Forrest D. Colburn

In short essays based on his sporadic periods of residence in Nicaragua during the 1980s, the author describes the quotidian results of the new Sandinista government. Colburn is even-handed and remarkably non-judgmental: he notes the material shortages and inflation under the piecemeal socialism of the Sandinistas with the same disinterested clarity used when he describes the widespread jokes about former dictator Anastasio Somoza. Things were rough under the Somozas; different things were show more rough under the Sandinistas. But Colburn takes great pleasure in the country and its inhabitants, including the gregarious hitchhikers he conveys in his decrepit car, itself a notable possession in fraying Managua. show less

Whenever we have people visiting us in Nicaragua, I always recommend this book plus "Sandino's Daughters Revisited" and "The Best of What we Are" to get a sense of the sandinista revolution and the people who made it happen. My Car in Managua is a funny, easy to read, and a candid portrayal of life in Managua during the 1980s.