Review by Choice Review
This excellent study answers the question of why populations in New Mexico and Texas apparently shifted their loyalties so easily during the Texas Revolution and Mexican War. Resendez (Univ. of California, Davis) argues that on Mexico's northern frontier, national identities vacillated between two powerful forces: those of the state and those of the market. Identities shifted as Americans, Mexicans, and Native Americans traded, intermarried, and otherwise interacted with each other. Ultimately, market forces proved more powerful than the Mexican government's attempt to forge a single national identity. Although the book's basic premise echoes that of older interpretations, the author's use of recent theories borrowed from history and other social sciences provides them with new elan. The discussion of Native American and African American identity sometimes disappears into the background, but Resendez's command of general political, economic, and cultural issues is remarkable. The level of detail for such a relatively small volume is impressive, even though it may deter some undergraduate students. Readers less familiar with borderlands history will appreciate the excellent introduction. ^BSumming Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above. M. J. Van de Logt Indiana University Bloomington
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
