Uh-oh, it looks like your Internet Explorer is out of date.
For a better shopping experience, please upgrade now.
My Colombian War: A Journey Through the Country I Left Behind
"Intimate, emotion-saturated portrait . . . the flavors and the colors are vivid . . . [A] compelling picture of contemporary Colombia and the roots of its problems . . . a gift for the rest of us."—William Grimes, The New York Times
Growing up in the coastal city of Barranquilla, Colombia, Silvana Paternostro enjoyed a privileged childhood, a comfortable existence marred only briefly by fleeting encounters with the social inequalities and burgeoning drug trade that threatened the country's security. Soon, however, these shadowy threats intensified, boiling over into the most violent, most protracted, and most misunderstood civil war of our time.
In My Colombian War, Paternostro, now an acclaimed reporter, journeys back to the place where her family and closest friends still live, weaving authentic experience into a history of this ongoing conflict. Drawing on interviews with family members, rebel and paramilitary leaders, and a singular young American marine named Charlie, Paternostro portrays all sides of the conflict. Blending superb reportage with poignant personal stories, she offers a stunning, comprehensive narrative of Colombia's complicated past and present.
1112417735
My Colombian War: A Journey Through the Country I Left Behind
"Intimate, emotion-saturated portrait . . . the flavors and the colors are vivid . . . [A] compelling picture of contemporary Colombia and the roots of its problems . . . a gift for the rest of us."—William Grimes, The New York Times
Growing up in the coastal city of Barranquilla, Colombia, Silvana Paternostro enjoyed a privileged childhood, a comfortable existence marred only briefly by fleeting encounters with the social inequalities and burgeoning drug trade that threatened the country's security. Soon, however, these shadowy threats intensified, boiling over into the most violent, most protracted, and most misunderstood civil war of our time.
In My Colombian War, Paternostro, now an acclaimed reporter, journeys back to the place where her family and closest friends still live, weaving authentic experience into a history of this ongoing conflict. Drawing on interviews with family members, rebel and paramilitary leaders, and a singular young American marine named Charlie, Paternostro portrays all sides of the conflict. Blending superb reportage with poignant personal stories, she offers a stunning, comprehensive narrative of Colombia's complicated past and present.
23.99
In Stock
51
My Colombian War: A Journey Through the Country I Left Behind
"Intimate, emotion-saturated portrait . . . the flavors and the colors are vivid . . . [A] compelling picture of contemporary Colombia and the roots of its problems . . . a gift for the rest of us."—William Grimes, The New York Times
Growing up in the coastal city of Barranquilla, Colombia, Silvana Paternostro enjoyed a privileged childhood, a comfortable existence marred only briefly by fleeting encounters with the social inequalities and burgeoning drug trade that threatened the country's security. Soon, however, these shadowy threats intensified, boiling over into the most violent, most protracted, and most misunderstood civil war of our time.
In My Colombian War, Paternostro, now an acclaimed reporter, journeys back to the place where her family and closest friends still live, weaving authentic experience into a history of this ongoing conflict. Drawing on interviews with family members, rebel and paramilitary leaders, and a singular young American marine named Charlie, Paternostro portrays all sides of the conflict. Blending superb reportage with poignant personal stories, she offers a stunning, comprehensive narrative of Colombia's complicated past and present.
Silvana Paternostro is a Colombian-born journalist. Her articles have appeared in The New York Times Magazine, The Washington Post, and Time, among other publications, and she is the author of In the Land of God and Man, a finalist for the PEN/Martha Albrand Award. In 1999 she was selected by Time/CNN as one of the fifty Latin American leaders for the millennium. A senior fellow at the World Policy Institute, Paternostro lives in New York City.
Table of Contents
The Maps 1 Book 1 Miami International Airport, May 2002 21 Shelter Island, June 1999 29 Barranquilla, August 2001 41 Seeing You Again 45 My Birthmark 54 The Rebel Years 64 Making Plans as a Journalist 72 Researching My Story 80 Tricky, Tricky 88 Asking the Tough Questions 96 Kidnapping, Inc. 103 Running in Riomar 107 The Best in All the Land 112 High Times in Barranquilla 120 Need Help from Allegra 133 Book 2 Who Is She? 147 My Grandmother Explains Kidnappings 157 Memory Threads of El Carmen 165 Ma Cris and Her Cousin Describe a World of Peace 172 Guillermo's Terrace 183 Juana's Smell 196 Agustin Explains the Rules 200 Seeing You Again, September 10, 2001 206 Body Language 224 Book 3 How Did I End Up Here?, March 2002 241 Meeting the Rebels 254 Wrong Music 262 Can't Stay Away, Miami, May 2003 270 Needing to Report Again 277 Our Colombian War 290 Epilogue 299 Bibliography 306 Acknowledgments 309 Index 311