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The University of North Carolina Press
464 pp., 6.125 x 9.25, 16 illus., 4 figs., 12 tables, 2 maps, appends., notes, bibl., index
The Making of a Global Drug
Illuminating a hidden and fascinating chapter in the history of globalization, Paul Gootenberg chronicles the rise of one of the most spectacular and now illegal Latin American exports: cocaine.
Gootenberg traces cocaine's history from its origins as a medical commodity in the nineteenth century to its repression during the early twentieth century and its dramatic reemergence as an illicit good after World War II. Connecting the story of the drug's transformations is a host of people, products, and processes: Sigmund Freud, Coca-Cola, and Pablo Escobar all make appearances, exemplifying the global influences that have shaped the history of cocaine. But Gootenberg decenters the familiar story to uncover the roles played by hitherto obscure but vital Andean actors as well--for example, the Peruvian pharmacist who developed the techniques for refining cocaine on an industrial scale and the creators of the original drug-smuggling networks that decades later would be taken over by Colombian traffickers.
Andean Cocaine proves indispensable to understanding one of the most vexing social dilemmas of the late twentieth-century Americas: the American cocaine epidemic of the 1980s and, in its wake, the seemingly endless U.S. drug war in the Andes.
"An indispensable point of departure for serious students of [the history of the cocaine trade]."
--The Latin American Review of Books
"A sterling contribution to the literature of cocaine, and should be required reading for anyone seeking to understand cocaine in context."
--Drug War Chronicle
"Thorough, eminently readable, and fascinating. . . . This tour de force illustrates how a fresh, insightful focus on a single commodity can illuminate economic development, political and social concerns, shifting ideologies, and cultural change, both locally and globally. Highly recommended."
--Choice
"This is a scrupulously detailed historical account of both the coca leaf and cocaine as global commodities. It argues convincingly that most attempts to stamp them out have proved counterproductive, ignoring both the enormous differences between coca and cocaine, and the ancient history of coca leaf use by indigenous Andean peoples. A thoughtful contribution to the growing literature on commodity chains."
--Sidney W. Mintz, author of Sweetness and Power: The Place of Sugar in Modern History
"There is simply no other work comparable to Andean Cocaine. The methodology, the evidence, and the interpretations come together in mutually reinforcing ways that make this arresting study an outstanding example of what scholars in history and anthropology should aspire to in their own work."
--William O. Walker III, University of Toronto, author of Drug Trafficking in the Americas
"Andean Cocaine is an important intellectual achievement. Gootenberg uses a fluent narrative and a new and sophisticated interpretation to discuss the link between local and global events and to explain the roles played by unequal actors and institutions. A first-class book."
--Marcos Cueto, Instituto de Estudios Peruanos, Lima, Peru
Cloth: $65.00
Paper: $24.95
© 2009 The University of North Carolina Press
116 South Boundary Street, Chapel Hill, NC 27514-3808
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