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

Cloth

ISBN  978-0-8078-3229-5

Published: December 2008

Paper

ISBN  978-0-8078-5905-6

Published: December 2008

Andean Cocaine

The Making of a Global Drug

By Paul Gootenberg

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Awards & Distinctions

A Choice Outstanding Academic Title

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.

About the Author

Paul Gootenberg is professor of history at Stony Brook University in New York and author or editor of four other books, including Between Silver and Guano: Commercial Policies and the State in Postindependence Peru.

Reviews

"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

"A book of great insight and academic rigor . . . that unearths this forgotten history."
--Caretas

"Puts the discussion into a global perspective. . . . Gootenberg thus joins a distinguished group of scholars. . . . Indispensable reading for graduate seminars on economic, cultural, and social history, and shall appeal not only to experts on Latin American but also to world historians and those interested in comparative history."
--New Americas

"Excellent. . . . Gootenberg offers a critical perspective on the place of cocaine in the Western imaginary and in the real political and economic world."
--Comparative Studies in Society and Culture