, which is simply amazing.Feb 18, 2008
Madison Smartt Bell presents a fairly balanced portrayal of a larger-than-life figure in Caribbean and slave-revolution history. it's hard to sit by and read impassive accounts of the atrocities that surge through Haitian history, but Bell's attempt to examine this intense and ambitious man from the perspective of devoted admirers and violent detractors alike is fascinating and thorough.Jun 24, 2010
I read this in the winter of 2008. I was initially interested in reading Bell's Haitian Revolution trilogy, but the task seemed somewhat daunting, so I settled for this. Louverture was fascinating man, and Bell tells the story of the Haitian Revolution brilliantly.Jul 27, 2011
Un peu foulli mais interessant, avec des infos peu connues sur cette page difficile de l histoire de France...Feb 23, 2008
Well written account of a fascinating period of history, includes deep descriptions of the different sections of pre-revolutionary Haitian society.Jul 07, 2017
This is one of the most riveting biographies or history books I've read, a page turner filled with so much political intrigue it left my mind reeling. But the most remarkable part of the book is Toussaint Louverture himself, a former slave who raised mules on a plantation, gained his freedom, became a plantation owner himself, raised a European-style military to overthrow slaveowners, fought off invasions from the English and Spanish, took over Spanish Hispaniola, and set up his own government This is one of the most riveting biographies or history books I've read, a page turner filled with so much political intrigue it left my mind reeling. But the most remarkable part of the book is Toussaint Louverture himself, a former slave who raised mules on a plantation, gained his freedom, became a plantation owner himself, raised a European-style military to overthrow slaveowners, fought off invasions from the English and Spanish, took over Spanish Hispaniola, and set up his own government until Napoleon sent his veterans to reclaim the colony. ...moreAug 19, 2017
Like most Americans (I suspect), I know very little of the history of Haiti or the French colony there. This biography of Louverture gives a nice introduction to that period and place. While not a 'riveting' account, it is a very readable one. The author does a credible and sympathetic job at rendering the life and times of Lourverture. Also shown is how foreign policy of Britain, France, and the United States all played a part in what became the Haitian revolution for independence.Take your time and choose the perfect book.
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