After years during which faculty members taught without published collections of articles and sources, volumes of readings arc now back in fashion. For Latin American history surveys, Jane Rausch has revised Lewis Hanke’s 1973 edition of volume 2 of History of Latin American Civilization, Sources and Interpretations: The Modern Age. In this revision, Rausch has eliminated some readings from the sections on “The Age of Caudillos—Juan Manuel de Rosas,” “Nineteenth-Century Economic Affairs,” “African Slavery in Brazil,” and “Porfirio Díaz: Dictator of Mexico” and revised Lewis Hanke’s introductions. She has added new units with readable introductions on “Simón Bolívar—The Liberator,” “Conflicting Latin and Yankee Attitudes at the Turn of the Twentieth Century,” “Eva Perón—Argentine Feminist,” and “Fidel Castro and the Cuban Revolution.” The individual readings average seven and one-half pages, long enough to detail issues. The average length of each section is forty-three pages, although the sections on Eva Perón and Fidel Castro are each over fifty. At the back of the volume are suggestions for further reading and viewing. The short list of hooks in English for each unit should serve students, while the listings and annotations of films should be of use to instructors.
Any collection of readings runs the risk of omitting favorite articles or sources. The significant question is not whether the collection includes a particular article, but whether the volume is useable as a supplement to the course text. These selections, stronger on people than on issues, should appeal to students. The inclusion of Simón Bolívar provides a more traditional approach to the independence movements. I would have preferred a more issue-oriented examination of the early nineteenth century with an emphasis on elite or popular revolts. Nor do these readings reflect the increased significance of the new social history. With the exception of the material on slavery, the editors generally ignore readings on class, population, and society. Nevertheless, the readings should easily complement available texts and strengthen the teaching in survey courses.
