North from Mexico : the Spanish-speaking people of the United States /

McWilliams, author of the classic North from Mexico (1948, reprinted 1975), was called the "godfather of Chicano history" by Matt S. Meier, who edited the second edition (1990), because McWilliams's work was an invaluable reference for activists in the Chicano movement of the 1960s and 1970s. McWilliams's sources dated from the late 19th century through 1951, so Meier added three chapters for the second edition of this pioneering text. Similarly, editor Garcia (sociology, Santa Clara Univ.) has added three new chapters for this third edition. Her informative and timely edition, which draws on current scholarship, focuses on immigration, including demographic trends; legislation and electoral politics that affect immigrants; the special problems that undocumented female immigrants encounter; and the important ongoing movement by the undocumented activist youth called "Dreamers." Garcia also includes a discussion of Mexico and the ways it affects immigration to the US. Some passages in the third edition are repeated, either closely paraphrased or with the exact same words (368-9). Despite this problem, the three new chapters provide essential information for understanding the national debate on a very complex topic: immigration. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All levels/libraries. --Linda J. Quintanilla, Houston Community College