Blog post

Venezuela in Context | Reading List

The United States has kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and is now claiming that it will control the country's oil. This is only the latest in a long history of U.S. involvement in the region. For more on that history, consider these titles.

Verso Books 5 January 2026

Venezuela in Context | Reading List

On January 3rd, the United States initiated a bombing campaign in Venezuela and kidnapped the sitting President, Nicolás Maduro. This comes after American airstrikes on several vessels in the Caribbean that were alleged to have been carrying drugs, providing a pretext for invasion that cloaks America's desire to control Venezuela's oil reserves beneath the thin veneer of a new War on Drugs.

This bogus justification was only half-hearted, as American officials now insist in no uncertain terms that all resources in the Americas are to be controlled by the U.S. empire and that "American dominance in the western hemisphere will never be questioned again.”

For further reading on Venezuela, U.S. involvement in South America, and oil as the central driver of imperial antagonism, consider the titles below – currently discounted 30%.

We've also made the ebook for The Bolivarian Revolution free to download. 

Discounts will appear in cart.

[book-strip index="1" style="buy"]

[book-strip index="2" style="buy"]

Book strip #1

Book strip #2

  • Hugo Chávez and the Bolivarian Revolution
    The authoritative first-hand account of contemporary Venezuela, Hugo Chávez places the country’s controversial and charismatic president in historical perspective, and examines his plans and progra...
    Paperback
  • Pirates of the Caribbean
    The Bolivarian revolution in Venezuela has brought Hugo Chávez to world attention as the foremost challenger of the neoliberal consensus and American foreign policy. Drawing on first-hand experienc...
    Paperback
  • Building the Commune
    Since 2011, a wave of popular mobilizations has swept the globe, from Occupy to the Arab Spring, 15M in Spain and the uprisings in Greece. Their demands were varied, but what they share is a commit...
    Paperback
  • Changing Venezuela by Taking Power
    Since coming to power in 1998, the Chavez government has inspired both fierce internal debate and horror amongst Western governments accustomed to counting on an obeisant regime in the oil-rich sta...
    Paperback
  • The Secret World of Oil
    Oil is the lifeblood of modern civilization, and the industry that supplies it has been the subject of intense interest and scrutiny, as well as countless books. And yet, almost no attention has be...
    Paperback