Honduras is located in the heart of Central America. It is bordered to the south by Nicaragua and El Salvador, and to the west by Guatemala. Once a center for the Mayan civilization, Honduras was colonized by Spain during the 16th century. Three centuries of colonial rule produced a civilization that blended Spanish and native customs and culture. Since gaining independence from Spain in 1821, Honduras has experienced a great deal of political instability,...

New York Times best-selling author and biographer Charles J. Shields crafts this fascinating portrait of literary icon Kurt Vonnegut. The first authorized biography of the influential American writer, And So It Goes examines Vonnegut's life from his childhood to his death in 2007 and explores how the author changed the conversation of American literature.

Central America is the name given to the southern part of the isthmus that separates North America and South America. This position has given it an important strategic role in international affairs. Amerindians once dominated this region, with the Mayan civilization in particular exerting a strong influence. In the 16th century, Europeans arrived in Central America; they conquered the natives and established colonies throughout the region. Today,...

In 1499, the Spanish navigator Alonso de Ojeda explored the coast of South America. When his ships entered a gulf, he found that Amerindians had built their homes on stilts along the swampy shore of what became known as Lake Maracaibo. This reminded the explorers of the city of Venice, in Europe, so they named the region Venezuela (Spanish for "Little Venice"). The socialist government of Hugo Chávez, who ruled from 1999 until his death in 2011,...

Presents information on the geography, history, economy, and people of Peru. Includes a chronology, recipes, project ideas, and more.

When Spanish explorers landed on the coast of Central America, they found Amerindian tribes wearing gold jewelry. As a result, the named the region Costa Rica, Spanish for "rich coast." The Spaniards would find Costa Rica to be relatively poor in the resources they desired, particularly gold and silver. However, the country is rich in breathtaking natural beauty, including tall mountains and volcanoes, white beaches, plunging waterfalls, tropical...

The world's longest country, the ribbon-like Republic of Chile extends for about 2,650 miles (4,265 km) along the Pacific coast of southwestern South America. A land of great beauty and contrasts, Chile features the snow-capped volcanic peaks of the Andes to the east, the extremely dry Atacama Desert to its north, and rainy, thick forests to the south. Most of the approximately 18 million Chileans live in the mild climate of the Central Valley, where...

This narrow strip of land - only 30 miles (48 km) wide at its narrowest point, and rarely wider than 75 miles (121 km) at any spot - contains one of the world's great engineering marvels: the Panama Canal, known to the world as "the path between the seas." Fees paid by the ships that pass through the canal make up a large part of Panama's economy. Panama's government has historically been democratic, holding fair elections for leaders, although corruption...