The Fish That Ate the Whale: The Life and Times of America's Banana King
by Rich Cohen
Description
From a penniless immigrant arriving in America in 1891 to one of the world’s most powerful men by the time of his death in New Orleans, Samuel Zemurray’s rise reads like an epic of ambition, reinvention, and ruthless deal-making. Tracing his journey from street-level fruit hustler to plantation owner and corporate titan, the story follows his relentless fight against the United Fruit Company and the vast, often brutal network of workers, soldiers, and political allies that helped him build a banana empire. With vivid historical storytelling, the book explores themes of capitalism and empire, the moral costs of power, and how American “opportunity” can shade into exploitation abroad. Rich Cohen’s narrative style blends biography and investigative history to reveal the best and worst of a system that could elevate one man while reshaping entire nations.
Available Editions
hardcover
Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Published Jan 1, 2012
270 pages
ISBN: 9780374299279
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Details
First Published
2012
Language
eng
Content Warnings
Content and trigger warnings for The Fish That Ate the Whale: The Life and Times of America's Banana King by Rich Cohen.