The Fish That Ate the Whale
Books | History / Americas (North, Central, South, West Indies)
4.3
Rich Cohen
Named a Best Book of the Year by the San Francisco Chronicle and The Times-Picayune The fascinating untold tale of Samuel Zemurray, the self-made banana mogul who went from penniless roadside banana peddler to kingmaker and capitalist revolutionary When Samuel Zemurray arrived in America in 1891, he was tall, gangly, and penniless. When he died in the grandest house in New Orleans sixty-nine years later, he was among the richest, most powerful men in the world. Working his way up from a roadside fruit peddler to conquering the United Fruit Company, Zemurray became a symbol of the best and worst of the United States: proof that America is the land of opportunity, but also a classic example of the corporate pirate who treats foreign nations as the backdrop for his adventures. Zemurray lived one of the great untold stories of the last hundred years. Starting with nothing but a cart of freckled bananas, he built a sprawling empire of banana cowboys, mercenary soldiers, Honduran peasants, CIA agents, and American statesmen. From hustling on the docks of New Orleans to overthrowing Central American governments and precipitating the bloody thirty-six-year Guatemalan civil war, the Banana Man lived a monumental and sometimes dastardly life. Rich Cohen's brilliant historical profile The Fish That Ate the Whale unveils Zemurray as a hidden power broker, driven by an indomitable will to succeed.
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Author
Rich Cohen
Pages
288
Publisher
Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Published Date
2012-06-05
ISBN
1429946296 9781429946292
Community ReviewsSee all
"The life of Sam Zemurray, the banana man who amassed a fortune…with bananas. One of the more interesting and polarizing stories I’ve read. Zemurray has at best a checkered past but in a lot ways, it represents much of how America was really built, flaws and all. A man who championed many good causes with his money also helped overthrow governments and abuse cheap labor, all in the name of one of the most eaten fruits. "
"The Fish That Ate The Whale - The Life and Times of America's Banana King is an unabashedly sensationalist account of the life of Samuel Zemurray.<br/><br/>To be fair, it is a sensational story. Rising from his impoverished Jewish immigrant background to become one of the wealthiest and most powerful men in the United States, Sam Zemurray overthrew governments in Honduras and Guatemala and was (allegedly) instrumental in the creation of the Israeli state. His tactics were a model for the CIA's overthrow of other governments around the world. A mixed legacy, but impressive nonetheless.<br/><br/>But it's hard not to root for Sam the Banana Man throughout the book. Particularly at the beginning of his career, he was the ultimate outsider. But man did he hustle. From selling overripe bananas out of a boxcar to sticking it to JP Morgan by loading up a boat of firearms and overthrowing the Honduran government to derail an unfavorable trade deal, you have to admire the guy's force of will.<br/><br/>I do have a couple of complaints with the book though. The author, Rich Cohen, writes in an overenthusiastic, borderline reckless style. He tries to add color to the story, but does so without sources. He tries to be too cute, with the result that the reader doesn't actually know which of his claims can be trusted. For example, re. Huey Long: <br/><br/><blockquote>So no, I’m not saying Zemurray was behind the assassination of Huey Long, knew about it in advance, or did anything other than mourn when he got the news. But the fact is, the few men stupid enough to outrage Sam Zemurray, to challenge him, or disrespect him, or get in his way, from Miguel Davila to Huey Long, had a habit of coming to a bad end.</blockquote><br/><br/>What am I supposed to do with this?! Cohen also has an abiding obsession with Zemurray's Jewishness, despite Zemurray's demonstrated detachment from the faith (none of his children were raised Jewish or married Jews). Cohen speculates about what Zemurray thought about his religious identity (based on what evidence?) and really plays up his support of the Israeli state based on little but his friendship with Chaim Weizmann. Maybe there were a bunch of anonymous donations and smoky backroom deals? Cohen is clearly pushing an agenda here - which would be fine if there was evidence to support it, but I couldn't see any.<br/><br/>But overall, this was a quick, fun read. Certainly an aspect of American history that doesn't receive much play in the history books.<br/><br/>Full review with highlights at http://books.max-nova.com/2016/04/the-fish-that-ate-the-whale.html"
"Agreed!!"
S K
Sophie Kelly
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