(no subject)

I remember reading the last[*] Redwall book. I was about 11, we where camping in Dinosaur National Park (I think) and I cried my eyes out because it was the very last one and I loved those books. There was another one of course and I read it and it wasn't quite as magical. And I grew up and they all became less magical and the formula began to show through and now I haven't read one of them in years. I have read none of the newer books.

Still yesterday when I learned that Brian Jacques had died I was saddened. He was someone who brought magic to my childhood.


[*]the most recently published at the time, but I was somehow convinced that there would never be another.

Strawberry Fields: Politics, Class, and Work in California Agriculture by Miriam J. Wells

This book is a detailed and intricate portrayal of strawberry growing in Santa Cruz and Monterey counties in the 70s and 80s. I had some trouble with the writing style which I found rather dry, but over all I thought it was a good book.

The book discusses labor relations and resistance. Race, class, and immigrant status all have important roles to play. Strawberry Fields show how labor relations are embedded in social and political relationship especially in this case changing immigration and labor laws.