Benedita Da Silva: An Afro-Brazilian Woman's Story of Politics and Love

Rating:
Summary: RECOMMENDED for general readers interested in Brazil.
Review: It is a tempting to describe Benedita da Silva using labels: you may know that she was the first black woman in the Brazilian Senate or that, in spite of her national prominence, she still lives in the poor neighbourhood where she grew up. An autobiography offers the chance to learn more about her life than these obvious labels allow.

This short and highly readable book does indeed fill in some of the blanks for readers outside Brazil, who will find out more about, say, what it actually means to live in a favela (or slum). It is impossible, naturally, for Benedita to describe her life without considering how those slums came to be, and what should now be done to help the people who live there. Likewise, we may have heard that Brazil is a colourblind society, whereas Benedita's experiences, as a black person, lead her to see things differently. In this and other aspects of her life-as a woman, say, or as a rare combination of evangelical Christian and leftist politician-Benedita's memoirs naturally take us away from her particular circumstances and into areas of policy.

In some ways, then, the book is satisfying but necessarily limited. As an autobiography it usefully covers the main events in her life but does not try to go into much detail. She relates many brief episodes that make revealing, even startling, points about, say, racism or life in the favela-rather than a sustained account of (to take another example) just how she first came to be involved in the local community association.

On the other hand, her thumbnail sketches of current issues in Brazilian life and society-issues such as land reform, health and education, or the role of the churches-may indeed be helpful to those who know little about Brazil. Of course, given the nature of the book as a memoir, they don't enable us to get very far in analysing the relevant causes and prospects.

If my last two paragraphs appear negative, they are only intended to point out that the book is too short for us to find out what "really" makes Benedita tick, much less to cover the complexity of modern Brazil. Nevertheless, the book is helpful and the translator has certainly come up with an easy style that makes it a pleasure to read. Even though I was already quite familiar with Brazil (having lived there, and speaking Portuguese), I still found this book intriguing and enjoyable.

Rating:
Summary: RECOMMENDED for general readers interested in Brazil.
Review: It is a tempting to describe Benedita da Silva using labels: you may know that she was the first black woman in the Brazilian Senate or that, in spite of her national prominence, she still lives in the poor neighbourhood where she grew up. An autobiography offers the chance to learn more about her life than these obvious labels allow.

This short and highly readable book does indeed fill in some of the blanks for readers outside Brazil, who will find out more about, say, what it actually means to live in a favela (or slum). It is impossible, naturally, for Benedita to describe her life without considering how those slums came to be, and what should now be done to help the people who live there. Likewise, we may have heard that Brazil is a colourblind society, whereas Benedita's experiences, as a black person, lead her to see things differently. In this and other aspects of her life-as a woman, say, or as a rare combination of evangelical Christian and leftist politician-Benedita's memoirs naturally take us away from her particular circumstances and into areas of policy.

In some ways, then, the book is satisfying but necessarily limited. As an autobiography it usefully covers the main events in her life but does not try to go into much detail. She relates many brief episodes that make revealing, even startling, points about, say, racism or life in the favela-rather than a sustained account of (to take another example) just how she first came to be involved in the local community association.

On the other hand, her thumbnail sketches of current issues in Brazilian life and society-issues such as land reform, health and education, or the role of the churches-may indeed be helpful to those who know little about Brazil. Of course, given the nature of the book as a memoir, they don't enable us to get very far in analysing the relevant causes and prospects.

If my last two paragraphs appear negative, they are only intended to point out that the book is too short for us to find out what "really" makes Benedita tick, much less to cover the complexity of modern Brazil. Nevertheless, the book is helpful and the translator has certainly come up with an easy style that makes it a pleasure to read. Even though I was already quite familiar with Brazil (having lived there, and speaking Portuguese), I still found this book intriguing and enjoyable.