Puerto Rico: A National History

by Jorell Meléndez-Badillo

Overview

A panoramic history of Puerto Rico from pre-Columbian times to today

Puerto Rico is a Spanish-speaking territory of the United States with a history shaped by conquest and resistance. For centuries, Puerto Ricans have crafted and negotiated complex ideas about nationhood. Jorell Meléndez-Badillo provides a new history of Puerto Rico that gives voice to the archipelago’s people while offering a lens through which to understand the political, economic, and social challenges confronting them today.

In this masterful work of scholarship, Meléndez-Badillo sheds light on the vibrant cultures of the archipelago in the centuries before the arrival of Columbus and captures the full sweep of Puerto Rico’s turbulent history in the centuries that followed, from the first indigenous insurrection against colonial rule in 1511—led by the powerful chieftain Agüeybaná II—to the establishment of the Commonwealth in 1952. He deftly portrays the contemporary period and the intertwined though unequal histories of the archipelago and the continental United States.

Puerto Rico is an engaging, sometimes personal, and consistently surprising history of colonialism, revolt, and the creation of a national identity, offering new perspectives not only on Puerto Rico and the Caribbean but on the United States and the Atlantic world more broadly.

Available in Spanish from our partners at Grupo Planeta

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780691231273
Publisher:	Princeton University Press
Publication date:	04/02/2024
Pages:	312
Sales rank:	56,899
Product dimensions:	9.20(w) x 6.40(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Jorell Meléndez-Badillo is assistant professor of Latin American and Caribbean history at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He is the author of The Lettered Barriada: Workers, Archival Power, and the Politics of Knowledge in Puerto Rico.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

“It has been a double privilege to translate Jorell Meléndez-Badillo’s brilliant book into Spanish and to have been invited on board the inaugural journey of this wonderful series of collaborations between Princeton University Press and Grupo Planeta. Working with Meléndez-Badillo on the Spanish version of this beautifully written and thoroughly thought-out book was a delightful and illuminating experience; a translator’s dream.”—Aurora Lauzardo, translator of Puerto Rico: A National History

“I finished reading this book with tears in my eyes. This is a book that many Puerto Ricans should read for their individual and collective good. With the rigor of a well-trained historian, Jorell Meléndez-Badillo goes beyond traditional accounts and, with clarity and precision, with courage and honesty, offers a national history of Puerto Rico and a call to conscience.”—Aníbal González-Pérez, Yale University

“Puerto Rico is a much-needed retelling of the island nation’s story. Jorell Meléndez-Badillo’s centering of workers’ movements, women, and queer activism as vital sources of political history resurrects Puerto Rico’s silenced past. The usual suspects of established two-party politics are all here, but the riveting context of an array of actors from the bottom up as well as the author’s personal narrative make it a rewarding read.”—Ed Morales, author of Fantasy Island: Colonialism, Exploitation, and the Betrayal of Puerto Rico

“Written with urgency and care, Jorell Meléndez-Badillo’s Puerto Rico eschews a top-down narrative of colonial violence and instead amplifies Puerto Ricans’ vibrant and creative forms of resistance. As Puerto Rico finds itself in a moment of deepening crisis, the histories recounted in this book provide lessons about how Puerto Ricans have always found ways to imagine and fight for a future rooted in freedom.”—Marisol LeBrón, author of Policing Life and Death: Race, Violence, and Resistance in Puerto Rico

Editorial Reviews

"A much-needed primer on the history of Puerto Rico, showcasing how its people have long cultivated a tradition of resilience and resistance. . . . [Meléndez-Badillo] offers readers a critical understanding of how the island came to exist as it does today and how its future may yet unfold. [He] succeeds in not just recounting historical events from a distance as other historians might but in using the stories of real people—both from history and from the present, including his own—to spark something deeper in the reader. I found it impossible to read this book and not be overwhelmed with emotion at times, not just feeling like I learned something new but that I also wanted to do something more.

"—-Jazmine Gonzalez, Porchlight 

From the Publisher

02/01/2024

Meléndez-Badillo (Latin American and Caribbean history, Univ. of Wisconsin-Madison; The Lettered Barriada) explores the history of his native Puerto Rico in a thorough, accessible exposition. Beginning with the archipelago's Indigenous Taíno people, back when Puerto Rico was called Borikén, the book traces a history of imperialism as the land was colonized by the Spanish and then by the United States. Puerto Rico's roughly two centuries under Spain's rule saw efforts at revolution, as elsewhere in Latin America. Like other colonial situations, foreign powers stripped natural resources from the land, impoverishing the Indigenous population. The archipelago was susceptible to hurricanes, and Meléndez-Badillo illustrates how its infrastructure was allowed to deteriorate in modern times, which led to devastation during 2017's Hurricane Maria. Writing with controlled but apparent anger, Meléndez-Badillo explains how Puerto Ricans have been denied the agency to address their deficient economy, which has fomented the populist demonstrations of today. He questions whether Puerto Rico should become a U.S. state or an independent nation, as the current situation is unsustainable. VERDICT Meléndez-Badillo does a good job of explaining Puerto Rico's complicated history. An essential addition to most libraries, for general readers of all types.—Caren Nichter

Library Journal