An old book with an interesting history. It was written at the beginning of World War II by a desillusioned Austrian Jew, who fled to Brazil. He is so appalled by the horrors in Europe that he can only see Brazil in a divine light. Everything is perfect, and if it is not perfect, it only adds to the attraction. Despite living in this paradise on earth Stefan Zweig and his jewish wife commit suicide in Petropolis (near Rio de Janeiro) in 1942. In the introduction his overly positive view yields an interesting declaration of love that can be . In the rest of the book it becomes irritating at times especially when it is mixed with paternalistic descriptions of poors and blacks.
Stefan Zweig is bot the average travel writer. In France and in Russia he is considered one of the literary greats of the 20th century. This literary talent makes his history of Brazil the clearest and most readable I have seen so far. Besides the view from 1941 makes for interesting reading. Some problems still exist. Some disappeared and some just changed form. are no longer the romantic villages, but towns reigned by fear and criminals. There is no longer a lack of population but a lack of work. Brazil has become an industrialized country and soja is fast becoming the most important agricultural export product.
To sum it all up: the history chapter is perfect if you want to get a quick overview where Brazil came from. The rest is interesting but outdated and tells as much about Stefan Zweig as about Brazil. The question remains will Brazil always remain the land of the future?
