I’m not a dispassionate reader. I have been to Haiti twice and, alongside my wife, have participated in humanitarian projects and worship services. We love the people and the country. That’s why this book is so devastating to read.

Haiti’s history began with a massive slave revolt. It was the first successful revolt in history. Obviously, slave-owning nations wanted nothing to do with this country (other than to re-enslave it)—what if these ideas spread?

Consider also the internal problems. Haiti’s wealth was in sugar plantations. How would freed slaves engage the system that had kept them in chains?

In Haiti: The Aftershocks of History, Dubois shows how this founding narrative has impacted all of Haiti’s subsequent history. He shows how the United States used Haiti for its own ends in a 20th century military invasion. He shows how actions have consequences.

Haiti: The Aftershocks of History is a detailed and insightful retelling of the history of a country and people I have learned to love.

—Laurent Dubois, Haiti: The Aftershocks of History (New York: Metropolitan Books, 2012).