Delightful book by Salman Rushdie and delightful to hear him speak at length in his ‘normal’ personal voice about something serious and that he cares about very much.

Rushdie packs a lot into this book considering it documents a 3-week visit. But those 3 weeks were at a crucial point in the history of the war in Nicaragua, and his powers of observation are as astute as ever. I learned more about the personalities of the cast of characters than the machinations between the great forces that were being brought down on the heads of the Nicaraguan people. Rushdie is funny at times, and he is also arrogant and elitist. I grew impatient with the gossipy bits about his fellow writers, always anxious to stand a little above each other, be a bit more clever, a bit more "revolutionary." My antipathy towards Ernesto Cardenal as a vain fop was not disabused by this account.

3.5 rounded up because of superb writing. A great insight into Nicaragua in the 80s.

This was my first Salman Rushdie book, and fittingly, it’s also his first non-fiction work. The Jaguar Smile is a travelogue chronicling his three-week trip to Nicaragua in the summer of 1986, set against the backdrop of the Sandinista revolution. I really enjoyed Rushdie’s writing style—it’s engaging, vivid, and accessible. (Though I admit I don’t often read books that showcase such literary prowess, especially in fiction.) I finished the audiobook in less than ten days, which speaks to how captivating it was.

One of the most interesting parts of the book for me was learning about the Atlantic —or Caribbean— coast, specifically Bluefields, where Rushdie interacts with Miskito, Creole, and Mestizo communities. He describes their centuries-long history of autonomy and deep-seated mistrust of central authorities. The Miskito people, in particular, have had a fraught relationship with the Sandinistas, feeling that their indigenous rights were ignored. The Sandinistas’ policy of forced relocations only deepened the Miskitos’ belief that the revolution prioritized control over genuine empowerment.

However, Rushdie’s portrayal of the Sandinista government throughout the rest of the book feels somewhat uncritical. As others have noted, the “snapshots” (as Rushdie himself calls them) are articulate but occasionally surface-level, perhaps overly generous to his hosts (he was invited by the Sandinista Association of Cultural Workers). While his vivid observations are compelling, they sometimes lack the depth needed to fully unpack the complexities of Nicaragua’s political landscape at the time. Still, this book definitely wants to make me read more of Rushdie (and learn more about Nicaragua, especially as Daniel Ortega has been in power again for quite a long time).

I finished reading the book and toyed with writing an original review.
I found the review by Goodreads’ contributor / author PETRA :HIATUS… from May 2015.
Please read her review.

My review:
What she said.

I’ve enjoyed some of Rushdie’s other books, but this one was, honestly, lazy. It’s sort of a travelogue, but not a well-written or engaging one. It reads as if he just jotted down some quick notes about his thoughts as he traveled in Nicaragua, and never took the time to expand upon them or clean them up.

Very interesting, but in retrospect mistaken.

"I went eagerly, but with a good deal of nervousness. I was familiar with the tendency of revolutions to go wrong, to devour their children, to become the thing they had been created to destroy."

Having the advantage of 30 years of hindsight, it's so sad to see Rushdie's worst fears became reality. As of 2021, Daniel Ortega has been in power for longer than any Somoza ever was. And he crushed in a bloody way an uprising in 2018 leaving more than 300 dead, and more than 50,000 Nicaraguans leaving their country, escaping the violence and repression.

I picked this up for a primer on Nicaraguan culture in advance of a trip, but this book is really a political one consisting of interviews with major figures involved in the Sandinista revolution at a specific moment in time.

This great author talks about his time spent in 1986 Nicaragua and the war with the Sandinistas, a guerrilla group and America's involvement funding them.

An exploration of Sandinista Nicaragua's in the early 80s; a new government threatened by powerful Northern neighbors. American-funded counter-revolutionaries occupy the Honduaran-Nicaraguan jungle raid remote communities. Rushdie brings his Indian and British perspective to imperialism, ideological divides, and the true occupation of nearly all Nicaraguan's: poetry. Will the new government get countrywide support for their constitution? A country tired of death grapples with its identity and looks to the future.

An intelligent description of the conflicting interests, stories and mentalities in the widely unknown country of Nicaragua. A simultaneously light - hearted, but also serious depiction of the daily life, the pain and the suffering of a war - ridden nation which is just getting used to its newly explored liberty.