My GF and I will be spending a week in Punta Cana later this month. I’ve never been to the Dominican Republic before, and I like to educate myself about the places where I travel.
First question: Is there a history of the Dominican Republic (in English) that’s considered THE standard work? (I have a decent knowledge of general Caribbean history, and something fairly scholarly would be okay, although not required.)
I have read Hugh Thomas’ Rivers of Gold, but that’s both too general and too specific. (Too specific, in that it covers only about the first 30 years of the Spanish colonial empire, and too general in that it is not DR-centered.)
(I’m putting this is GQ, rather than CS, because nonfiction does not seem to be covered there, and it’s more of a factual question and not really a poll - I’m looking for the recognized leading work, if such a thing exists.)
Second question: Beyond the US State Department/CIA FactBook sites, are there any good online sources, in English? (I’m aware of some travel sites, including one that appears to be very good, but none that I’ve seen go into very much depth about the country and its history.)
The Dominican Republic, a National History by Frank Moya Pons is the definitive work although it is quite out of date.
Why the Cocks Fight by Michele Wucker is slightly more recent. It also includes a lot of material on Haiti.
In addition, there are several works of historical fiction worth reading, like Vargas Llosa’s The Feast of the Goat and Julia Alvarez’s In the Time of the Butterflies, both set in the DR in the mid- 20th century.
The good website you found is probably DR1.com. You could also try the Lonely Planet site.
You’re going to be a bit removed from things out there in Punta Cana: if you’re really interested in the country do your best to take a trip out of the resort and visit the capital and other sites of interest in the rest of the DR. If you just want to rest, relax and enjoy the beach, and the nearby attractions.
Thanks! I’ve ordered the Wucker book, but unfortunately the Moya Pons book is not immediately available from Amazon, for some reason.
Your link to dr1.com was also very helpful – I was not previously aware of that site.
I’m aware that Punta Cana is remote from most sites of historical interest. The destination choice was a trade-off, mainly for that reason. There is a tour to the capital that I’m looking into, but the travel time is a problem. I may have to do some negotiation with the GF to make that happen.