Rich Cohen

A legendary tale, both true and astonishing, from the author of Israel is Real and Sweet and Low. When Samuel Zemurray arrived in America, he was tall, gangly, and penniless. When he died in the grandest house in New Orleans sixty-nine years later, he was among the richest, most powerful men in the world. Rich Cohen’s brilliant historical profile The fish that ate the whale (Farrar, Straus, & Giroux, $27) unveils Zemurray as a hidden kingmaker and capitalist revolutionary, driven by an indomitable will to succeed. Known as El Amigo, the Gringo, or simply Z, the Banana Man lived one of the greatest untold stories of the last hundred years. Starting with nothing but a cart of freckled bananas, he built a sprawling empire of banana cowboys, mercenary soldiers, Honduran peasants, CIA agents, and American statesmen. From hustling on the docks of New Orleans to overthrowing Central American governments, Zemurray emerges as an unforgettable figure, connected to the birth of modern American diplomacy, public relations, business, and war—a monumental life that reads like a parable of the American dream.

Location: Street: 265 Aragon Ave City: Coral Gables, Province: Florida Postal Code: 33134-5008 Country: United States (added from IndieBound)… (more)

Please join us for an evening with Rich Cohen who will present and sign his new book, The fish that ate the whale: The Life and Times of America's Banana King.

The banana king is Samuel Zemurray, a little know antihero, the son of a Jewish Russian farmer. He started with nothing but a pile of rotten bananas, overthrew two governments in Central America, created the basic CIA template, bested and took over United Fruit, and went to war with Huey Long. As Rich puts it, if Zemurray had owned a football team, they would’ve won all the time. Zemurray’s rise began at the docks of New Orleans.

“Along the way, he aided the creation of Israel; funded many of Tulane University’s buildings; and had a hand in the rise of Che Guevara and Fidel Castro. Cohen claims Zemurray was to New Orleans what Rockefeller was to New York, but the better comparison may be to Robert Moses, who bulldozed both land and people to build many of New York’s roads, parks, and bridges. The reader gets to decide not only whether the ends were worth the means, but whether the means were worth the ends,” —Publishers Weekly

“If this book were simply the tale of a charismatic and eccentric banana mogul, that would have been enough for me—especially with the masterful Rich Cohen as narrator. But it’s not. It is also the story of capitalism, psychology, immigration, public relations, colonialism, food, O. Henry’s shady past, and the meaning of excellence. I love this book.” —A.J. Jacobs, author of The Year of Living Biblically

“What a story and what a storyteller! You'll never see a banana—and, for that matter, America—the same way.” —Aleksandar Hemon, author of The Lazarus Project

“This is a rollicking but brilliantly researched book about one of the most fascinating characters of the 20th century. I grew up in New Orleans enthralled by the tales of Sam Zemurray, the banana peddler who built United Fruit. This book recounts, with delightful verve, his military and diplomatic maneuvers in Central America and his colorful life and business practices.” —Walter Isaacson, author of Steve Jobs

New York Times bestselling author Rich Cohen is a contributing editor at Vanity Fair and Rolling Stone and the author of seven books, including Israel Is Real, Tough Jews and the widely acclaimed memoir Sweet and Low. His work has appeared in The New Yorker, Harper's Magazine and Best American Essays. He lives in Connecticut with his wife, three sons and dog.

Click here to listen to Susan Larson's WWNO interview with Rich Cohen on "The Reading Life." Click here to read the review from The Times-Picayune.

Location: Street: 513 Octavia St City: New Orleans, Province: Louisiana Postal Code: 70115-2055 Country: United States (added from IndieBound)… (more)