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Rating: 
Summary: "Harvest of Empire" is a Must Read
Review: "Harvest of Empire" is a must read for Latinos and those who are interested in learning more about the nation's fastest growing ethnic group. Gonzalez has fearlessly examined the history of Latinos from the Spanish and English conquests to the present day.Gonzalez effectively paints a large overall picture of why Latinos migrated to the United States. As he noted, Latinos migrated to this country because they were responding to the needs of the United States which has often acted as an empire imposing its will on Latin American nations. The best part about the book, however, is that it examines the history of many different Latino groups. So often, books about Latinos deal solely with the history of Mexicans, Puerto Ricans and Cubans. As the book demonstrates, Latinos and many Latin American countries such as the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua share much more than just a common language. The book adds a lot of insight into the growing political clout of Latinos as well as the debate over language. On a personal note, as a Puerto Rican growing up in New York City, the book has helped me to better understand my identity as well as the shame many tried to make me feel. I attended public school in New York and I can't remember one instance where we learned anything about Latino heroes or history. This book has helped to fill that void and should be used in the classroom, particularly in college.
Rating: 
Summary: ONE-SIDED BOOK
Review: Although I'll admit I didn't read the entire book, I did read much (or, better put, enough) of it to get the jist. I think Juan Gonzalez's views are very prejudiced and inconsiderate towards non-Hispanic whites. Like all too many Hispanic leaders in this country, he urges Hispanics to adopt a chip-on-the- shoulder attitude and wants to make them think that being Hispanic in the United States is a crutch. Mr. Gonzalez fails to realize, though, that one-hundred years ago there was an influx of millions of immigrants from southern Italy. Just like todays Mexican-Americans, they tended to be short, dark-skinned, with dark hair and dark eyes. In other words, they looked different from the previous immigrants from central, eastern, and norhtern Europe. People complained that the Italians didn't want to speak English. Sound familiar, Mr. Gonzalez? People called them ethnic slurs such as "guinea", "dago", "wop", and "greaseball" just to name a few. Sound familiar, Mr. Gonzalez? People said that they all carried knives and were in gangs. Sound familiar, Mr. Gonzalez? In the South, between 1891 and 1911, over 30 people of southern Italian descent were lynched for crimes they did not committ. They weren't even allowed in white schools for quite some time in many areas of the South. In the North, they took dangerous factory and construction jobs, while being grossly underpaid and working in horrible death and injury prone conditions. In California, they worked in the fields, again while being underpaid and working in bad conditions. Sound familiar, Juan? And yet today, the Little Italys (or Italian-American ghettoes, if you will) that once abounded this country are all gone but a few, such as New York's and Boston's, which are disappearing as well. What happened to them? They've become successful. Their community leaders know that just because you don't speak Italian or Sicilian doesn't mean that you've lost your cultural backgound. Their community leaders know that it is absolutely stupid and ignorant to hold a grudge against Anglo-Americans living today that had absolutely nothing to do with whatever went on 100 years or even 50 years ago between Italian-Americans and Anglo-Americans. If Mr. Gonzalez is going to say that it is all the Anglos' fault for whatever problems Hispanic communities have today, then how does he explain the success of Italian,Japanese,Chinese,Asian Indian,Pakisitani,and Arab-Americans? Mr. Gonzalez could definitely take a few lessons from Linda Chavez, whom I admire very much. She wrote a book called "Out of the Barrio" which I recommend if anyone wants to get both sides of the view of the Mexican-American, Puerto Rican American and Cuban American experiences. Its too bad that these great communities don't have more leaders like Linda Chavez instead of corrupt ones like Mr. Gonzalez who hold them down.
Rating:
Summary: ONE-SIDED BOOK
Review: Although I'll admit I didn't read the entire book, I did read much (or, better put, enough) of it to get the jist. I think Juan Gonzalez's views are very prejudiced and inconsiderate towards non-Hispanic whites. Like all too many Hispanic leaders in this country, he urges Hispanics to adopt a chip-on-the- shoulder attitude and wants to make them think that being Hispanic in the United States is a crutch. Mr. Gonzalez fails to realize, though, that one-hundred years ago there was an influx of millions of immigrants from southern Italy. Just like todays Mexican-Americans, they tended to be short, dark-skinned, with dark hair and dark eyes. In other words, they looked different from the previous immigrants from central, eastern, and norhtern Europe. People complained that the Italians didn't want to speak English. Sound familiar, Mr. Gonzalez? People called them ethnic slurs such as "guinea", "dago", "wop", and "greaseball" just to name a few. Sound familiar, Mr. Gonzalez? People said that they all carried knives and were in gangs. Sound familiar, Mr. Gonzalez? In the South, between 1891 and 1911, over 30 people of southern Italian descent were lynched for crimes they did not committ. They weren't even allowed in white schools for quite some time in many areas of the South. In the North, they took dangerous factory and construction jobs, while being grossly underpaid and working in horrible death and injury prone conditions. In California, they worked in the fields, again while being underpaid and working in bad conditions. Sound familiar, Juan? And yet today, the Little Italys (or Italian-American ghettoes, if you will) that once abounded this country are all gone but a few, such as New York's and Boston's, which are disappearing as well. What happened to them? They've become successful. Their community leaders know that just because you don't speak Italian or Sicilian doesn't mean that you've lost your cultural backgound. Their community leaders know that it is absolutely stupid and ignorant to hold a grudge against Anglo-Americans living today that had absolutely nothing to do with whatever went on 100 years or even 50 years ago between Italian-Americans and Anglo-Americans. If Mr. Gonzalez is going to say that it is all the Anglos' fault for whatever problems Hispanic communities have today, then how does he explain the success of Italian,Japanese,Chinese,Asian Indian,Pakisitani,and Arab-Americans? Mr. Gonzalez could definitely take a few lessons from Linda Chavez, whom I admire very much. She wrote a book called "Out of the Barrio" which I recommend if anyone wants to get both sides of the view of the Mexican-American, Puerto Rican American and Cuban American experiences. Its too bad that these great communities don't have more leaders like Linda Chavez instead of corrupt ones like Mr. Gonzalez who hold them down.
Rating:
Summary: A different perspective
Review: I am the Americanized Puerto Rican born in Brooklyn whose parents traded cultural awareness by restricting use of the Spanish language at home for assimilation and greater opportunity educationally. The trade off worked, I earned my BS in Management from Pepperdine University. The trade off didn't work, it is difficult for me to associate in any meaningful manner with fellow Puerto Ricans or Latin Americans in general. My African-American friends consider me white, my Anglo-American friends consider me black, and I am quickly shunned at times by Puerto Ricans just because I don't speak Spanish. Juan Gonzalez with great research and detail identified my subtle undefined (at the time) schizophrenic social engagements. Therapeutically, through historical narrative of US policy towards Puerto Rico, cause and affect of PR vs NYC migratory action from the 1940's through today, viewing the current environment of Puerto Ricans in the South Bronx or East Harlem, I've come to know myself better, appreciate those of my race with greater gravity, and understand that none of these actions are by chance. Macroeconomically, the environmental and immigration impact of US policy regarding the Caribean Basin Initiative or NAFTA that are extensively noted and bibliographed, quite simply created a different perspective on my training in business and foreign investment. Mr. Gonzalez does not stop there. He tackles bilingualism, revisits and reexamines American History in a manner not expressed to me in any classroom...ever...then through citings of other works, backs it up. It is the most refreshing book I've read since the Autobiography of Malcolm X with Alex Haley, due to it's clarity and insight for the human quest for internal and external truths.
Rating:
Summary: A different perspective
Review: I am the Americanized Puerto Rican born in Brooklyn whose parents traded cultural awareness by restricting use of the Spanish language at home for assimilation and greater opportunity educationally. The trade off worked, I earned my BS in Management from Pepperdine University. The trade off didn't work, it is difficult for me to associate in any meaningful manner with fellow Puerto Ricans or Latin Americans in general. My African-American friends consider me white, my Anglo-American friends consider me black, and I am quickly shunned at times by Puerto Ricans just because I don't speak Spanish. Juan Gonzalez with great research and detail identified my subtle undefined (at the time) schizophrenic social engagements. Therapeutically, through historical narrative of US policy towards Puerto Rico, cause and affect of PR vs NYC migratory action from the 1940's through today, viewing the current environment of Puerto Ricans in the South Bronx or East Harlem, I've come to know myself better, appreciate those of my race with greater gravity, and understand that none of these actions are by chance. Macroeconomically, the environmental and immigration impact of US policy regarding the Caribean Basin Initiative or NAFTA that are extensively noted and bibliographed, quite simply created a different perspective on my training in business and foreign investment. Mr. Gonzalez does not stop there. He tackles bilingualism, revisits and reexamines American History in a manner not expressed to me in any classroom...ever...then through citings of other works, backs it up. It is the most refreshing book I've read since the Autobiography of Malcolm X with Alex Haley, due to it's clarity and insight for the human quest for internal and external truths.
Rating:
Summary: Great Book
Review: I read the book, I loaned it to my 19 year old daughter. We are both latinos born in different countries. The book examines Latino experience accoding to different backgrounds. I am a succesful professional and my daughter a high honors student. We are both fascinated by the book. However, the author is a little harsh in his critisism of the USA. Instead of blaming the US for all our problems we must acknoledge that there has always been Latinos willing to benefit from US policies in Latin America, in detriment of our own countries. This is a must read book for all. There are many misunderstandings between Anglos and Latins, and among Latins. If we wish for a great future for this american nation we must acknoledge everyone's strenghts and weakneses, and stop fingerpointing for someone to blame. Read the book, you will not regret it!
Rating:
Summary: Cutting Cane
Review: Sadly, Mr. Gonzalez' Spanish surname authenticates his long-winded diatribe for many readers unfamiliar with the subjects he discusses. How covenient to have thousands of years of civilization of a couple dozen countries swept up neatly into one tidy book by a [latino]? While it fits America's taste for fast food -- served up in a colorful box with a toy surprise inside -- Mr. Gonzalez' portrait of the centuries-old U.S.-Latino relationship is woefully inaccurate at least with regard to the Cuban community. The reason, I think, he takes the time to briefly attack and discount Cubans' stand-alone attitude in their 41-year-old self-imposed exile is that it doesn't fit into the premise he has established for why Latinos are here in the U.S. and how bad they have it. In the book, he argues that the poor Latino can't help but come to America's shores begging for work -- professional or otherwise -- for which he is later underpaid and underappreciated. He posits that it happens that way by design of the "imperialist yanqui." Sound like the words of a dying dictator? Well, that's the last word from Gonzalez as well. It's all the fault of America: land of the free and enterprising, home of the brave and risk-taking. What is most ironic is that he sprinkles this tome of pejorative conjecture with a litany on Latino successes, to justify our greatness I guess. But who does he use as trophies? Cubans! The same Cubans he condemns for not towing the victim line earlier are the ones he most proudly touts as Latino U.S.A.'s gleaming stars. Mr. Gonzalez may know much about the barrio but he certainly doesn't know about Miami's Cuban strength: founded on pride and self-determination. We didn't come her looking for a chance to make a living, but for a chance at a life. That's where you get a Gloria. Not waiting -- or begging -- for a break from the mainstream power brokers. You generate and build your own. Doled out power -- given in tiny government stipends and grants -- is never yours. It's on loan. To that I say, ``No gracias.''
Rating:
Summary: Should be required reading
Review: This is one of those great books that gives readers a sweep of hundreds of years of history while at the same providing a laser-like focus on current events. "Harvest of Empire" is about the rise of Latinos in America from LA to Miami, from Brownsville, Texas to Brownsville, Brooklyn. It is scholarly without being academic, politically analytical without being polemical. It is about the immense contribution that Latinos have made and are now making to the politics and culture of the U.S. It is about the steady Latinoization of American culture from the big band sounds of Mario Bauza and Machito to Gloria Estefan and Selena. As a veteran newspaperman and columnist,Juan Gonzalez has always been an activist-reporter, someone who refuses to distance himself the events he covers. Now, as historian and writer, he brings the same sense of up-close and personal to his story of Latinos in America. It is history with passion.
Rating:
Summary: Great Book
Review: What I loved about this book is that the author gives a narrative of history that wasn't apparent to me before. We're taught hitory from east to West, but for millions of Latinos the story is from South to North. Gonzalez spends time on each Latino group and he demonstrates how each sending country's relationship with the United States impacts how each group is treated. I didn't know that Puerto Ricans were US citizens by birth. Moreover, I had no idea how much immigrant labor from Mexico contributes to America's prosperity--particulary that of California and Texas. (CA is the fifth largest economy in the world.) What I also didn't know is that the Cuban Adjustment Act of 1966 made Cuban exiles immediately eligible for public assistance, Medicaid, food stamps, free English courses, scholarships and low interest college loans. They could also secure immediate business and start up loans. Dade county even opened up its civil service list to non-citizens. Some banks even pioneered what is called a "character loan"--an exile who didn't have collateral or credit could get a business loan based on his background or standing in Cuba. Obviously, these programs have had an effect on that group's prosperity. This book is full of information that has given me new insight about our country's fastest growing group.
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