In 1898 US public opinion turned against the Spanish for their repression of Cuba. Relations between the two governments soured and ultimately resulted in the mysterious blowing up of the USS Maine in Havana harbor; which triggered a short but demanding war. A US expeditionary force was sent to Cuba; where the troops encountered both difficult climate and terrain; and a fierce Spanish garrison which; despite being greatly outnumbered; fought hard before surrendering.Many famous US personalities were involved; including future President Theodore Roosevelt; future general John Pershing; and journalists William Randolph Hearst and Stephen Crane.The war against the Spanish may have been brief but as Henry Cabot Lodge declared: "Its results were startling; and of world-wide meaning." Victory made the US a nation with global interests.As an extension of the war; US troops also captured the island of Puerto Rico. The US Navy bombarded Manila in the Philippines; and landed its troops. The Spanish garrison quickly surrendered; but a local anti-Spanish insurgent force under Emilio Aguinaldo resisted US occupation. The conflict continued until 1902; more than 100;000 US troops were eventually committed; and the campaign saw difficult jungle fighting; with indigenous Moro tribesmen fiercely resisting US forces.Providing a detailed examination of the experiences and equipment of the opposing sides; and featuring rare and previously unpublished photographs; this book highlights this crucial yet oft-forgotten war that changed the future of American foreign policy during "the age of American imperialism."
#3403333 in Books Verso 2005-11-21 2005-11-17Original language:FrenchPDF # 1 8.52 x .93 x 6.35l; .91 #File Name: 1844670392181 pages
Review
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful. A New Perspective on Nazi party and HolocaustBy K. KohnThe holocaust is a "popular" topic. I don't mean that in the positive sense; but in the publishing sense. Much has been published on the holocaust; Nazi occupation and the party Hitler hosted. History demands that people write it and people demand to hear "the truth" about the past. "Born Jewish" offers something different; something that isn't necessarily in demand; but is neccessary for the canon of work on the war and aftermath of the holocaust.Marcel Liebman; for anyone unfamiliar with his other work; is a reknowned Marxist/Leninist/Soviet Union historian and historical analysist. This is clearly; his most personal work; but he does not leave his politics or his academic work at the door. "Born Jewish"; as he says; "questions history"; not in the sense of the accuracy of the event(Liebman writes how dismayed he is that the world did not fully accept Hannah Arendt's accounts of Jewish collaboration with the Nazi's as having actually happened.) but in the sense of the accuracy of historical accounts of it.The new perspective Liebman adds is one often obscured by accounts of Nazi occupation and anti-semitism: that class conflict did not dissolve the day the swastika was raised over Europe's cities. In fact; the Nazi's capitalized on the class difference amongst Jewish populations. For Liebman; the horror of his brother's execution at Auschwitz is intimantly connected with the horrors of exploitation and collaboration within the Jewish community.Liebman composes his memories carefully and beautifully; resisting sacrilization of experiences he realizes must answer to history as much as to his own heart; and criticizing the radical Zionism that he was to see flourish during his lifetime.The incredible forward by Jacqueline Rose is a great appetite whetter for the book. She sums up the book far better than I ever could: "Amongst other things; this memoir stands as an extraordinary rejoinder to those who insist that Israel is the only and definitive answer to the genocide of the Jews...It is one of the strenghts of [the memoir] that Liebman can be so unerring in this analysis while at the same time acknowledging the point where understanding trails off into uncomprehending terror; where the most painful part of mourning trumps all rational thought."I highly reccommend this book for anyone who was interested in the slough of memoirs on the subject. It should be read alongside Judith Butler's new book on mourning; violence; 9/11; anti-semitism and the Israel-Palestinian conflict; "Precarious Life".0 of 1 people found the following review helpful. A vivid memoir of one man's childhood tale of Nazi control; familial struggle; and the betrayal he faced from more powerful JewsBy Midwest Book ReviewBorn Jewish: A Childhood In Occupied Europe by graphically authored by Marcel Liebman and deftly translated by Liz Heron is a vivid memoir of one man's childhood tale of Nazi control; familial struggle; and the betrayal he faced from more powerful Jews in times already hard. As a revealing and historically important biographical account of international history during the second world war; Born Jewish is an invaluable documentation which is very highly recommended for historians and laymen alike; as each and all may take some interest and understanding in this book. Born Jewish is a compelling and valued addition to the growing library of Holocaust literature so fundamentally necessary if the world is never again to experience genocide on such a massive and methodical scale.1 of 2 people found the following review helpful. wonderful read except for last chapter (and intro by Jacqueline Rose)By LeucippeThis is a spellbinding account of a Jewish teenager in Belgium; during the war. The second of four boys in a loving Jewish family in Brussels; Liebman gives density and texture to the anxieties; terrors; and perils of life under the Nazis. Always on the run; sometimes together; sometimes apart; Liebman is a superb observer of the venalities and kindnesses that accompany him through these tragic days. It is also a compelling coming of age story. All except the last chapter; which takes advantage of his survivor's status to mount a soap box against racism; with a special target being Zionism (hence Jacqueline Rose's breathless intro). Even aside from its polemics; the chapter feels like it is tacked on to what is otherwise a superb addition to Holocaust memoirs.
