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jamesonforan's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
4.25
gwenby's review
5.0
What a story! What a storyteller! I love nonfiction that reads like fiction, and this book does just that. It strays from third person and occasionally gives the reader a “flip to the back of the book” by disclosing little snippets of what is to come without ruining the ending.
As a history teacher, I’m a fan of books like Jill Lepore’s These Truths that offer a perspective not found in historical mainstream. Add this book to that list. If you start the book and have no clue what I’m talking about, the epilogue sums it up quite well and places the story of Sam Zemurray in historical context.
As a history teacher, I’m a fan of books like Jill Lepore’s These Truths that offer a perspective not found in historical mainstream. Add this book to that list. If you start the book and have no clue what I’m talking about, the epilogue sums it up quite well and places the story of Sam Zemurray in historical context.
k80uva's review
4.0
Rich Cohen does it again! Another insightful, funny, entertaining look at a little known man whose life story Cohen crafts into something deeply important and poignant. Nearly too romantic at times, Rich Cohen is able to walk that tightrope well and ultimately spin a really good yarn that touches on a lot of major themes. Highly recommend this along with his other book, "Sweet and Low," which deals with similar themes of Jews in America, the entrepeneurial spirit, and the heroic and sinister sides of businessmen.
exelone31's review
4.0
Pretty interesting read and a topic I’ve always wanted to learn more about (US involvement in South and Central American politics).
I liked how the author weaves in brief sentences here and there to break the fourth wall a bit and reinforce points. It takes what could have been a dry biography and makes it more conversational.
I liked how the author weaves in brief sentences here and there to break the fourth wall a bit and reinforce points. It takes what could have been a dry biography and makes it more conversational.
lbeckett's review
5.0
I really enjoyed this book! Casually written but full of the interesting (and troubling) history of United Fruit and the development of Latin America. One quote that sticks with me: What happens when you attach your legacy to a city and that city dies?
pmhandley's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
medium-paced
2.5
I learned about Zemurray much the same way the author did: in college at Tulane. I saw his name on some buildings and even did a semester of work study at MARI, where the Zemurray collections were located. I somehow missed in my 4 years there that the university President's residence next door had been Zemurray's. (Based on Zemurray's feelings on public giving, this seems intentional.) I vaguely remember being in downtown New Orleans and accidentally stumbling across the United Fruit building. This is to say I had to put some effort into not letting nostalgia get in the way of my thoughts on this book. It is incredibly readable. Cohen is a gifted writer and storyteller, and Zemurray was a fascinating man. On its face, I would say this book is thoroughly enjoyable. However, I had a nagging feeling throughout the book that Cohen lets Zemurray off too easy. It leans towards hagiography. There's obligatory acknowledgment that he did some bad things, but it gets hedged in him being a complicated man. He was complicated, true, but that doesn't really account for overthrowing the Honduran and Guatemalan governments in the name of bananas. His opposition to desegregating Tulane is a brief parenthetical. His keeping of artifacts from the isthmus banana fields is not examined; no one questions why his collection belongs at Tulane and not in Central America where they came from. His role in Israel and the ramifications it's had in today's Middle East conflict is not considered. The labor conditions of the plantations are not mentioned. The author spends paragraphs speculating on why Zemurray did not embrace his Jewish heritage once in America and suggests he wanted to escape it, while admitting he has no evidence to base this assertion on. He suggests Zemurray's only regret might have been not raising his kids to be Jewish, which maybe that was a regret, but it's a pretty tall claim to make it would be his only regret considering his role in overthrowing multiple governments, which had human casualties. All of these negatives are nodded at, but painted as "it's complicated" and as part of a nuanced man. Can anyone really say Central America is better off because of Cuyamel and United Fruit?
Content Warnings
Moderate: War, Suicide, and Child death