This fourth edition of The U.S.-Mexican Border Today by Ganster and Collins offers a compelling, readable account of both contemporary and historical issues related to the southwest border. Importantly, the authors' exploration of historical issues aligns with the latest scholarship in the field. After a quick overview of the North American Southwest in chapter 1, they summarize issues related to industrialism and the border at the turn of the 20th century and the ramifications of so-called progressive social changes prior to the Great Depression in chapters 2–4. Ganster and Collins hit a nice stride in chapters 5 and 6, grounding the region's globalization in mid-20th-century issues, which sets the stage for thorough discussions of contemporary issues ranging from public health, the environment, Natives' concerns, and border security to national politics. Perhaps most significantly, the authors examine the border from both sides, integrating Mexican and American perspectives on the region's history and its current problems. This volumestands as a rare transnational analysis of the border that takes historical issues up to the present day, providing a readable and engaging analysis that is accessible to students. Highly recommended. General readers through faculty; professionals.

Choice Reviews

The U. S.-Mexican Border Today is without peer among books about this border. It stands unsurpassed in its comprehensive assessment of social, economic, political, and environmental conditions that have shaped this region in the past and in the present. For two decades, I have depended on this work to inform my students and to contextualize my own border research. This new fourth edition is the most engaging and insightful volume yet.

Daniel D. Arreola, Arizona State University

Simply the indispensable one-volume introduction to the U.S.-Mexico border region and must-reading for students and scholars alike. All the essential themes of borderlands policy and scholarship are covered: trade, urbanization, immigration, natural resources and environmental concerns, demographic and cultural hybridity, and the complexities of binational diplomacy in a region where survival and prosperity are fundamentally intertwined and interdependent. Crisply written and scrupulously documented, the book conveys a sophisticated understanding of the challenges and opportunities that attend to building binational engagement advancing the border region’s development, and the vital importance to both countries of doing so.

Stephen Mumme, Colorado State University

A site of important developments and debates, the U.S.-Mexico border has drawn great interest in recent years. All interested readers definitely should start with this clear and informative introduction. I have taught with it for many years, and I appreciate now having this up-to-date edition that puts recent controversies into the big historical, social, and cultural picture.

Josiah Heyman, University of Texas at El Paso