Central America Books

This collection of folk literature is valuable for anyone teaching bilingual Spanish/English literature. It is also very useful for teachers of Spanish language, anthropology , children's literature, and folklore. I am using it in a college level writing class. Stories are printed in both Spanish and English. They are short and well-written, retaining the flavor of the original in the translation.

Berlitz guides are not what you may call heavy-duty full-scale guides. They are cheaper - and also thinner on research, sticking to simpler matters and giving just a quick glance at the area. If you do not have excessive expectations, this book will not disappoint you.

Berlitz Costa Dorada is very good for a holiday-maker who will be spending most of the time on the beach and will keep cultural exploration as a firm second priority. For these travellers, a big and substantial guide (such as any thick book covering Catalonia) would not represent ideal value for money.

I found most details accurate and writing readable if uninspired. Again, you cannot judge this book by applying standards of a full-budget travel guide. Photographs are good, and some descriptions are in fact very honest compared to bigger brothers who often try to be too vague trying not to offend anyone.

Library Journal's review of this guide: "Combining encyclopedic coverage of destinations with loads of practical information and atlas- type maps, the series illuminates the wonders of nature but emphasizes the peculiarity of a place's people and their folklore."

I'm glad that I read this book. My family and I are considering living in Costa Rica.

This book will help us understand Costa Rican culture so we can have a positive experience in Costa Rica.

My wife and I have visited Costa Rica several times over the last 18 years and we have seen a movement in the direction of "up-scale" in lodging, in activities for visitors, and, of course, costs. This guide, written by a retired person living in Costa Rica, is exactly what the low budget traveler needs. It is not a guide to 5-star hotels but rather a guide for students, retired folks, and anyone else interested in an authentic Costa Rica vacation without breaking the bank.The author's knowledge about the bus system is a real plus!

If you don't buy any other book, get this one. It has it all.

Studied it at length before booking and then we took it along and were glad we did both. You will be too.

Part of the Global Studies: Latin America & The Caribbean series, Costa Rica: A Global Studies Handbook is a solid educational text written for students, travelers, businesspeople, and anyone interested in gaining a better understanding of this beautiful nation. Costa Rica: A Global Studies Handbook is divided into a narrative section (which relates the history of the land along with information about its politics, institutions, society, and culture) and a reference section (which has a timeline of key events in Costa Rican history, a listing of significant Costa Rican organizations, and entries of key Costa Rican historical figures, places, and events). An annotated bibliography and an index round out this down-to-earth, highly readable primer.

Placing Costa Rica in the Central American context, Booth evaluates common myths about Costa Rican democracy. He finds the glass half full and half empty: Costa Rica's demanding citizens and a responsive government interact vibrantly, yet 1980s-90s financial crises permitted neoliberal foreign lenders to somewhat erode democracy and undermine redistributive programs that once supported it. Citizens' beliefs and demands sustain democracy, but frustration with hard times and politicians eroded election turnout in 1998. Not a travel guide, the book should interest students, scholars, policy makers, travellers seeking depth of information. Beginning with theories about the nature of democracy and how it develops, Booth traces the growth of Costa Rican politics from militarism and elite rule in the late 19th c. through the development of full democracy since 1949. Chapters focus on how the present constitution and institutions work, social structure and civil society. There are also chapters political participation and culture, political economy under external neoliberal pressures, and foreign policy. Tables and an appendix provide abundant data on elections, politics, economy, and society through 1998.

William Quirk's book, "Courts & Congress: America's Unwritten Constitution" reveals the unarticulated Gentlemen's Agreement between the Congress, the highest office of the Judiciary, and the Presidency. The author calls it "The Happy Convention". It is an unspoken arrangement between the U.S. Supreme Court and the Congress who, with the tacit approval of the President, arrange for the members of Congress almost never to have to take responsibility for legislation which might disaffect the voters. The author explains it fully and presents extensive and convincing proofs of its existence and application. A must-read for anybody interested in the duplicitous ways of our present-day Congress and the reason we will never have term limits and an end to gerrymandering.
Professor Quirk even makes a case for making The Happy convention legal by giving the Supreme Court appellate jurisdiction in all constitutional cases - in other words, wherever constitutional questions come into play simply accept the fact that the Supreme Court has supplanted Congress and has become the arbiter - for this reader at least, an unfortunate state of affairs in the evolution of our beloved Republic.
Thomas D. Cherubini MD

The book arrived within two weeks of my ordering it and was in the condition advertised.