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Enslaving Spirits: The Portuguese-Brazilian Alcohol Trade at Luanda and Its Hinterland, 1500-1830. By José C. Curto. Leiden and Boston: Brill, 2004. Pp. xi, 252; 25 graphs; 11 maps and illustrations. $93.00/euro 74.00 cloth.
In seven heavily documented chapters supported with a good number of graphs, several maps, and illustrations, José Curto investigates how the Portuguese/Brazilian alcohol trade developed in Luanda and its hinterland from 1550 to 1830. The author's purpose is to provide a corrective to the study of commodity trade in Africa by applying to this study the sophisticated rigor that scholars have brought to the study of kola, maize, and salt in other regions of Africa.
The bulk of the book is taken up with providing descriptive and statistical evidence that demonstrates how Portuguese wine and brandy and...