Haiti: The Duvaliers & Their Legacy

Rating:
Summary: Like Being There
Review: I was reminded while reading this book of listening to an excited acquaintance with an extensive and astonishing tale to tell; my attention was never lost but the temptation to stop at various points for elaboration was overwhelmed by the fast flowing story. This is by no means a bad thing. Having previously read a book on the Duvaliers, and finding it overly sanitized, this book was the right one to cure that sentiment. The skeleton is provided by a framework of Haiti's history from colonization to the exile of its first elected post-Duvalier president; the meat comes from individual tales garnered from interviews, from the horrible tortures of Duvalier victims to the decadent self-absorbed excesses of "Baby Doc" and his family which led to his ouster. The tales are so engaging that I found myself feeling the emotions reflected in the anecdotes, something a history book rarely successfully accomplishes. Even though the ultimate end of the story was already known, the personalized details lead the reader suspensefully along, eagerly wondering exactly HOW events will unfold.

The book loses the one star only because the dizzying array of places and names may tend to confuse those unfamiliar with Haitian history or geography. In that vein, I would suggest either prior to (or concurrently) reading this book, consulting another general Haitian history book so as not to slow down digesting the narrative in this one. Also, in the book's bibliography in the back, there is a LONG list of interviewees--most of whom figure prominently--along with a one or two sentence biographical sketch which I would have used extensively in sorting out some of this confusion while I read this book, had I not known it was there until after I was finished!

Content-wise, this book is 5 star. It provides insight into the origins of Haitian social and political mentalities, and a highly personal view of the depravities and decadence of the Duvaliers that could not be otherwise (or better) illustrated.