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"Orizio's laconic, deadpan style is subversively funny." -- "Observer"
"A fascinating insight into the minds of evil." -- "Mail on Sunday"
"From the Trade Paperback edition."
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
an excellent author in the making,
By R.S. Boulter (Dublin, Dublin Ireland) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Talk Of The Devil (Hardcover)
After, reading this book, i have to say that i am much more knowlegeable about dictators which seemed to have slipped from the world stage but who have left their legacy upon their respective countries. The interviews are intimate and orizio seems adept at bringing to the surface, the true character of such people as Bokassa and Jaruzelski. My only problem with the book is that, he seems to only scratch the surface but leaves you interested. All the information is fresh and relevant. Each chapter is about each dictator , going through the background and the eventual downfall of tyrants such as idi amin. I would recommend the book, it's certainly very readable
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Where Are They Now?,
By
This review is from: Talk Of The Devil (Hardcover)
Those seeking detailed biographies of the dictators Italian journalist Orizio tracks down, or penetrating histories and analyses of the years of their respective rule should turn elsewhere, as this is not the book for them. Instead, this is an oddly compelling mix of investigatory reportage and "Where Are They Now?" for readers with an interest in international events. Anyone looking for rigor and meticulous detail will not be pleased with the short chapters such as those on Idi Amin or Bokassa, in which Orizio spends more time recounting his efforts to find his quarry than actually talking to them. This is not necessarily a bad thing though, for the sad truth of the book is that these dictators may have come from a range of cultural and economic backgrounds, but they all end up saying the same thing.In his preface, Orizio writes that "I deliberately chose those who had fallen from power in disgrace, because those who fall on their feet tend not to examine their own conscience." However, the cliché of the banality of evil fulfills itself, as every single interviewee has the same lies, excuses, and delusions as the others (except for Bokassa, who insists the Pope secretly proclaimed him the 13th Apostle). Unrepentence is rife, as the interviewees trot out the same old chestnuts:"history will vindicate me", "the crimes I'm accused of are all lies perpetrated by my enemies", "my country was better off under me, " "I love my people/country." Clearly none of them have any interest in or incentive for honest examination of their rule, indeed, at this point belief in their own mythology is probably an ingrained psychological self-defense mechanism. Orizio does present a brief sketch of each dictator's country, and of the history of their rule. We find that hand in hand with the psychological similarity is a methodological similarity in rule. Rise to power based on ideology (or voodoo in the case of Baby Doc), consolidation of power via construction of cult of personality enforced by secret police, leading to corruption, cronyism, and systematic transfer of national wealth to Swiss bank accounts. The odd man out in all this is General Jaruzelski, who instituted martial law in Poland in 1981, and whose hands are vastly less bloody than those of the six others in the book.
3.0 out of 5 stars
Fascinating Insights,
By Paul Pinn (UK) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Talk Of The Devil (Paperback)
Devils indeed, and when RO gets round to interviewing them, they are mostly cranky old people who can't seem to figure out why they are down on their luck, in exile, being accused of atrocities and grand theft. Idi Amin, Bokassa, Baby Doc Duvalier and others - not to mention a couple of dictator's wives - all get the treatment, and all seem unlikely people to run a country, never mind for decades as in the case of some. One never knows what people are capable of with the right connections and henchmen. However, despite the interest factor, these people never really show their hand, and their psychology - the root of it all - remains hidden. No fault of the author, but it does mean there is a certain shallowness to the book. Never mind. Still worth a read.
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