Life and Death in the Andes

On the Trail of Bandits, Heroes, and Revolutionaries

By: Kim MacQuarrie

Narrated by: Jonathan Yen

The Andes Mountains are the world's longest mountain chain, linking most of the countries in South America. Emmy Award-winning filmmaker and author Kim MacQuarrie takes us on a historical journey through this unique region, bringing fresh insight and contemporary connections to such fabled characters as Charles Darwin, Pablo Escobar, Che Guevara, and many others. He introduces us to a Patagonian woman who is the last living speaker of her language as he explores the disappearance and sometimes surprising resiliency of indigenous cultures throughout the Andes. He meets a man whose grandfather witnessed Butch Cassidy's last days in Bolivia and tracks down the ballet dancer who once hid the leader of the brutal Shining Path in her home.

Through the stories he shares, MacQuarrie raises such questions as: Where did the people of South America come from? Did they create or import their cultures? What makes South America different from other continents - and what makes the cultures of the Andes different from other cultures in South America? Deeply observed and beautifully written, Life and Death in the Andes shows us this land as no one has before.

©2015 Kim MacQuarrie (P)2015 Tantor

Critic reviews

"A thoughtfully observed travel memoir and history." ( Kirkus)

"MacQuarrie spectacularly describes the Andes...This is a well-written, immersive work that history aficionados, particularly those with an) affinity for Latin America, will relish." ( Library Journal)
"MacQuarrie is a master storyteller whose cinematic eye always shines through.” ( BookPage)

MUST Listen for South America

A MUST listen if your planning a holiday to South America. Rich, full of history and just great easy fasinating story telling loved it!

Disappointed

I love his “The Last Days of the Incas” so much. This one was not nearly as good. He writes with bias and subjectivity instead of maintaining an objective tone. His appreciation for Che Guevara and Evo Morales was particularly not easy to stomach, especially since Evo showed his true colors after this book’s publication when he knowingly tried to manipulate Bolivian votes to secure a fourth term. We get it, MacQuarrie, climate change is important to you. After your long chapter on Galápagos Islands and Darwin, did we really need more Darwin in the last chapter? I loved the Escobar and Shining Path chapters, but that’s about it. I’d bet MacQuarrie has a Che t-shirt.

Full of Exciting Stories

Though, seemingly not many people have read this book, it is a must read in my mind. The book expands on many exciting and wonderfull stories within the adveturerus regions of the Andes. I could not set the book down, it kept me well entertained and spurred lots of emotion within me. I have gained amazing insights not only into the region but also into many other important aspects of man and the world. Highly recommend!!

Another Great by Kim MacQuarrie

Kim MacQuarrie's book The Last Days of the Inca was one of my favorite books ever. So even though this book's synopsis didn't really catch me I decided to listen. I'm glad I did. This book has a wide range of stories throughout all of South American Andean history, a lot of it I either didn't know outright or knew only small portions of. I think most people with a terse love of history will like this book if they listen to it, if you love history books you'll definitely enjoy this. I judge a lot of books based on if I think I could see myself listening to them twice and this one I could definitely listen to a few times and pick up things I missed the first few times.