Rollie E. Poppino’s book is a well-written interpretive study covering the broad sweep of Brazil’s development from “Portuguese Settlement” to “the New Society,” to select two of the chapter titles. The author puts a refreshing emphasis on social and economic history to replace the customary concentration on political events. His canvas is immense, and to cover it in 310 pages of text he uses broad yet meaningful strokes. His partiality to the colonial period is evident, for he devotes approximately half the text to the years from discovery to independence, and his skills in synthesis and interpretation are more evident in that portion of the book.

The author clearly demonstrates a mastery of his material and an awareness of the latest scholarship on Brazil. The pages seem singularly free of errors in dates, names, and facts. The organization is novel, nearly free from the trite periodization which probably has hindered rather than facilitated a fuller understanding of Brazil’s past. Poppino chooses to concentrate on the significant movements shaping Brazil’s development: the economic cycles, the conquest and peopling of the interior, immigration, industrialization, and modernization. Occasionally this new organization does lead to some confusion. For example, on page 180, the text treats the independence of Brazil (1822) after the author already has discussed some reasons for the fall of the empire and the institution of the republic (1889). A reviewer might be tempted to quibble with some interpretations and to suggest others. I shall forego that temptation in this review in order to praise and recommend this scholarly and literary work, essential for every student of Latin American history and highly useful for every specialist in the field.

To enhance even more the value of this book, Poppino gives his readers the most complete “Political Chronology” and “Selective Guide to the Literature on Brazil” that I know. There are many informative tables as well as six clear and helpful maps. Furthermore, drawings by Carybé and Poty beautify the book.