An adventurous, dazzling, and innovative historical work about South America's forgotten past and its unexpected transition.

Patria tells an alternative history of South America, covering thousands of miles and five centuries up to the present day. Laurence Blair, looking beyond modern territorial borders, references nine countries that cannot be found on a map: vanished kingdoms, semi-visible utopias, and fragmented homelands.

Blair's journey spans from ancient Amazonian city-states and an insurgent Inca dynasty in the jungle – through a Brazilian Wakanda that defied slavery, Bolivia's navy without access to the sea, and the Patagonian power that defeated the Spaniards – to African liberators who crossed the Andes and Napoleon's New World which led Paraguay to destruction.

Revelatory recent research, impressive archaeological discoveries, and vivid testimonies – including encounters with drug lords, indigenous leaders, refugees, and former rebels – weave a story of survival, resistance, and revolution, restoring South America to the heart of world history.

Pages: 448, Dimensions: 12.9x12.9cm