Brazil Is the New America: How Brazil Offers Upward Mobility in a Collapsing World
by James Dale Davidson
Acknowledgments
I thank the many persons whose thoughts entertained and provoked me as I got to know Brazil. The works of many of the published authorities are cited in the text. In particular, I found Austrian novelist Stefan Zweig’s classic, Brazil: A Land of the Future, to be far-seeing and informative.
I was especially lucky in having the support and encouragement of Romualdo Concado, who graciously allowed me to roost in the guest room of his home in Belvedere, Belo Horizonte. He is not only a great host; he is also a well-informed observer of the Brazilian economy. He entertained me with stories about why “Brazil is no country for beginners.” He generously read early drafts of some of the chapters and saved me from embarrassing mistakes. I also thank Cristina Barbosa for her spirit-lifting encouragement and her perspectives on the trials of dealing with Brazilian bureaucracy. I also thank my sometimes co-author, Lord William Rees-Mogg, for his encouragement. And cheers to my personal assistant, Laurie Geller, for braving tottering stacks of notes, books, and drafts to keep me organized in the writing process.
Arthur’s mother, Taciana Davidson, helped set this whole enterprise in motion. I am grateful for the good years we spent together. She welcomed me into her Brazilian family, and went far to educate me on the ways of her country. I also thank my colleague Charles Del Valle for his intelligent comments on early drafts; my agent, Theron Raines, for finding a publisher; ...