Puerto Rico: Deciding Its Future

School Library Journal

Gr 6 UpStarting with the devastating impact that the arrival of the Spaniards had on the native Taino population, Harlan presents the history of the island. Interspersed throughout the text are boxes that highlight significant people and culturally relevant topics. The changing political relationship between the commonwealth and the U.S. is explored, as is the question of the island's future. The status of Puerto Ricans in this country is also discussed, as are many of the reasons for migration to the mainland. An attractive full-color photograph accompanies each chapter, and an occasional table expands upon a point made in the text. The language is clear and the discussion straightforward; the inserts, although occasionally out of sync with the narrative, provide needed substance and texture. The source notes are organized chapter by chapter and consist of an interesting mixture of press releases, interviews, newspaper articles, and books. The brief list for further reading includes two of Harlan's earlier titles. Dennis Hauptly's Puerto Rico (Atheneum, 1991); Jerome J. Aliotta's The Puerto Ricans (Chelsea, 1995); and Deborah Kent's Puerto Rico (Children's Press, 1992) cover much of the same ground. However, the most satisfying aspect of Harlan's book is the clarity and simplicity with which the statehood-commonweatlth-independence question is presented.Linda Greengrass, Bank Street College Library, New York City