Latino Entrepreneurs

School Library Journal

Gr 9 Up-Contemporary school-to-career resources specifically aimed at Hispanics. Both volumes present overviews of their respective fields and profile successful male and female Latinos. Wade provides a brief introduction to 32 careers. Readers will appreciate the specificity of the overviews, including the employment outlook and potential salary range. The author's journalistic style makes the 10 biographies appealing to non-Latino readers as well. A wide range of backgrounds and countries are represented; each entry includes more factual data and less personal history than that found in Entrepreneurs. Spotlight stories include information on lobbying and aspects of police work. Entrepreneurs, which is more didactic than Wade's title, explains the differences between starting a business from scratch and buying an established one and discusses what it takes to be a successful owner and operator. The eight biographical sketches are written in a talkative, storylike style. With cultural appeal in mind, details include the subjects' early loves and choices that led to their success. Lists are within the text rather than bulleted, which hinders readability. Morals and a strong work ethic are seen as essential, and family support is given more emphasis than big money. The dense amount of text in both books may put off some researchers, the black-and-white photographs are static, and the material isn't organized well, but there is some good information here.-Gail Richmond, San Diego Unified Schools, CA Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.