Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
John Le Carré
The Tailor of Panama
. With an explicit nod to Graham Greene's
Our Man
in Havana
, this satirical spy thriller is a classic. Set just before the US handover of the Canal,
a young unscrupulous British agent embarks on an elaborate fiction of intrigue. While both
American and British intelligence services are lampooned as much as Panamanian high soci-
ety, the novel, nevertheless, caused some upset in Panama on its publication.
Enrique Jaramillo Levi
The Shadow: Thirteen Stories in Opposition
. Short stories by
Panama's pre-eminent (post)modern writer, though some tales are scarcely more than vign-
ettes. You'll either be seduced by the originality of his imagination and fluid prose or left
baffled and irritated as meaning slips through your grasp. More accessible is his edited collec-
tion of short stories by Costa Rican and Panamanian women,
When New Flowers Bloomed
,
tackling a range of subjects from gender relations to political events.
William Penn
The Panama Conspiracy
. A thriller which manages improbably to link all the
US enemies, from Fidel Castro through Red China to Osama Bin Laden, in a complex plot
culminating in a plan to blockade the Panama Canal.
Eric Zencey
Panama
. All but the first chapter is actually set in Paris with a deftly drawn
cast of real and imagined characters woven into a historically intriguing murder mystery that
centres on the financial scandal surrounding the Panama Canal debacle.
BIOGRAPHY AND MEMOIRS
Darrin Du Ford
Is There a Hole in my Boat? Tales of Travel in Panama Without a Car
.
The author sets out to explore Panama using public transport or hitching a lift, by dugout or
on foot, aiming to get closer to the life and culture of the people than the average tourist; he
never seems to turn down a new experience.
Christian Giudice
Hands of Stone: The Life and Legend of Roberto Durán
. Meticulously
researched biography of Panama's most famous boxer and one of the sport's all-time greats,
drawing on plenty of fascinating, original interview material. A warts-and-all rags to riches
tale that tracks his rise to fame from the slums of Panama City, giving a view of his contra-
dictory character inside and outside the ring.
Graham Greene
Getting to Know the General: The Story of an Involvement
. Greene
provides a personal slant on Omar Torrijos, the country's most charismatic leader, whom the
author befriended during his time in troubled late 1970s and early 1980s Panama.
Malcolm Henderson
Don't Kill the Cow Too Quick: An Englishman's Adventures
Homesteading in Panama
. Entertaining and informative, especially for expats thinking of fol-
lowing a dream, this guide follows a couple's retirement in Bocas in the late 1990s, where
they eventually established an organic farm.
