Dugan, a research consultant, provides an ambitious and useful review of shifting ideas about sedentary versus mobile people and societies. Her dual concern is with self and place, and how migrants “shape their senses of self and place through their mobilities” (p. 77). In particular, she highlights the different ways that people relate to place, being dependent, independent, or interdependent. Her approach is eclectic, fostering a dialogue with the literature and with a set of 10 very interesting research participants who span the globe in terms of origins (Africa, Asia, Europe) and range of migration dynamics (immigrants and refugees). For many readers the crucial part of the book will be the research participants' articulate comments on the nature of mobility. The author represents them well and is attuned to how reflective and philosophical her interviewees can be. Although Dugan draws from several disciplines, her background in counseling steers her toward a concern with the agency of migrants and, particularly, how to “engender well-being [and provide] opportunity for both people and place to flourish” (p. 211). North American readers will benefit from the Australian context, although the book is framed globally. Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students, faculty, and professionals.

Choice Reviews