Caribbean [Hardcover]

 

 

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"After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, exceedingly strong. It had huge iron teeth; it was devouring, breaking in pieces, and trampling the residue with its feet. It was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns." -- Daniel 7:7 (NKJV)

Let me mention that I am reviewing the Books on Tape Unabridged CD version read by Alexander Adams.

Michener's main point in this novel is that life in the Caribbean is mostly driven by base human instincts, the beast in all of us, rather than the spiritual side, the best in us.

When James Michener's Caribbean originally came out, the reviews frightened me off by describing the book as being long, disjointed, very bloody, and overwhelming in its size and complexity. Although I've often passed the book on a bookstore shelf, I had an easy time skipping it.

When I found that I was going to be doing a lot more driving than usual in a car with a CD player, I realized that this might be the best time to take a crack at it. I was glad that I listened to the recording. The story grew on me over about six weeks, but it was very slow going in the beginning.

The book has an overall structure that's not apparent in the beginning: Mr. Michener wanted to demonstrate the cultural strains and economic and social problems on the various Caribbean islands, explaining them in terms of history . . . but with a hope for creating understanding that might lead to improvements. It's a worthy goal for a big novel, but I'm not sure that he succeeded. You will certainly be left with some interesting "what if" questions. Who knew that Haiti was once a place of extreme riches rather than extreme poverty? Who knew that there had been so many slave revolts on the various islands? Who knew about the complex naval competitions among the European nations? Who knew how the Spanish heritage affected cultures on islands that were under Spanish rule the longest?

Be patient in the beginning. Each story is carefully selected to provide one or two threads of a large tapestry that dominates the book by the final story. You'll see those threads and those themes repeated in many different forms. It's interesting. But at first, the book's structure just seems random.

By the middle, you'll probably find yourself becoming engaged. It's hard to ignore the appeal of the stories about pirates.

I thought that the book was way too bloody to make for a fun experience. Instead, you'll be chilled to the bone by the brutality and insensitivity to other people that's displayed again and again. I felt as if I was being taken to the lion feeding cage at the Roman Coliseum on a daily basis during those days when Christians were the main course. Despite that, I'm not sure that the book is sympathetic enough on the subject of slavery's evils and consequences.

I agree with Michener's point that education is critical to improving opportunities for people who live in the Caribbean. I think that point could have been made a lot better and a lot more quickly than the novel does. As it is, there's a little too much trying to impress readers that they don't know the whole story. While that's helpful in the case of Columbus, the book tries a little too hard time and again to make an impression. After a while, it becomes annoying to have unusual, extreme perspectives explained in great detail. Do I really need to know in detail how Danish attitudes toward slavery were different from English ones?

Reader beware - 800 plus pages, so this is no book for story time. Extremely prolific, James A. Michener writes as only he can write about the Caribbean, that vast expanse of ocean surrounded by Cuba, Puerto Rico and the extensive small islands smattered across the seascape. This is a powerful history of these islands, and James Michener takes us from the 1300s when a peaceful tribe of Arawaks are horribly destroyed all the way to Castro's Cuba. This is the sort of book one would do better learning about this area from, as the author weaves plot upon plot into a brilliantly masterminded historical novel. You will learn more from this book about the Caribbean Sea and its islands than any history or geography class could give you, and you will have more fun doing it! I gave it four stars simply because with a book this size, there was bound to be some dreadfully boring parts, and there were. If it were a bit shorter in length it would lack nothing but a Pulitzer.

Michener at his best. Full of adventure and great characters. My only gripe is that the final chapter is a little dull compared to the rest of it. But overall - excellent. Reading it made me want to visit the Caribbean.

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5.0 out of 5 stars very interesting
This book was Michener at his best. Sure, a few chapters were kind of boring but what else do you expect of an 800 page book. Read more

Published on July 14 2004 by Connor Eiff

5.0 out of 5 stars "New Lands of Ordinary Clay"-Ranjit Banarjee
Ranjit Banarjee has written a book Prospect for the Caribbean which may begin to answer some of the questions I asked in my review of Hubbard's book on St. Kitts. Read more

Published on May 17 2004 by Scamp Lumm

3.0 out of 5 stars JUST OKAY, MICHENER ON HIS DOWNWARD SLIDE
I picked this up hoping it would be like CENTENNIAL--which I thoroughly enjoyed. Though JM focuses on the Caribbean he does not stick with a family or families as he has in the... Read more

Published on May 16 2003 by Jeff Howard

3.0 out of 5 stars Getting a bit long in the tooth
Overall this was an interesting and informative book. From an historical perspective Michener covers all of the bases in good style. Read more

Published on Sep 14 2002 by Charles L. Miller

2.0 out of 5 stars Pretty Good Writing, Dry and Boring Book
Though I do not doubt Michener's writing capabilities, I find that as I continue to trudge through this so called historical novel, two stars is as much as I can give this book... Read more

Published on Aug 15 2002

5.0 out of 5 stars MIchener at his best
Caribbean is a typical Michener book. He is the best when it comes to tell a story of a place, not of a person. Read more

Published on Aug 5 2002 by J R Zullo

5.0 out of 5 stars AS GOOD AS TEXAS AND CHESAPEAKE..................
MY FAVORITE MICHENER BOOK IS CENTENNIAL, THEN ALASKA, BUT THIS
BOOK RANKS UP THERE WITH THEM. I HAVE A HARD TIME PUTTING IT
DOWN AND LOVE GETTING BACK TO IT. Read more

Published on April 4 2002 by W. G. Ellis

5.0 out of 5 stars AS GOOD AS TEXAS AND CHESAPEAKE..................
MY FAVORITE MICHENER BOOK IS CENTENNIAL, THEN ALASKA, BUT THIS
BOOK RANKS UP THER WITH THEM. I HAVE A HARD TIME PUTTING IN
DOWN AND LOVE GETTING BACK TO IT. Read more

Published on April 4 2002 by W. G. Ellis

5.0 out of 5 stars 3 Michener's Read
Although this isn's as good as the other two I've read (Hawaii and Cenntenial) it is still an incredible book. Read more

Published on Sep 23 2001 by Garrett M. Imeson

3.0 out of 5 stars Euro-centric rather than Caribbean-centric, but a good read
This was an interesting blend of fact and fiction, and it was different so I recommend it. However, I am from the Caribbean, have lived in 4 Caribbean countries, and know the... Read more

Published on July 27 2001 by Jaja

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