Stolen Continents: The "New World" Through Indian Eyes - Softcover

Ronald Wright

Softcover

ISBN 10: 014013932X ISBN 13: 9780140139327

Publisher: Penguin Canada, 1993

Synopsis

In many Eurocentric histories, Europe's discovery and conquest of the Americas is described as a great saga of achievement. In this seminal book, Ronald Wright tells the story of the people who already lived in the Americas at the time of the European conquest. It's a story of plague and invasion that crippled great civilizations and killed one fifth of the human race.

Weaving together contemporary accounts of native peoples with his own compelling historical narrative, Wright has assembled a powerful account of what he terms "a holocaust that began five centuries ago."

About this title

About the Author

Ronald Wright is the internationally acclaimed, bestselling author of several non-fiction books, including A Short History of Progress, Stolen Continents (which won the Gordon Montador Award), and Cut Stones and Crossroads. He is also the author of the novels Henderson's Spear and A Scientific Romance, the latter of which won Britain's David Higham Prize for Fiction. He was born in England, educated at Cambridge, and now lives in British Columbia.

Review

“For five centuries, the Indians of the Americas have doggedly recorded the shocking story of their subjugation by whites.... Ronald Wright has woven their voices into a compelling narrative.” - The Globe and Mail

“Ronald Wright turns his considerable narrative skill to the other side of the story that began in 1492.... This is a fine and thought-provoking rendering of what [he] calls a ‘holocaust that began five centuries ago.’” - The Washington Post

“A stunning book, a non-fiction tour de force.” - Calgary Herald

“Finally, history through Indian eyes. It’s about time.... And Wright’s a first-class storyteller.” - Toronto Star

“A magnificent feat of research, writing, and perception adjustment.... Makes history come alive.” - Seattle Times

“[Wright] writes brilliantly and with a very uncommon level of empathy and sensitivity.... No one is better at showing how the past infuses and, in most cases, continues to blight the present.” - Larry McMurtry, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Lonesome Dove

“[This] is the most gut-wrenching account of man’s inhumanity to man I have ever read. Superbly rendered and ruthlessly truthful, the voices of the victims conjured by Ronald Wright tell us the diabolic truth about ourselves.” - Farley Mowat

“A thoroughly documented polemical work of great persuasive force.” - The Sunday Telegraph (U.K.)

“Moving and insightful.... Serves to illuminate the moral complexities of our past and to remind us that much business begun in 1492 remains unfinished.” - Houston Chronicle

“Stolen Continents [is] among the most useful, most interesting, best informed, and most wrenching reflections yet inspired by ... Columbus’s voyage.” - Boston Globe

“Excellent.... Redresses the balance between the invaders and the invaded.” - The Sunday Times (U.K.)

“These are real stories, told by a wonderful storyteller.” - The Gazette (Montreal)

“A powerful lament for the American Indians.... All who are interested in the clash between European and American cultures should read this well-written book.... They will be moved to compassion and outrage.” - History Today

Edition details

• Publisher: Penguin Canada
• Publication date: 1993
• ISBN 10: 014013932X
• ISBN 13: 9780140139327
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 424