The tiny once obscure Central American country of Nicaragua wedged between Honduras and Costa Rica is at the centre stage of East-West conflict. There the Russians have their first toehold on the American continent and the Americans have built up the Contras to try and displace the Sandinistas and the regime of Daniel Ortega. In Hurricane in Nicaragua, Richard West explores the themes of revolution, the struggle of the Catholic Church against the state and the relationship between the US and Nicaragua. He takes us on a journey through the old colonial towns of Grenada and Leon meeting and talking with the people. He uncovers the dark history of the power-crazed William Walker who conducted the first American invasion in the 19th century, the poet Ruben Dario and the hideous rule of General Sandino. Meeting up with Graham Greene, he reflects on Greene's stance against American liberalism. Richard West has written The White Tribes of Africa, Back to Africa, The White Tribes Revisited, Victory in Vietnam and The Diamonds and the Necklace.