Things Are Never So Bad That They Can't Get Worse: Inside the Collapse of Venezuela
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- Author：William Neuman
- ISBN：1250266165
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Summary
Richly reported。。。a thorough and important history。" -Tim Padgett， The New York Times
A nuanced and deeply-reported account of the collapse of Venezuela， and what it could mean for the rest of the world。
Today， Venezuela is a country of perpetual crisis—a country of rolling blackouts， nearly worthless currency， uncertain supply of water and food， and extreme poverty。 In the same land where oil—the largest reserve in the world—sits so close to the surface that it bubbles from the ground， where gold and other mineral resources are abundant， and where the government spends billions of dollars on public works projects that go abandoned， the supermarket shelves are bare and the hospitals have no medicine。 Twenty percent of the population has fled， creating the largest refugee exodus in the world， rivaling only war-torn Syria’s crisis。 Venezuela’s collapse affects all of Latin America， as well as the United States and the international community。
Republicans like to point to Venezuela as the perfect example of the emptiness of socialism， but it is a better model for something else: the destructive potential of charismatic populist leadership。 The ascent of Hugo Chávez was a precursor to the emergence of strongmen that can now be seen all over the world， and the success of the corrupt economy he presided over only lasted while oil sold for more than $100 a barrel。 Chávez’s regime and policies， which have been reinforced under Nicolás Maduro， squandered abundant resources and ultimately bankrupted the country。
Things Are Never So Bad That They Can’t Get Worse is a fluid combination of journalism， memoir， and history that chronicles Venezuela’s tragic journey from petro-riches to poverty。 Author William Neuman witnessed it all firsthand while living in Caracas and serving as the New York Times Andes Region Bureau Chief。 His book paints a clear-eyed， riveting， and highly personal portrait of the crisis unfolding in real time， with all of its tropical surrealism， extremes of wealth and suffering， and gripping drama。 It is also a heartfelt reflection of the country’s great beauty and vibrancy—and the energy， passion， and humor of its people， even under the most challenging circumstances。
A nuanced and deeply-reported account of the collapse of Venezuela， and what it could mean for the rest of the world。
Today， Venezuela is a country of perpetual crisis—a country of rolling blackouts， nearly worthless currency， uncertain supply of water and food， and extreme poverty。 In the same land where oil—the largest reserve in the world—sits so close to the surface that it bubbles from the ground， where gold and other mineral resources are abundant， and where the government spends billions of dollars on public works projects that go abandoned， the supermarket shelves are bare and the hospitals have no medicine。 Twenty percent of the population has fled， creating the largest refugee exodus in the world， rivaling only war-torn Syria’s crisis。 Venezuela’s collapse affects all of Latin America， as well as the United States and the international community。
Republicans like to point to Venezuela as the perfect example of the emptiness of socialism， but it is a better model for something else: the destructive potential of charismatic populist leadership。 The ascent of Hugo Chávez was a precursor to the emergence of strongmen that can now be seen all over the world， and the success of the corrupt economy he presided over only lasted while oil sold for more than $100 a barrel。 Chávez’s regime and policies， which have been reinforced under Nicolás Maduro， squandered abundant resources and ultimately bankrupted the country。
Things Are Never So Bad That They Can’t Get Worse is a fluid combination of journalism， memoir， and history that chronicles Venezuela’s tragic journey from petro-riches to poverty。 Author William Neuman witnessed it all firsthand while living in Caracas and serving as the New York Times Andes Region Bureau Chief。 His book paints a clear-eyed， riveting， and highly personal portrait of the crisis unfolding in real time， with all of its tropical surrealism， extremes of wealth and suffering， and gripping drama。 It is also a heartfelt reflection of the country’s great beauty and vibrancy—and the energy， passion， and humor of its people， even under the most challenging circumstances。
Reviews
Stuart Marques
，
A Book So Good It Could Never Get BetterDeeply reported and written from the heart Willie Neuman’s book tells the riveting tale of a country that would be rich and prosperous if it’s leaders and their cronies hadn’t looted and raped it。
Deb
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Things Are Never So Bad That They Can’t Get Worse by William Neuman #StMartinsPress#NetGalleyMr。 Neuman has done his homework in this excellent， comprehensive book on the many things that may have led to the near demise of Venezuela。 This book covers the years of the 1970s to the present。 There are many interesting first-hand interviews with Venezuelans in the know。 Same for many who have left their fatherland for greener pastures， having finally given up any hope for change in the land they lov Things Are Never So Bad That They Can’t Get Worse by William Neuman #StMartinsPress#NetGalleyMr。 Neuman has done his homework in this excellent， comprehensive book on the many things that may have led to the near demise of Venezuela。 This book covers the years of the 1970s to the present。 There are many interesting first-hand interviews with Venezuelans in the know。 Same for many who have left their fatherland for greener pastures， having finally given up any hope for change in the land they love。 Who’s to blame？ Hugo Chávez？ Nicolás Maduro？ Juan Guaidó？ Perhaps they share an equal portion of blame for their greed， negligence and incompetence。 Citizens are starving， in poor health and living in hovels while their lives completely fall apart。 Leaders are never hungry and carry on doing nothing to help as the country goes bankrupt。 It doesn’t matter who gets elected， as nothing changes。 Life only gets more violent and scarier as the years roll on and promises are broken。 Mr。 Neuman tells all in this well written， well told story of the sad demise of Venezuela。 。。。more
Ethan Knecht
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Excellent overview of Venezuela’s modern history， especially post 1998。 Decently balanced， and the author’s narrative concept of interposing the wider history with the country-wide blackout makes the book especially engaging。 One of the best Latin America books I’ve read this year
Kiki Z
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I can't speak to the veracity of the information， and I could've used fewer metaphors and similies and purple prose descriptions， but it flowed very well and was easy to listen to。 I can't speak to the veracity of the information， and I could've used fewer metaphors and similies and purple prose descriptions， but it flowed very well and was easy to listen to。 。。。more
Cesar Santamaria
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Its an amazing book filled with both personal anecdotes， history and a lot of events and dates that you can go search and read/watch for yourself online， then go back to the book and connect the dots between the narration and what was happening in real time; that's a masterful storytelling achievement in my opinion。（ultra spoilers ahead！）The sad conclusion is that Chavez only took what was already done （live out of Oil riches as much as possible until the collapse; then start again） painted it i Its an amazing book filled with both personal anecdotes， history and a lot of events and dates that you can go search and read/watch for yourself online， then go back to the book and connect the dots between the narration and what was happening in real time; that's a masterful storytelling achievement in my opinion。（ultra spoilers ahead！）The sad conclusion is that Chavez only took what was already done （live out of Oil riches as much as possible until the collapse; then start again） painted it in "revolutionary red" color and kept running with it until he died。 Maduro has tried to do the same， the problem is that oil is no longer high and the state oil company is in shambles; so he has no money to cover his massive mistakes like Chavez and others before him had。 He is just another dictator of a severely decimated country like his colleagues in Cuba， N。Korea， Nicaragua， etc。 with a lot of critics in exile， dissilutioned citizens that could not leave and only a handful of blind 'believers' and other of 'comrades' that want to keep the status quo to steal what's left until the end。Something nice was to see all the craftiness of the people interviewed that were still fighting against their terrible conditions。 They manage to reinvent themselves over and over again， only to be pulled back again by either the bad environment or the goverment screwing them over; and THEN they come up again with new ideas to keep on surviving and at least thrive for a little while。 I really hope this resilience can be compensated with a return to a government that gives them a better expectation of the future。 I'll quote mrs。 "Ester Silva"， a voter interviewed that said:I want to be a citizen。 I'm tired of being 'the people' 。。。more
Sam McCarthy
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I went in with no expectations， having little more than a casual interest in Venezuela’s “Bolivarian Revolution” and its subsequent collapse。 Suffice to say that I was utterly blown away by Neuman’s work， an elegant， stirring， and effortless blend of straightforward social science with journalism and memoir。 In his travels around crisis-stricken Venezuela， Neuman strikes the perfect balance between empathy for the country’s citizens and indignation at the country’s leadership， who are equal part I went in with no expectations， having little more than a casual interest in Venezuela’s “Bolivarian Revolution” and its subsequent collapse。 Suffice to say that I was utterly blown away by Neuman’s work， an elegant， stirring， and effortless blend of straightforward social science with journalism and memoir。 In his travels around crisis-stricken Venezuela， Neuman strikes the perfect balance between empathy for the country’s citizens and indignation at the country’s leadership， who are equal parts nefarious and incompetent。 Neuman detests the Chavistas’ corruption， haplessness， and lust for power， but he is no neocon——often criticizing the Venezuelan opposition， American intervention in Latin America， and the oil-centric political paradigm that dominated Venezuela prior to Chavez and ultimately paved the way for him。Neuman covers nearly everything I hoped to learn about Venezuela: the rise of Chavez; the brutal reign of Maduro; the crushing economic logic of the country’s post-2015 collapse， which constitutes perhaps the worst peacetime crisis faced by a country in the 21st century。 But this exposition serves primarily to contextualize Neuman’s strikingly thoughtful portraits of everyday Venezuelans as they struggle to make sense of their country collapsing around them。 。。。more
J。J。
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"This isn't the socialism they dreamed about" An in-depth look into how power can become corrupt and the growing divide between the haves and have nots in Venezuela。 Eye opening and shows the harshness of leftist government when it's all about the person on top and not the people the top serves。 Excellent journalistic reporting on a very difficult and heart wrenching investigation。 "This isn't the socialism they dreamed about" An in-depth look into how power can become corrupt and the growing divide between the haves and have nots in Venezuela。 Eye opening and shows the harshness of leftist government when it's all about the person on top and not the people the top serves。 Excellent journalistic reporting on a very difficult and heart wrenching investigation。 。。。more
Grant
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An excellent， gut punch of a book that gives you a visceral sense of life in Venezuela。 Neuman ably ties anecdotes of everyday life to themes and historical information， and the book covers quite a broad base。I did have some quibbles。 I feel like Neuman obviously knows the country and he is generally quite evenhanded。 The Chavez/Maduro governments' failures and repressions， as exemplified by the disastrous abortive megaprojects， generally speak for themselves。 But if you were to read this book i An excellent， gut punch of a book that gives you a visceral sense of life in Venezuela。 Neuman ably ties anecdotes of everyday life to themes and historical information， and the book covers quite a broad base。I did have some quibbles。 I feel like Neuman obviously knows the country and he is generally quite evenhanded。 The Chavez/Maduro governments' failures and repressions， as exemplified by the disastrous abortive megaprojects， generally speak for themselves。 But if you were to read this book in a vacuum， you might be left with the impression that the US and the West in general was essentially hands-off until Trump took office。 Neuman appropriately notes the countervailing US political forces and patronage responsible for the sanctions， but I don't know if he dwells enough on how punitive they are， nor how much of the Chavez regime's failings may have resulted from the external pressures acting upon it。 The audiobook narration is tonally appropriate and narrated well， but the technical aspects were distracting to me。 There are many， many times where the audio quality shifts and there seem to be re-recorded clips spliced in。 。。。more
Giancarlo Di Biase Troccoli
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I am really happy to see a book that covers the situation in a balanced way and covers the whole spectrum of society。 As someone who grew up in Venezuela， the situation was so polarized that you never got the chance to understand the other side。 It was always seen as "us vs them" and nobody listened to each other。 This book clearly states this political division and tries to cover the point of view of the very poor， the rich， the opposition， chavismo， among many others。 Not only that， it covers I am really happy to see a book that covers the situation in a balanced way and covers the whole spectrum of society。 As someone who grew up in Venezuela， the situation was so polarized that you never got the chance to understand the other side。 It was always seen as "us vs them" and nobody listened to each other。 This book clearly states this political division and tries to cover the point of view of the very poor， the rich， the opposition， chavismo， among many others。 Not only that， it covers the impact on the economy and society from historical and current point of views。With all the misinformation going around in the country， it is refreshing to see a well-written book that fact checks every story and the numbers associated with it。 I felt I got "behind-the-scene" information from events I saw live on TV， Twitter or even Whatsapp messages。 I learned new things about the country I hold dearly and got sad about the current state of it。 Coincidentally， I left Venezuela in 2012 when the author just arrived。 So it was a way for me to follow someone who lived the years in Venezuela when I wasn't。Overall， a fun and informative read that I will share with friends， family， and anybody that asks me why Venezuela is in a crisis！ Thank you to the author for all the hard work in getting this book into reality。 。。。more
Joseph Kibera
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Things really can get much worse than they are at present :））） Great read
Nicole D。
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When I first started this book I was pretty engaged。 Venezuela is a country I know very little about and the book is essentially a series of articles。 Over time the format of the book wore thin。 I'm also given to understand that this book has a very pro-United States point of view， when in fact the US is at least partially responsible for what happened there。 It's awful。 But if you are looking for an objective history of Venezuela， you'll likely need to look elsewhere。Author seems pretty convinc When I first started this book I was pretty engaged。 Venezuela is a country I know very little about and the book is essentially a series of articles。 Over time the format of the book wore thin。 I'm also given to understand that this book has a very pro-United States point of view， when in fact the US is at least partially responsible for what happened there。 It's awful。 But if you are looking for an objective history of Venezuela， you'll likely need to look elsewhere。Author seems pretty convinced that Chavez and Moduro dug the grave， and the Trump admin came in and threw the dirt on it。 I'm not sure that's the whole story。 。。。more
Mark
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Wow。 Not only does this book hit hard， but it's backed up by a lot of primary sources and great writing。 The author manages to explore the subject of Venezuela's collapse with a journalistic eye， something that is sorely missing these days in books of this genre。Important political and historical events are presented in a way that is easy to understand， and that information is intertwined with the stories of real people who went through the situations in question。 This results in a very rich pre Wow。 Not only does this book hit hard， but it's backed up by a lot of primary sources and great writing。 The author manages to explore the subject of Venezuela's collapse with a journalistic eye， something that is sorely missing these days in books of this genre。Important political and historical events are presented in a way that is easy to understand， and that information is intertwined with the stories of real people who went through the situations in question。 This results in a very rich presentation of the country's downward spiral and the factors that generated it。More than anything， this book serves as a case study of what a national commodity-based economy looks like when there is a boom and the profits are badly managed by politicians。 It has happened several times in the past decades， but it just so happens that Venezuela had a lot of factors aligned for it to be crushed by the bust。Absolutely a recommended read for anyone， but especially to those who study politics。p 。。。more
Charlie
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Half on-the-ground journalism， half history， this book provided an excellent background into Venezuela and its economic/political/social woes。
Denis Vasilev
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История Венесуэлы в рассказах разных ее граждан， записанная американским журналистом-демократом。 Как же богатейшая страна стала беднейшей？ 6 мил из 30 мил населения пришлось бежать из страны。 ВВП просел на 60%， больше чем мог бы в случае войны。 Минус - перенос внутриамериканской ругани во внешнюю среду - критика республиканцев， Трампа。
Stacy
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In Things Are Never So Bad That They Can't Get Worse: Inside the Collapse of Venezuela， William Neuman details the collapse of Venezuela over the last few decades。 So many Venezuelans face extreme poverty despite the abundance of oil in the country， unable to get sufficient food or proper medical care， even dealing with rolling blackouts。 Twenty percent of the population has fled the country。 Interspersed with the history of the country， Neuman includes stories from those he has interviewed dur In Things Are Never So Bad That They Can't Get Worse: Inside the Collapse of Venezuela， William Neuman details the collapse of Venezuela over the last few decades。 So many Venezuelans face extreme poverty despite the abundance of oil in the country， unable to get sufficient food or proper medical care， even dealing with rolling blackouts。 Twenty percent of the population has fled the country。 Interspersed with the history of the country， Neuman includes stories from those he has interviewed during his trips to Venezeula。Prior to reading this book， I knew that the living conditions in Venezuela were terrible for so many， but I didn’t know the details of how it had become this way。 Neuman broke it down into easily understandable bits and made the story engaging by including the personal stories from interviews。 I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in politics or the world。Many thanks to NetGalley for providing me an audio ARC of this book。 。。。more
Logan Lewis
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I appreciated learning more about the history of Venezuela， and was sucked in by the narrative explaining the most recent events in the country。 The author’s approach was a little heavy handed and I felt some of his comparisons were narrow minded。 Though the author did entrance me with stories of the beautiful country and its people with all their complexity of hope， resilience， and singular focus。
BookStarRaven
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Quick Take: For the Venezuelan people， things are never so bad they can’t get worse。 Things are Never so Bad They Can’t Get Worse by William Neumann is the heart wrenching story of Venezuela。 A few years ago， I visited Peru。 The friend I was visiting pointed out some Venezuelans working in different industries and said “these are Venezuelans， they have left their country and come to Peru to find work。 They want to go back but there is nothing to go back to。” Listening to this book， I often felt Quick Take: For the Venezuelan people， things are never so bad they can’t get worse。 Things are Never so Bad They Can’t Get Worse by William Neumann is the heart wrenching story of Venezuela。 A few years ago， I visited Peru。 The friend I was visiting pointed out some Venezuelans working in different industries and said “these are Venezuelans， they have left their country and come to Peru to find work。 They want to go back but there is nothing to go back to。” Listening to this book， I often felt like I was listening to a post-apocalyptic tale。 In economics， there’s a theory called the Resource Curse。 It describes how resource wealth perverts the incentives in a country。 Resource money goes to the government and the government hands it out to the people which in turn creates a powerful centralized government， this is the story of Venezuela。 When Hugo Chavez came to power in 1999 the country was in the middle of an oil boom。 Millions of dollars were coming into the government and Chavez redistributed that money to the people。 Chavez maintained his power by pushing out anyone who might outshine him。 By the time Chavez died in 2013， the price of oil had collapsed， and the money was gone。 No more than 3 million dollars was saved during the boom times， leaving the country broke。In 2016， the lights went out。 After years of disinvestment the electric grid went down never to fully come on again。 Today， corruption is endemic。 Hospitals， bridges， railways started and never finished。 Money meant to go to the betterment of the people gone never to be seen again。 In 2018， there were so many refugees fleeing Venezuela， it was second only to Syria which was in the midst of a civil war。I would recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in the global community。 This book was well written and researched。Rating: 5/5Genre: Non-Fiction 。。。more
Ann
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We had a rental property in Pittsburgh years ago and our first tenants were a wealthy family from Venezuela。 The parents were doctors。 I've always been curious about what their country was like。Author William Neuman writes about the decline of Venezuela from the days of overwhelming riches to the depths of extraordinary poverty。 An alarming number of people have fled to other countries。Having lived in Caracas while he served as the New York Times Andes Region Bureau Chief， Neuman has combined jo We had a rental property in Pittsburgh years ago and our first tenants were a wealthy family from Venezuela。 The parents were doctors。 I've always been curious about what their country was like。Author William Neuman writes about the decline of Venezuela from the days of overwhelming riches to the depths of extraordinary poverty。 An alarming number of people have fled to other countries。Having lived in Caracas while he served as the New York Times Andes Region Bureau Chief， Neuman has combined journalism， memoir， history， politics， and interviews into an accessible book for anyone wanting more in-depth understanding of Venezuela。 It's clear that the author has great empathy for the people。 His interviews range from the the people who bear the brunt of the damage by the country's leaders to those who surrounded and protected the wealthy。 The involvement of the United States of America is also considered。 It's hard not to see disturbing patterns between the two countries。Highly recommended。My thanks to the publisher， St。 Martin's Press， and Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book。 。。。more
Ula Tardigrade
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