Tag: Book Reviews’
“Amando a Pablo. Odiando a Escobar”, Virginia Vallejo
- by Bilingual Librarian
AMANDO A PABLO. ODIANDO A ESCOBAR by VALLEJO VIRGINIA
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This is Virginia Vallejo’s version of her relationship with Pablo Escobar, and of Colombia’s history during the late 80′s and early 90′s. As Escobar’s lover she seems to have had a front row seat to some of the biggest events in Colombia’s recent history.
This is a fascinating book in terms of the history she recounts, and the multiple connections she makes between the various drug loads, and between them and many of the country’s most prominent politicians.
As for her relationship with Escobar, let’s just say she’s certainly not someone you want to listen to for relationship advice. She can also come across as being rather full of herself.
All in all, a very good read.
Esta es la versión de Virginia Vallejo, de su relación con Pablo Escobar, y la historia de Colombia durante los últimos años de los 80 y principios de los 90. Como la amante de Escobar, parece haber tenido asiento de primera fila a algunos de los eventos más importantes en la historia reciente de Colombia.
Este es un libro fascinante en términos de la historia que relata, y las múltiples conexiones que hace entre los capos de droga, y entre ellos y muchos de los políticos más eminentes.
En cuanto a su relación con Escobar, digamos que ciertamente no es alguien de quien desee escuchar consejos sobre relaciones personales. A ratos Vallejo también parece bastante engreída.
En general, una muy buena lectura.
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“Mexican Enough,” by Stephanie Elizondo Griest
- by Bilingual Librarian
Mexican Enough: My Life Between the Borderlines by Stephanie Elizondo Griest
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
This is an interesting book, although it really only scratched the surface of the many issues it tried to explore. The main thrust behind Griest’s time abroad was to discover her roots, and while it seems she got a better view of Mexico than she ever had before, what struck me was her own sense at the futility of the quest. Throughout the book she is constantly commenting how she just can’t seem to get the subtleties the culture has to offer.
“Mexican Enough” is exactly right, this is who she is, and that OK; although I think her conclusions could have been quite different had she explored other aspects of Mexico, not just the poor and oppressed. Had she hang out with the middle class, she might have found a Mexico very similar to her own upbringing in Texas, and maybe then she would have felt “more Mexican.”
Este es un libro interesante, aunque apenas arañar la superficie de las cuestiones que trata de explorar. El impulso principal detrás de la visita de Griest a México es su deseo de explorar sus raíces y, aunque parece que el viaje le permitió ver un “México” que nunca antes había visto, lo que más me quedo sonando fue su propio sentimiento de futilidad en este intento de autoanálisis cultural. Durante todo el viaje la autora repite una y otra vez que simplemente lo logra captar las sutilezas de la cultura.
“Mexican Enough” (suficientemente Mexicana) es exactamente lo que describe el titulo; Griest es quien es culturalmente y no hay necesidad de más explicaciones. Pero me parece que sus conclusiones podrían haber sido diferente si hubiera explorar otros aspectos de México, no sólo las comunidades más pobres y más oprimidas. De haber pasado más tiempo con la clase media, seguro habría encontrado un México muy similar a su nativo Texas, y quizás entonces se habría sentido “más mexicana”.
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“Flower Confidential”
- by Bilingual Librarian
Flower Confidential: The Good, the Bad, and the Beautiful in the Business of Flowers by Amy Stewart
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Over the weekend I finished reading “Flower Confidential” by Amy Stewart, and what a fascinating read it was! With this book Stewart gives us both the macro and the micro of the industry; in the process she covers botany, genetics, business, marketing, sales, and even addresses the ever present questions of what is our collective fascination with flowers.
Stewart’s own fascination with flowers comes through in every page. She begins the books with the story of how the “Star Gazer” Lily came to be, explaining not only the breeding aspects, but also providing stories of the lives involved in this development. While explaining how different flower species are cultivated, she discusses the different types of flower farms that can be found in places like California, Colombia, Ecuador, and Holland; in each occasion providing plenty of details not only about the farms’ makeup and management, but also issues relating to pesticide use, labor rights, and land stewardship. In some instances she also traces the development of particular farms, or the growth in popularity of particular flowers.
On the more technical and detailed side, the author provides an amazing amount of detail about production, and growth; always in an accessible style. For instance, you might have guessed that flower production in a plant ought to be closely linked to light exposure, but did you know that it is actually the night length that regulates flowering? Or for instance that at an upscale florist a rose can fetch around $5 per stem, while the florist paid between $1.50 and $2 per stem, and if you trace this flower back to the grower, most likely in Colombia or Ecuador, this same rose earned the grower $.30. As for the worker who actually cared for this rose all along, each stem sold represents less than $.04 of their wages.
When discussing sales and marketing Stewart discusses how flower production began to take place further and further away from the point of consumption. Modern developments have allowed this to be the case, but decades ago, before we had all this infrastructure certain entrepreneurs began to think it was possible to grow flowers in a variety of countries around the Equator, for consumption in places like the USA, Europe and Russia. As early as 1969 Thomas Keller and David Cheever began to explore countries with ideal flower growing conditions, such as high altitudes, proximity to the equator, predictable weather patterns, and good airports, Colombia, violence and all, was perfect.
On the business side of things, Stewart discusses both the Latin American flower trade shows as well as the major one in Amsterdam. With sales she also explored the possibilities and complications of producing more environmentally friendly flowers with a product that still has hardly any brand name recognition. She questions how we can start asking for better flowers when once flowers are at the shop, ready for sale, it is nearly impossible to determine where they started out to begin with.
One of the things that I do think it a big gap in the book is the absence of a discussion of women in the flower industry. Stewart briefly mentioned that both in the USA and in countries around the world, women workers have complained about sexual harassment and exploitation while working at flower farms. Still, the author missed a great opportunity to further explore the situation, and the interesting relationship between an industry that in many ways caters to women, but which also has traditionally employed women in exploitative situations (I’m not arguing that this happens on every farms, but it happens much too often anyway). Still, Stewart does address the complicated issues around flower and labor. She discusses how for countries like Colombia and Ecuador, flower production has a bright and dark side. For years now the USA has promoted flower production in a number of Latin American countries as a replacement crop for illegal ones, the incentive being low or no tariffs as they come into the USA market. Flower production is taking over vast amounts of land and in many occasions pushing peasants off the land and into the city where conditions are often worst. Still, when Stewart asked a grower about this situation he pointed out that things are just as complicated when buying USA grown flowers, since in this case you are likely supporting not an “American” worker, but are instead supporting a Mexican, or other Latin American workers who has likely been separated from their family.
Overall it is a fantastic read if you already know something about the flower industry and what to learn more about the details, or if you occasionally buy flowers and had never thought about what flowers go through before they reach you. Stewart will fill you in with all the details in an intelligent, and straight forward manner.
Amy Stewart also has a great website, including an interesting blog.
Image info; Star Gazer Lily here; Roses here.
