Review by Choice Review
Henke (sociology, Colgate Univ.) has written a book examining the history of the work of "farm advisors" of the University of California, concentrating on the Salinas Valley. He uses a concept of "repair" to explain the way they shaped the industrial agriculture of the region over time through the introduction of technology. The author uses the case study method to analyze the impacts of the changes that occurred. His concept of repair forms the basis of his analysis. He distinguishes between repair strategies, subdivided into maintenance or transformation, and repair practices, subdivided into discursive or ecological. This reviewer had a hard time understanding the repair concept and continually found that substituting the word "change" for "repair" in many cases made more sense; however, sociology terminology may be beyond the grasp of the economist in this reviewer. The discussion of the history of Salinas Valley agriculture was interesting, although at times it appeared that Henke was trying to paint industrial agriculture as bad for society and small farms as good for society. Summing Up: Recommended. Libraries serving all levels of undergraduates, graduate students, and general readers. R. J. Schatzer Oklahoma State University
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
