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CHOICE Review

The macro-attention shown by political writers to the microstate of Grenada is wondrous. The devil of it all is that so many of the dozen or more volumes are worth acquiring. This holds for the present case, a rewarding pair of essays on Grenada's revolution and collapse (by Schoenhals) and the American intervention (by Schoenhals's colleague at Kenyon College, Richard Melanson). There are more detailed accounts of these matters (e.g., Tony Thorndike, Grenada: Politics, Economics and Society, CH, Oct '85; Anthony Payne, Paul Sutton, and Tony Thorndike, Grenada: Revolution and Invasion, CH, Oct '84; and Hugh O'Shaugh- nessy, Grenada: An Eyewitness Account of the U.S. Invasion and the Caribbean History that Provoked It, CH, Sep '85). But Schoenhals gives us all the essentials and enriches the text from his own interviews with many of the principals. What makes the volume especially attractive is Melanson's careful review of American foreign policy in the Caribbean Basin under Presidents Carter and Reagan. Responding to almost every intellectual and emotional force except cool assessment of national interest, our decision-making process emerges as a well-meaning Frankenstein. These authors are not polemicists, however. Their work is well crafted, straining for balance, and richly documented. Very highly recommended to all academic and public libraries.-E.M. Dew, Fairfield University