Customer Reviews (2)

Quoted from the book's rear cover
This new edition of the authoritative HISTORY OF JAMAICA covers the whole of the history of the island from the arrival of the Arawaks a thousand years ago until the present day.That thousand year period has also seen the arrival of the spaniards and the extermination of the Amerindians, the coming of the British and the introduction of slavery, the fight for freedom and the achievement of independence.This story, with its many facets:the Buccaneers, the Maroons, the National Heroes and others, is told by the Government Archivist in a flowing narrative which is backed by a knowledge based on the closest contact with original documents.

A history of the island the the people.
Out of many, one people. This is a nice little book about the history of the island and its people.The history of the island begins with its first Indian population.The history concludes with the election of Prime Minister Edward Seaga.The history includes the brief Spanish period, the occupation by the British, the introduction of slavery and sugar during the 1600s and the 1700s, the British Crown Colony, and independence from 1962 to 1980.The history includes Jamaica's interaction with the rest of the world, and Jamaica's contribution to the West.
For those visiting Jamaica on a beach vacation, this is a nice little read.Although short, it is full of good information about this country.This book is also full of nice historical pictures.I picked this book up in a second hand store in Jamaica, so it might be difficult to obtain a copy in Jamaica, so use Amazon to procure a copy. ... Read more

Product Description
This volume is produced from digital images from the Cornell University Library Samuel J. May Anti-Slavery Collection ... Read more

Book Description

"A spirited and absorbing history of emancipation, oppression, and rebellion in the British empire."--C. Vann Woodward.

"Holt greatly extends and deepens our understanding of the emancipation experience when, for just over a century, the people of Jamaica struggled to achieve their own vision of freedom and autonomy against powerful conservative forces."--David Barry Gaspar.

Customer Reviews (1)

Big Book, Big Implications
Holt studies Jamaica,from the emanicpation of the slaves to the labor problems faced by ex-slaves in the 1930s.But the narrow focus is misleading - really Holt writes about "the problem of freedom:"the tast of socializing ex-slaves into becoming productive laborers - theproblem of convincing freedpeople that it's in their best interest to laborfor tiny wages, for the profit of the wealthy. Another major focus is theinherent contradictions of classical liberalism - economic freedom does andalways has required brutal and blatent inequalities in the political andsocial spheres.

Certainly not everyone will agree with Holt, but hisargumentation and analysis are impeccable. If you believe thatself-determination and free enterprise are practically the same thing - orif you think that capitalism and democracy are one and the same - you mustread Holt's book. ... Read more

Product Description
The Island of One People: An Account of the History of the Jews of Jamaica redresses the Jewish contribution to the development of Jamaican modern society in an engaging exploration of the Jewish-Jamaican community. From the early merchants of Kingston to the development and modernization of the Kingston Harbour, the construction of numerous Housing Developments, and landmark buildings such as the Ward Theatre; from the development of companies such as the Lascelles deMercado conglomerate with interests in sugar, rum, insurance, motor car agencies and airport and shipping services, to the establishment of the renowned Gleaner newspaper, arguably the oldest newspaper in the western hemisphere; from representing Jamaica internationally to the now iconic work of Belisario; the contribution of the Jewish community in nation building in Jamaica is unquestionable.Copiously illustrated, the result is a vibrant, engaging story of not just Jewish, but Jamaican history. ... Read more

Product Description
The Guide to the Blue and John Crow Mountains is more than a guide book. It is a treasure trove of Jamaica s rich natural heritage. Copiously illustrated in brilliant full colour photography and detailed area maps, the reader/user can readily access information on:Flora, Fauna, Streams and Rivers, Vertibrates and Invertibrates, Birds, and Fungi of the area.From what to wear, where to stay, and what to take, The Guide to the Blue and John Crow Mountains is the essential reference. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Reggae Heritage is a Great Buy, Valuable Information!
"Reggae Heritage" is the 21st Century Encyclopedia of Jamaica's Music History and more.
Author, Lou Gooden, takes you step by step, going into such explicit details, from his personal experience and knowledge of the industry.
"Reggae Heritage" is captivating, enlightening and even sometimes surprising, with valuable information on the biography of the artists and the legend of Reggae music.
As a direct result of reading "Reggae Heritage" and the knowledge attained, I most certainly recommend this book as a great buy.

Reggae Heritage is a "Must Have"
Reggae Heritage is a masterpiece that is packed with colorful history, factual information and a sense of humor, a book that has a value beyond words.It's controversial content that is peppered throughout the book gives readers a grounded and authentic bird's eye view of what Lou Gooden experienced first hand.I enjoyed reading Reggae Heritage, it provided many things that I did not know and found quite fascinating. I consider it to be an excellent learning tool and a "must have" ... Read more

Product Description
This Elibron Classics book is a facsimile reprint of a 1803 edition by T. N. Longman and O. Rees, London. ... Read more

Book Description
This systematic history of Jamaica was written after the abolition of slavery by a man imbued with a sense of 18th-century liberalism. It is based on public records and archives, and the mass of pamphlet literature which had been published over the years. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Sheer Bliss
This book is truly magnificent.The quality of writing is simply sublime.Allow me to provide an extract:"To this, reply was made that, while deploring such acts of lawless violence, the house could not afford compensation to all who had suffered during the late distrubances, and it would be an act of injustice to indemnify a few...When this nonsense was penned, every man in Jamaica knew that proceedings had been taken against the men who destroyed the chapels at Ocho Rios and Orcabessa..."What does historical accuracy matter?This is a literary masterpiece.It's literary complexity is matched only by Joyce's Ulysses.Highly recommended to all!Ceaseless entertainment, sheer bliss!

inaccurate
JUST FROM THE TITLE OF THE BOOK, IT IS OBVIOUS THAT MR GARDNER IS MISINFORMED ABOUT THE HISTORY OF MY COUNTRY.JAMAICA WAS NOT DISCOVERED BY CHRISTOPHER, ARAWAK INDIANS WERE ALREADY LIVING THERE.I DON'T KNOW, BUT TO DISCOVER SOMETHING MEANS, IT WASN'T ALREADY FOUNDED.WHAT DO YOU THINK? ... Read more

Product Description
Copyright 1995. For use in primary and secondary schools, also for the general reader. ... Read more

Book Description
The author analyzes the importance of Queen Nanny from cultural, military, historical, and religious point of view. This book marks an attempt to integrate a key figure of New World history into her rightful place as the leader of a critical resistance movement in Jamaica in the first part of the 18th century. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

The original Wonder Woman from Paradise Island
This is an exceptional book on the history of Queen Nanny.This book provides a great account of Queen Nanny in Jamaica from the perspective of the Maroons, Jamaicans, and British. There are plenty of historical references sprinkled throughout the literature so that the reader can do their own research. I have a sense that she was the original "Wonder Woman" as she lived on a true "Paradise Island" and could not just stop bullets but also "catch" them.The book goes into detail about the metaphysical importance of an Obeah woman and how her power kept the strong African spirit alive within the Jamaican Maroons. It is empowering to read how such few people were able to defeat the British in so many battles. The book is brief but packed with informative information on this little known person. As a man descended from the Akan, I felt proud how the African rituals were continued in Jamaica for those that escaped human bondage.This is a great read for both men and women.

The Mother of Us All. A History of Queen Nanny
This is a small book, 119 pages, that cuts a big swath. It is about an interesting period and a lively woman of the early 18th Century, someone who never made it into any of my history books. I certainly know about her now. Gottlieb pulls together threads from many sources into one rich fabric. This is a progressive book about colonialism, racism, feminism, about military srategy, about the West-African-rooted religious traditions and the use of supernatural powers that made their way into the Maroon Culture. Gottlieb obviously has great respect for her subject -- this remarkable woman, Nanny, part historical figure, part legend -- who represents a courageous struggle against oppression. The book is well-researched, illustrated, and spirited reading. Some of the historical documents can be bypassed if not interested. One is impressed with its relevance to the very same "isms" that continue to torment us in the 21st century. ... Read more

Book Description

Customer Reviews (8)

Good thoro read
Great read about the history of reggae music. I learned a lot and ended up with a lot more reggae albums after reading some really cool stuff. However...his viewpoint on Marleys later Island work is sort of like reading a Yankees book written by a Red Sox fan....the guy seems to have some issues....however he does it justice by allowing Danny Simms to have the final say on Bob's behalf.

If you like Reggae and want to learn more about the culture and history other than Bob Marley then buy it.

A hard time with reggae music
A mine of information about how reggae music rose and developed from ska through roots, up to its decline in the early 80's. Does not cover subsequent evolution to dancehall. Somehow hard to follow for not-English-born readers.

Chatty, Enjoyable & Informative
An overall delightful and informative read, every page of this book is animated by Lloyd Bradley's unflagging love for reggae music -- a passion that took him all over Jamaica, England, and the States in a quest for first-hand accounts and setting-the-record-straight interviews. It is also this true fan's passion that guides his writing, which is strangely informal, as if Bradley is explaining the history of reggae to you while you buy him pints down at his favorite local. While for the most part, this chatty style is kind of fun, it does detract a bit from the more scholarly tone Bradley occasionally adopts when discussing religion and politics. And, like any fan, Bradley is quite opinionated -- it's easy to sense his likes and dislikes, the latter of which seems to include most reggae performed after the 1970s. This is very much a book about ska, rocksteady, and roots reggae. (Bradley is almost ridiculously biased against Bob Marley's Island work as well, and makes some rather amusing and almost charmingly against-the-grain assertions about Marley's later catalog.) Additionally, there are a few chapters on British reggae, which -- let's face it -- are nowhere near as interesting as the Jamaican material. It would have been better if Bradley would have written a separate book on English reggae and devoted the extra space to a deeper exploration of dancehall and ragga. But despite these quibbles, the book is definitely worth reading, and contains many wonderful insights and anecdotes.

the definitive tome so far
Excellently researched, engagingly written and an absorbing read, THIS IS REGGAE MUSIC is the best book so far on the topic. Bradley takes care to set the story in the proper cultural, socio-economic and historical context, and he knows the music inside and out.

Must read for reggae fans
This book is great. Great stories ang great history.If you want a detailed acount of the development of reggae from the begining to the end of roots, this is the book.It's true that the book basicly ends at the begining of the 80s, but up till then this book is great. I have read most of the books out on reggae and this is my favorite one. A must for roots fans. ... Read more

Book Description
Based on historical research and more than thirty years of anthropological fieldwork, this wide-ranging study underlines the importance of Caribbean cultures for anthropology, which has generally marginalized Europe's oldest colonial sphere.

Located at the gateway to the New World in the plantation heartlands of the Americas, the settlement of Martha Brae, Jamaica, has witnessed the unfolding of two distinct, yet interrelated histories. Exploring the significance of Martha Brae as a European-Caribbean slaving port in the eighteenth century, Jean Besson simultaneously uncovers the neglected tale of Martha Brae's gradual appropriation by ex-slaves and its transformation into an African-Caribbean free village, bringing the story right up into the present day.

Central to this transformation is the system of "family land", which interrelates with kinship, community, economy, cosmology, gender, oral tradition, and state law. Besson shows that this customary land tenure is not a passive survival from either Africa or Europe, as conventional theories contend, but a dynamic creole institution created by Caribbean people in response to European-American land monopoly and cultural dominance. This perspective advances debates on African-American cultural history and the anthropological study of culture. ... Read more

Book Description
The classic 3-volume History of Jamaica, first published in 1774 presented in a hardbound edition with introduction by Howard Johnson. The publication of Edward Longxs History marked the first occasion on which an extended historical narrative was undertaken by an author with a prolonged association with the island. This new edition makes this landmark publication once again accessible to historians. ... Read more