Customer Rating:  
Summary: Good
Comment: I rather enjoyed this book. It was an interesting historical account of Chavez and the rise of his movement (and himself) in Venezuela. I enjoyed reading about the coup in April 2003, and although I can appreciate people think the book is biased, I still thought it was insightful and interesting.
My only wish was that it had discussed the actual impact of Chavez's Bolivarian policies in Venezuela and how the lives of poor people have(or haven't) been improved since he came to power.
I would recommend this book to those who have an interest in the history of the country.
Customer Rating:
Summary: biased account of Chavez
Comment: I bought this book hoping to get an unbiased portrayal of chavez, but was rather disppointed by the sympathetic tone, callous narrative and undisguised affection the author has for chavez. The first two chapters were ineresting as it did give an insight into a man passionate about social justice, but the means to getting ths leaves you wondering if it is a genuine concern or a selfish indulgence...
Customer Rating:
Summary: Balanced, informative, well researched and well written
Comment: This book is extremely interesting , informative and well written - and covers Venezuelan history to put the present in context.
While sympathetic to Chavez the author does not hold back from criticising him or his government - for instance covering police murders of native Indians who were protesting against the construction of electricity pylons on their land.
The book goes far beyond the caricatures of Chavez presented by the American government and much of the American media. He also puts Chavez's government in context in history - as a reaction to the broken election pledges and the massacre of hundreds in the Caracazo by Chavez' predecessor Carlos Andres Perez who was praised as a 'democrat' by the Clinton administration.
It also covers the real events of the two US-backed coup attempts against Chavez by interviewing participants and marchers on both sides.Gott also interviews Venezuelan political opponents of Chavez both on the right and on the left.
Customer Rating:
Summary: simpatico
Comment: Richard Gott's very readable book gives a good overall picture of the man and his 'revolution' written from a sympathetic view point but not without crititism. Gives a needed background on where Chaves philosophy comes from (Simon Bolivar)and hopefully where Chaves would like it to lead, given a chance by the neo-cons and other opponents both internal and external. If this had happened during the cold war then Chaves and his supporters would all be long dead after some CIA sponsered coup as in Chile, Brazil, Argentina, Uruaguay, or military intervention a la El Salvador, Granada, etc. One very important thing to remember, Chaves is the result and product of totally free democratic elections as are the other, if rather softer, left leaders appearing all over Latin America the last decade.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Very disappointing
Comment: Whatever your opinion about Hugo Chavez, if you want real insights into his personality and politics, this books simply doesn't deliver. Instead, the author uses cliches and unsubstantiated arguments to promote his own (very positive) view of the man. He seems to have lost all critical facilities: hardly questioning what Chavez says, or quoting from other figures. Some of the most interesting questions about Chavez - how sustainable are his social policies, how he might give up power - are never addressed. The chapter on Colombia is particularly poor - anyone who believes that the country's illegal economy is bigger than its legal economy hasn't done their research. All this makes the book unenjoyable to read - and the author's dull travel notes do little to liven it up.
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