Shortlisted for the Jabuti Prize for the Best Brazilian Book Published Abroad. Engrossing, eye-opening, and an enormously refreshing treat, according to Dominic Sandbrook, Sunday Times.

Since Europeans first reached Brazil in 1500, it has been a source of extraordinary fascination. More than any other part of the New World, it displayed both the greatest beauty and grandeur while also witnessing scenes of terrible European ferocity. Its native people revolutionized Europe’s ideas of itself and faced extermination. For white settlers, Brazil's opportunities seemed endless, whereas for imported black slaves, it was a hell on earth.

Brazil: A Biography, written by two of Brazil's leading historians and a bestseller in Brazil, is a remarkable attempt to convey the overwhelming diversity and challenges of this vast country, larger than the contiguous USA and still in some regions not fully mapped. The book’s major themes include the near-continuous battles to establish political institutions and social frameworks that would facilitate stable growth, legal norms, and protection for all its citizens. Brazil's tragic failure to achieve these except in the very short term makes its narrative compelling. Even in the 21st century, it remains one of the world's great experiments—creative, harsh, unique, and captivating for both its inhabitants and outsiders.

Pages: 816, Dimensions: 13x13cm