In 'Silver, Sword And Stone,' Desire For Treasure, Power And Control Unites A Region
In an epic story, Marie Arana gets at the identity conundrum of Latin America with storytelling that is both clear-eyed and evocative.
Since the day colonizers perpetrated the false idea that America was really India, some North Americans have tried to "solve" Latin America by defining Latin America.
Depending on the author, Latin Americans are good neighbors or rapists, requiring handshakes or barriers. As Leo Chavez has written, it's mostly a Latino threat narrative that dominates mainstream media. And as current and past events attest, the "solution" to this "threat" is elusive. The revolutions and global power plays continue.
