SALVADOR ALLENDE

by Hedda Garza ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 22, 1989

In the ""World Leaders, Past & Present"" series, a biography of Chile's last freely-elected leader, a socialist. Following a brief history of Chile, Garza details Allende's political life, including his famous relatives, boyhood, and his career as a party leader, member of Congress, Minister of Health, and--after losing three elections--his three-year span as president before being assassinated during Pinochet's military takeover. The US government and firms like ITT are shown as responsible for wreaking economic havoc in Chile, and sending money and the CIA to oust Allende in order to protect Yankee interests. While fairly thorough and up-to-date here, Garza fails to define such important terms as ""left-wing,"" ""socialist,"" and ""communist"" in this context, making the plethora of political parties hard to tell apart. Personal triumphs that might have added interest, like winning the decathlon in Chile's Youth Games, are mentioned only in passing; the textbook style makes for dry reading. Still, this will be a good resource for reports, lllustrated with photos; supplemented with quotes; list for further reading; chronology; index.

Pub Date: March 22, 1989

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: 111

Publisher: Chelsea House

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 1989

Categories: CHILDREN'S