From the Book - First American edition.
Introduction: "Brazil is just nearby"
First came the name, and then the land called Brazil
The sugar civilization: bitter for the many, sweet for a few
Tit for tat: slavery and the naturalization of violence
Revolt, conspiracy and sedition in the tropical paradise
Ship ahoy! a court at sea
Dom João and his court in the tropics
The father leaves, the son remains
Independence habemus: instability in the First empire
Regencies, or the sound of silence
The second reign: at last, a nation in the tropics
The end of the monarchy in Brazil
The first republic: the people take to the streets
Samba, malandragem, authoritarianism: the birth of modern Brazil
The 1950s and 1960s: bossa- nova, democracy and underdevelopment
On a knife edge: dictatorship, opposition and resistance
On the path to democracy: the transition to civilian power and the ambiguities and legacy of the military dictatorship
Conclusion: history is not arithmetic.
