To highlight the wide range of publications reviewed in Choice, each month Choice editors feature some noteworthy reviews from the current issue.

Alkon, Alison Hope.  Black, white, and green: farmers markets, race, and the green economy.  Georgia, 2012.  206p bibl index afp  (Geographies of justice and social transformation, 13); ISBN 9780820343891, $69.95; ISBN 9780820343907 pbk, $24.95; ISBN 9780820344751 e-book, $24.95.
50-5060  HF5472  2012-9963 CIP
 
The green economy is in full swing at farmers markets, where consumers with appetites for sustainable local food seek–and build–community. Alkon’s comparative study of two Bay Area farmers markets, one predominantly white and one predominantly black, digs deep into the complicated intersections of race, class, and the potential for environmental, social, and economic change at and through the markets. Ethnographic research yields multiple themes that allow close examination of narratives about the markets that work to produce and reproduce differences, even as consumers and farmers talk about their desire to overcome inequities. Sociologist Alkon (Univ. of the Pacific) pinpoints the challenges inherent in the green economy as a force for change; it is at once an alternative to capitalism and fully capitalist, depending on consumers to vote with their dollars and discounting the voices of those with limited means. Farmers and local food are heralded, while farm laborers and the thousands of miles they travel are rendered invisible. The epilogue–an honest, immediate discussion of the author’s methodology–provides Alkon with an opportunity to reflect on the project and its potential impact. For students and more seasoned scholars, it is a delightful and instructive view of the research process. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All academic levels/libraries. — A. B. Audant, CUNY Kingsborough Community College

Argersinger, Peter H.  Representation and inequality in late nineteenth-century America: the politics of apportionment.  Cambridge, 2012.  340p bibl index; ISBN 9781107023000, $95.00.
50-5276  JK1341  2012-12607 CIP
 
Apportionment, according to historian Argersinger (Southern Illinois Univ.), was a highly contentious political issue during the late 19th century that deeply affected election results, policy decisions, legal history, and the climate of political reform. Despite this fundamental importance, however, historians have generally ignored it and instead have focused on the “money question,” or social unrest–topics that have become hallmarks of the century’s closing decades. Using an impressive collection of archive collections, newspapers, court decisions, public documents, and other primary and secondary sources, Argersinger reconstructs the intricacies of apportionment in the Midwest. This was a region in which apportionment laws that resulted from intense political fights raised questions about government legitimacy as they distributed political power unevenly and even called into question the value of the vote. Malapportionment on the state level discriminated against people living in newly established regions in favor of older communities, and against urbanites in favor of small towns and rural areas, but malapportionment in congressional districts affected national policy. An important contribution to understanding the complexities of the US political system, not in the ideal, but in the gritty environment of men and parties struggling for political power. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above.
— J. P. Sanson, Louisiana State University at Alexandria

Barrett, Faith.  To fight aloud is very brave: American poetry and the Civil War.  Massachusetts, 2012.  336p index afp; ISBN 9781558499621, $80.00; ISBN 9781558499638 pbk, $27.95.
50-4857  PS310   2010-30820 CIP 

Barrett (Lawrence Univ.) makes a significant point concerning the cultural necessity of poetry during the Civil War. In her assessment of the “power of poetry,” she artfully and clearly discusses the way poetry allowed individuals to “speak” to various groups collectively–family, local communities, and broader populations of the two opposing sides of the nation. Her overarching argument is that the connection between the Civil War and poetry forever transformed the way American poets addressed audiences and defined poets’ relationship to the nation: in her introduction, the author writes that “new modes of circulation worked to collapse both the boundaries between poetry and song and public-private boundaries, generating newly imaginable forms of community and a proliferation of new audiences in both the North and the South.” Springing from a wealth of orality in the tradition of “singing” and/or songs, poetry became a cohesive instrument in forging a collective understanding of a national culture. Poetry, writes Barrett, “became the central literary site for this exploration of the changing relationship between self and nation.” Summing Up: Highly recommended. All readers. — C. R. Bloss, Auburn University

Bartrop, Paul R.  A biographical encyclopedia of contemporary genocide: portraits of evil and good.  ABC-CLIO, 2012.  403p bibl index afp; ISBN 9780313386787, $89.00; ISBN 9780313386794 e-book, contact publisher for price.
50-4775  HV6322  2012-953 CIP 

In this well-designed reference book, seasoned scholar of genocide Bartrop (Florida Gulf Coast Univ.) provides biographical profiles of 170 individuals who perpetrated, attempted to prevent, or were in some other significant way involved in selected atrocities since 1945. The book’s subtitle signals Bartrop’s attention not only to génocidaires but also to diplomats, journalists, and humanitarians. Coverage ranges from such notorious leaders as China’s Mao Zedong and Iraq’s Saddam Hussein to celebrities such as Angelina Jolie and George Clooney. However, the book’s chief value is in its coverage of individuals who are not, and never will be, household names. Well over half of the entries are devoted to the genocides in Cambodia (1970s), the former Yugoslavia (1991 to 1995), and Rwanda (1994). Some, but much less, attention is given to figures involved in ethnic violence in Darfur, East Timor, Burundi, and other countries.

The biographies, most of which are 1,000 to 2,000 words long, are sharply written. They contain some general background information for each subject but focus on individuals’ specific roles in one or more genocides. Thus, even for persons included in many other biographical reference works, Bartrop offers a distinctive perspective. Twenty-nine entries are enhanced with a photograph of the subject. More photos, especially of lesser-known figures, would have been welcome. In addition to the biographical articles, the work features a concise introductory essay, a glossary of 74 terms pertinent to the study of genocide, a 25-page time line of key events between 1945 and 2012, and an extensive topical list of print and nonprint sources. This volume offers a wealth of accessible information for anyone interested in exploring the darkest episodes of the post-WW II era. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Lower-level undergraduates and above; general readers. — S. Gowler, Berea College

Bogdan, Robert.  Picturing disability: beggar, freak, citizen, and other photographic rhetoric, by Robert Bogdan with Martin Elks and James A. Knoll.  Syracuse, 2012.  198p bibl index afp; ISBN 9780815633020, $55.00.
50-5062  HV1568  2012-33977 CIP 
 
Read this fascinating book in one sitting, and follow the author’s instructions to carefully examine the photographs before and after reading the text. Bogdan (Syracuse Univ.) has given readers the pictorial evidence of the social construction of disability, and he points out masterfully how it is the photographer’s point of view that is revealed, and not the lived experience of people with disabilities who are the objects of these images. This point is complicated, however, by people with disabilities who used their own images to promote themselves as a method of earning a living. The book begs to be paired with other disability studies books such as Susan Burch and Hannah Joyner’s Unspeakable: The Story of Junius Wilson (CH, May’08, 45-5276) or Susan Schweik’s The Ugly Laws: Disability in Public (CH, Feb’10, 47-3516), which cover roughly the same time periods (from the Progressive Era to the early rise of the disability rights movement). Such a pairing would make for a rich, in-depth exploration of disability as a societal arrangement in modern society. In addition, the historical content helps readers understand and appreciate disability as it exists in the 21st century. Bogdan provides the pictorial evidence of the construction of disability. Summing Up: Essential. All levels/libraries. — P. A. Murphy, University of Toledo

Boryczka, Jocelyn M.  Suspect citizens: women, virtue, and vice in backlash politics.  Temple, 2012.  200p bibl index afp; ISBN 9781439908938, $74.50; ISBN 9781439908945 pbk, $26.95.
50-5269  HQ1236  2012-3232 CIP 

Boryczka (Fairfield Univ.) addresses categories of virtue and vice that operate to render women “suspect citizens” in the American political script. Historically, women have been regarded as the moral guardians of the polity. This has imposed on them the double burden of responsibility for both moral and civic virtue, whereas only civic virtue has been expected of men. Moreover, women’s ability to fulfill this role has been premised on their relegation to a separate sphere and thus on their exclusion from full citizenship. Even imagined departures from virtuous paths undermine trust and provoke backlash, thereby contributing to women’s suspect citizenship. To trace this theme, Boryczka draws on Puritan vacillation between female virtue and vice, Mary Daly’s transcendence of gendered dualism, the division among Lowell mill girls between loyalists and rebels as to what would improve women’s position, the division among lesbian feminists as to whether sadomasochism reinforces domination or produces liberation, Tocqueville’s reinforcement of separate spheres, contemporary communitarians’ valorization of preexisting tradition, Mary Wollstonecraft’s endorsement of women’s education because women’s developed reason makes women better moral guardians, and the omission of sexuality from feminist care ethics. The book contains many interesting and provocative juxtapositions. Summing Up: Highly recommended. General readers, upper-division undergraduate students, graduate students, and research faculty. — E. R. Gill, Bradley University
 
Duhon, Terri.  How the trading floor really works.  Bloomberg Press, 2012.  347p index; ISBN 9781119962953, $45.00; ISBN 9781119966012 e-book, contact publisher for price.
50-5106  HG4551  2012-29240 CIP

In this thorough primer on financial markets, Duhon (an MIT math graduate with years of experience as a derivatives trader) provides detailed descriptions of financial market operations, the market participants, and the mechanics of trading. The material progresses from the basic (e.g., the difference between debt and equity instruments) to the sophisticated (e.g., quantitative analysts, or “quants,” and structured products). While market participants buy and sell securities for their own or client accounts, Duhon differentiates the roles of market makers, traders, research analysts, and salespersons. Coverage includes equity and credit analysts, ratings systems, and the risks taken by parties and counterparties to derivative contracts. After covering the instruments and the market participants, Duhon concludes with two chapters on sources of risk and risk management. The writing style is exceptional; the book is easy to read and understand. Detailed explanations are illustrated with tables and figures. An index and a glossary, which is cross-referenced to individual chapters, increase the book’s usefulness. Particularly valuable for MBA students, recent finance graduates, and individuals seeking professional designations such as the CFA. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduate through professional audiences. — H. Mayo, The College of New Jersey

Garcia, Lorena.  Respect yourself, protect yourself: Latina girls and sexual identity.  New York University, 2012.  219p bibl index afp; ISBN 9780814733165, $75.00; ISBN 9780814733172 pbk, $24.00.
50-5315  HQ798   2012-16649 CIP 

Sociologist Garcia (Univ. of Illinois at Chicago) argues persuasively that dominant media and health policy experts have dangerously distorted and oversimplified the sexual behavior of Latina young women. Focusing on Chicago and drawing upon detailed field research in both Chicana/o and Puerto Rican communities, Garcia suggests that Latina teens view sexual activity with much more complexity. In a significant departure from conventional accounts that highlight teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections, Garcia instead emphasizes the importance of self-respect and health in the young women’s often-thoughtful and well-considered decisions to engage in sexual activity. The author also provides an incisive critique of the shoddy and at times sexist, racist, and homophobic state of sex education in the nation’s schools. The book is crisply written, with a fine balance of theoretical insight and compelling personal accounts from both the young women themselves and their mothers and close relatives. Of special value is Garcia’s determination to include the experiences of Latinas who identify as lesbians and/or are involved in same-sex sexual activity. The prose is easily accessible to undergraduates. A wonderful addition to Latina/o studies, sociology, and health policy collections. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All levels/libraries. — P. R. Mitchell, Oberlin College 
 
Graves, Josh.  Bluegrass bluesman: a memoir, ed. by Fred Bartenstein.  Illinois, 2012.  133p index afp ISBN 0252078640  pbk, $21.95; ISBN 9780252078644 pbk, $21.95.
50-4904  ML418  2012-11210 CIP
 
Written in vernacular style, based on transcribed interviews with dobro artist Josh Graves (1927-2006) conducted by Barry Willis in 1994, this book gives the sense of eavesdropping on an intimate conversation, which seems to be Bartenstein’s intent. One comes away from this interesting read with a keen understanding of a man who influenced country music, dobro playing in particular, in a way few have. In the last chapter, Bartenstein deviates from the interview format to include testimonials from 24 of Graves’s closest associates throughout his life; this material fills the 12-year gap between the interviews and Graves’s death. Those extolling Graves’s contributions include such luminaries as Earl Scruggs, Mac Wiseman, Mike Auldridge, Herb Pederson, Jerry Douglas, and Marty Stuart. Two appendixes provide information for fans of Graves and for music historians. In the first, Bobby Wolfe identifies “Julie” and “Cliff,” the two Dobros Graves used throughout his career, including how “Cliff” acquired the seahorses above its sound holes. In the second appendix, Stacy Phillips provides a list of the songs Graves played while a member of the famed Foggy Mountain Boys. Summing Up: Recommended. All readers. — T. Emery, Austin Peay State University 

Laïdi, Zaki.  Limited achievements: Obama’s foreign policy, tr. by Carolyn Avery.  Palgrave Macmillan, 2012.  237p bibl index ISBN 1-137-02085-7, $85.00; ISBN 9781137020857, $85.00.
50-5263  E907   2012-10432 CIP
 
La^D”idi (Sciences Po, France) provides an interesting and nuanced take on President Obama’s foreign policy. Drawing on a range of sources, from congressional hearings, press accounts, and interviews to actual outcomes, La^D”idi argues that Obama’s foreign policy is largely rooted in a realist vision of international relations. That is, although Obama, unlike his immediate predecessor, does not flaunt an ambitious grand strategy, he nevertheless, in keeping with precedent, wants to preserve America’s great power status–albeit in a more benign and internationally accepted way. Clearly, Obama does not want the US to serve as a global policeman, but neither does the president have any intention of letting America lose its preeminent global position. Overall, La^D”idi makes a persuasive case. This important and provocative book is a useful addition to the growing literature on post-George W. Bush US foreign policy; it is highly recommended to all students of international relations and contemporary US foreign policy. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All readership levels. — S. D. Sharma, University of San Francisco  
 
Mahajan, Vijay.  The Arab world unbound: tapping into the power of 350 million consumers, by Vijay Mahajan with Dan Zehr.  Jossey-Bass, 2012.  408p index ISBN 1-118-07451-3, $39.95; ISBN 9781118074510, $39.95.
50-5093  HF5415  2012-5730 CIP
 
Mahajan (Univ. of Texas, Austin) performs a useful service in presenting a positive view of the Arab world and its business potential. The essential message is that there are some 350 million consumers in Arab countries, and although they differ from Western consumers in religion and social customs, they share similar desires for goods and services and therefore offer substantial marketing opportunities. The author provides many examples of successful marketing ventures, as well as a few that failed, from which he analyzes reasons for success and failure. Mahajan points out that the Arab market is not uniform and requires varying marketing approaches. He examines in depth several segments of the Arab market, particularly youth, the middle class, women, technology, and media and entertainment. He finds opportunities in the Arab diaspora as well. The book is based largely on Mahajan’s visits to Arab countries and his more than 600 interviews with persons associated mostly with companies throughout the Arab countries. The book is a valuable resource for those interested in marketing goods or services to the Arab world and those seeking insights into Arab culture and lifestyle. Potential hazards to Arab marketing ventures are not discussed but can easily be found in other publications. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All readership levels. — W. C. Struning, emeritus, Seton Hall University
 
Mandelbrot, Benoit B.  The fractalist: memoir of a scientific maverick.  Pantheon Books, 2012.  324p index; ISBN 9780307377357, $30.00.
50-5048  QA29   2009-17896 CIP
 
Several notable scientists badly need full-length biographies, but sadly they have never been penned. Now one fewer is needed. Readers are very fortunate to have a detailed description of the life of Benoit Mandelbrot (1924-2010), written by the most qualified individual, Mandelbrot himself. Although his work with fractals is often labeled as mathematics, it is really far broader and has impacted many diverse fields, including economics, linguistics, engineering, and art. Nonscientists should not be scared off: the book contains only one equation. Those wanting more may read Mandelbrot’s The Fractal Geometry of Nature (1982). His memoir focuses on his intellectual development, which made his discoveries possible. Mandelbrot euphemistically described his formative years as “interesting.” Indeed, they are. A third of the book details lucky breaks and clever actions that kept Mandelbrot and his Jewish parents alive through very trying times in Poland (prior to WW II) and France (through WW II). Although the religious background is relevant, minimal text is devoted to it. Even Mandelbrot’s wife and children play an extremely minor role in this scientific memoir. This informative work should be required reading for all undergraduate science majors. Summing Up: Essential. All levels/libraries. — C. Bauer, York College of Pennsylvania

Mapping Mormonism: an atlas of Latter-day Saint history, ed. by Brandon Plewe with S. Kent Brown, Donald Q. Cannon, and Richard H. Jackson.  Brigham Young, 2012.  272p bibl index afp ISBN 0-8425-2825-3, $39.95; ISBN 9780842528252, $39.95.
50-4761  BX8611  2012-24940 CIP
 
Featuring more than 500 maps, charts, and time lines, this is a superb example of a well-executed thematic atlas. For those interested in Mormon history, it will be a crucial acquisition. Featuring 60-plus contributors, it consists of four sections: “The Restoration, 1805-1845,” focusing on the era of Mormon foundation in the eastern US; “The Empire of Deseret, 1846-1910,” which looks at the establishment of the church in the intermountain West; “The Expanding Church, 1910-2012,” which brings readers to the present; and “Regional Histories, 1875-2012,” demonstrating the worldwide reach of the Latter-day Saints. Maps and charts are accompanied by expert commentary, with sources listed in a bibliography at the end. The maps, designed by editor Plewe (Brigham Young Univ.), are clearly the work of a GIS master. They are clear and focused on the topic at hand with none of the unnecessary clutter that is common in historical atlases. Most of the maps cover topics that would not be controversial; there are some exceptions–most notably, the Mountain Meadows Massacre. A more recent, if more benign, topic of debate is the future growth of the church–a chart presenting various scenarios objectively represents the arguments. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Lower-division undergraduates and above; general readers. — D. S. Azzolina, University of Pennsylvania

Martin, Lori Latrice.  Black asset poverty and the enduring racial divide.  FirstForum, 2013.  239p bibl index afp ISBN 1-935049-53-4, $68.50; ISBN 9781935049531, $68.50.
50-5110  HC110  2012-38617 CIP
 
Despite claims from many quarters that the US is a postracial society, the fact is that ethnic and racial stratification is a socioeconomic reality of this country. Martin (Africana studies, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, City Univ. of New York) uses a combination of census data and case studies from New York City to explore the various aspects of socioeconomic inequality that contemporary African Americans face. This is a valuable book for anyone wanting to learn how to perform comparative analysis of racial and ethnic stratification in income, employment, housing, wealth, net worth, and assets. Over ten chapters, the author explores historical trends in racial inequality, and follows this with an insightful analysis of the recent economic recession’s impact on African Americans. The book’s most important contribution is that it effectively uses updated economic data to demonstrate the growing socioeconomic gap between African Americans and the rest of America. A must read for undergraduate and graduate-level students of sociology, economics, and political science as well as faculty members and other professionals who study racial inequality in the contemporary US. Summing Up: Essential. Upper-division undergraduate through professional readership.
— S. Chaudhuri, University of Wisconsin, Eau Claire  
 
Peters, E. Kirsten.  The whole story of climate: what science reveals about the nature of endless change.  Prometheus Books, 2012.  290p bibl index afp ISBN 1-61614-672-9, $26.00; ISBN 9781616146726, $26.00.
50-5016  QC884  2012-23389 CIP
 
This brilliant, engaging book will change the way one looks at the climate/global warming debate, climate change and climate science, human versus nonhuman drivers of climate change, and the implications of global warming/cooling for humans and societies. Geologist/journalist Peters (Washington State Univ.) is thoughtful, thorough, and relentless in her description of the breakthroughs and characters instrumental in finding evidence for dramatic climate swings from icehouse to hothouse conditions that have plagued Earth over the last 2.5 million years and the implications of these sometime rapid changes on humans and the development of societies and civilization. The author writes in a clear, almost storytelling style that brings to light geologic evidence rarely discussed in the present global warming debate. The evidence for a history of climate change is dispassionately yet engagingly presented. Peters does, however, take some license in chiding climate modelers for ignoring Earth’s past climate history and bemoaning their present singular focus on atmospheric CO2 and excluding geologists and the geological record from their discussions and reports. Given the author’s passion for the subject and the outstanding nature of the book, this foible is easily forgiven. Summing Up: Essential. All levels/libraries. — B. Ransom, formerly, University of California, San Diego

Queen Victoria’s Journals.  ProQuest. Purchase price for a 4-year academic institution with approx. 5,000 FTE is about $3,430.00.  Internet Resource.
50-4789

http://www.proquest.com/ 
[Visited Feb’13] “This book, Mamma gave me, that I might write the journal of my journey to Wales in it.” This sentence opens the first volume of the 13-year-old Princess Victoria of Kent’s journal, begun in 1832. As part of the Diamond Jubilee celebrations of Queen Elizabeth II, Queen Victoria’s Journals launched on May 24, 2012, the anniversary of Queen Victoria’s birth in 1819. The result of a partnership between ProQuest, the Royal Archives, and the Bodleian Libraries, this thoughtful, elegant resource makes available online digital images of each of the 43,765 pages in the entire sequence (four versions) of Queen Victoria’s diaries from 1832 until her death in 1901. It provides full transcriptions and keyword searching of the journal entries from July 1832 to 1851. Future plans are to have searchable transcripts available for the remaining years. Each page is being transcribed and rekeyed, allowing for detailed searching of the journals. Users may browse by year, month, and day. Searching may be done by date, keyword, place of writing, and version of the journal. Results direct users to the appropriate scanned journal page and a transcription of the actual page, if available.

In addition, this resource provides access to nearly 260 illustrations and sketches scanned from Queen Victoria’s sketchbooks and albums. Also included is a colorful, creative time line, “The Life and Times of Queen Victoria and the Royal Family 1800-1901,” which chronicles the major events of the century with direct links to the queen’s journal. Six specially commissioned essays support readers’ understanding of Queen Victoria, her times, and her writing. The site states that further essays are in development and will be added soon. Queen Victoria’s journals have never before been published in their entirety and until now have been accessible only to scholars at the Royal Archives. When completed, this excellent online resource will dramatically expand access to these journals and become an important primary resource for researching 19th-century British political and social history. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Lower-level undergraduates and above; general readers. — R. B. Meeker, Chicago State University
 
Topper, David R.  How Einstein created relativity out of physics and astronomy.  Springer, 2013.  254p bibl index afp  (Astrophysics and space science library, 394); ISBN 9781461447818, $129.00; ISBN 9781461447825 e-book e-book, contact publisher for price.
50-5056  QC173   MARC
 
Topper (ret., history, Univ. of Winnipeg, Canada) has written an engaging, lucid account of Einstein’s development of the special and general theories of relativity. Rather than simply introduce the ideas of relativity to general readers, the author attempts to determine the dominant influences on how Albert Einstein created these theories. In doing so, he further shows how science historians reconstruct the development of theories through letters, personal accounts, and extensive background research. Topper provides an easy, readable narrative; his historical research is well documented in precise, clear footnotes that add depth and detail without interrupting the story line. Many books describe the special and general theories of relativity, e.g., Daniel Styer’s Relativity: For the Questioning Mind (CH, Sep’11, 49-0341), and other books try to reconstruct the development of these ideas, e.g., Richard Staley’s Einstein’s Generation: The Origins of the Relativity Revolution (CH, Nov’09, 47-1485). However, Topper’s slender volume is impressive in successfully conveying to a general audience beyond the high-school level both the science and the detective work needed to reconstruct the history of the science. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All academic, general, and professional audiences. — J. R. Burciaga, Mount Holyoke College  
 
Vargas, Deborah R.  Dissonant divas in Chicana music: the limits of la onda.  Minnesota, 2012.  313p index afp; ISBN 9780816673162, $67.50; ISBN 9780816673179 pbk, $22.50.
50-4914  ML210  2012-2833 CIP
 
Vargas (ethnic studies, Univ. of California, Riverside) offers an important feminist analysis of borderlands soundscapes and forgotten Chicana/Tejana singers and musicians from the mid-20th century to the present. She refuses to simply reinsert these women into the dominant models of Chicano musical history. Instead, she develops a “feminist of color” theory of dissonance that is unsettling to these patriarchal histories and their sustaining discourses–articulated here as la onda (the hetero-patriarchal imaginary that structures borderlands music)–and also offers a complex analysis of gender and power in Chicana cultural production. Vargas’s analysis brings critical attention to not only the music these women produce but also all of the waves it creates, “their lives, critical assessments of music histories, and all of the complicated and contested alternative imaginaries of the borderlands their work forges,” as she writes in her introduction. Attentive to questions of gender, nation, race, and sexuality, Vargas offers an engaging historical analysis of these women’s performances and the way they are received. Covering music from Tejano corridos and conjuntos to Selena’s “brown soul” and Girl in a Coma’s Tex-Mex rock, this compelling book will appeal to a wide audience. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty; general readers. — E. Rodriguez y Gibson, Loyola Marymount University      

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