Brettell's new book provides new insight into the processes of migration
and transnationalism from an anthropological perspective. It has been
estimated at the turn of the millennium that 160 million people are
living outside of their country of birth or citizenship. The author
analyzes macro and micro approaches to migration theory, utilizing her
extensive fieldwork in Portugal as well as research in Germany, Brazil,
France, the United States and Canada. Key issues she discusses include:
the value of immigrant incorporation vs. assimilation models; the
impacts on individual, household and community as well as institutions
and states; the role of ethnicity and ethnic groups; the effects of
clandestine or illegal immigration; the differing commitments to host
vs. sending communities; the shift from city enclaves to suburban areas;
the constraints and opportunities that lead to ethnic entrepreneurship;
the role of religion in transnational linkages; and the differing
experiences of men and women as migrants. Brettell also explores the
relevance of life histories and oral narratives in understanding the
immigration process and the mediation of boundaries in a new society.
This book provides a fresh perspective on the contemporary experience of
migration and will be indispensable to instructors and researchers in
anthropology, race and ethnic studies, immigration studies, urban
studies, sociology, and international relations.
