Formerly the viceregal capital of Spain's vast South American empire, Lima is today a sprawling metropolis struggling to cope with a population of eight million. Located on the coast between the Andean foothills and the Pacific Ocean, it is many cities in one, with an indigenous past, and old colonial heart the port of Callao, and turn-of-the-century quarters modelled on Paris. Leafy suburbs like San Isidro and tranquil seaside communities such as Barranco contrast with ever-expanding shantytowns. Lima has always dominated national life as the center of political and economic power. Long a stronghold of the European elite, the city is now home to millions of Peruvians from the Andean region as well as the descendans of African slaves and migrants from Europe, China and Japan. As a popular saying puts it, the whole of Peru is now in Lima. James Higgins explores the city's history and evolving identity as reflected in its architecture, literature, painting, and music. Tracing its trajectory from colonial enclave to modern metropolis, he reveals how the capital now embodies the diversity and dynamism of Peru itself.
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About the Author:
James Higgins is at University of Liverpool.
From Booklist:
Lima boasts a Nobel Prize-winning author (Mario Vargas Llosa) and a wealth of lesser known poets and novelists, who have created its rich literary history. Higgins, an academic specialist in Peruvian literature, quotes extensively from these writers as he chronicles Lima's history from its founding by conquistador Francisco Pizarro in 1535 to the political gyrations of recent decades. Most of all, Higgins encourages readers to linger in Lima instead of rushing through en route to Machu Picchu. Both works will reward the traveler in search of a city's character. Gilbert Taylor
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"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
- PublisherOxford University Press
- Publication date2005
- ISBN 10 0195178912
- ISBN 13 9780195178913
- BindingHardcover
- Number of pages264
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Rating