BEST NIGHTMARE ON EARTH: A Life in Haiti

New York, New York, U.S.A.: Prentice Hall Press, 1991. First Edition, First Printing 1st Printing. Hardcover. Fine/Fine. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Signed by author on title page. Introduction by Jan Morris. Beautiful.bizarre.dangerous.exotic, a Garden of Eden fallen into disrepair, a tiny nation of unimaginable misery and unpredictable grace, an island where life is a kind of literature, a world of 'unlimited possibility'. This is Herbert Gold's Haiti as seen over four decades, a country of extraordinary paradox and remarkable extremes--of gingerbread dream houses and wretched slums, of brutal repression and explosive creative energy. In his many Haitian travels, Gold has dined with Graham Greene and chatted with hated Duvalier oppressors. He has traded stories with CIA saboteurs, former Nazis, rum-soaked diplomats, and voodoo priests. He has taken in cockfights and hunted for pirate treasure. He has nearly died of malaria; he has faced machete-wielding gangs of ton-ton macoutes. He has listened to the steady beat of drums rolling down mist-shrouded mountains, and shared in the flirting, drinking, and laughter in the streets. He has captured the essence of this land where tragedy is the music people dance to. Gold reflects on the country's history and politics, culture and folklore, seeing Haiti through the eyes of a lover: impassioned, jealous, probing, ever alert, and alive. Fine, in fine, mylar-protected dust jacket. NF31