Ó American Sociological Association 2010
DOI: 10.1177/0094306110367910
BRIEFLY NOTED
Poto Mitan: Haitian Women, Pillars of the Global
Economy, directed and produced by Reneé
Bergan and Mark Schuller. Watertown,
MA: Documentary Educational Resources,
2009. Color, 50 minutes. docued@der.org.
$29.95.
Even if the recent earthquake had not shat-
tered the Haitian capital, this film would be
well worth viewing for its generalizability
to other poor countries. It now has unantici-
pated historical significance since it was
filmed months prior to the natural disaster,
and many of the buildings that are featured
were destroyed, probably along with some
of the protagonists. Five women are inter-
viewed at length, separated by poetic inter-
ludes of repeated material. One sees that
their struggles to survive against mighty
odds personify the working conditions of
women in developing countries around
the globe. Despite lack of credentials or
much formal education, the women exhibit
a sophisticated understanding of Haiti’s
political-economy. Where once there were
jobs which brought thousands from the coun-
tryside into the city, in their place one found,
prior to the earthquake, massive unemploy-
ment and locked gates of closed factories.
International trade agreements destroyed
the market for the products these women
worked so hard to produce, some of whom,
for instance, helped assemble 75 pairs of jeans
per hour to earn a few dollars a day. They
speak honestly and with an informed skepti-
cism about the future of the Haitian economy,
even before disaster struck.
There are subtle connections made between
chronic and widespread unemployment
among the women, and violence perpetrated
upon them by men who are in the same dire
straits. The great strength of the film is in
allowing the five women—Jean-Marie, gar-
ment worker, without funds for her child-
rens’ schooling; Solange, who analyzes
violence; Frisline, member of a woman’s
labor organization free of dominating men;
Thérèse, a victim of poor health care; Hélène,
a champion of women’s self-defense against
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physical attack—to speak from their hearts
at length, without moralizing from a narra-
tor. The film should be in all university
libraries for classroom use.
Making Sense of Global Health Governance: A
Policy Perspective, edited by Kent Buse,
Wolfgang Hein, and Nick Drager. New
York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan, 2009. 366
pp. $90.00 cloth. ISBN: 9780230209923.
Written in language accessible to both novice
scholars and health policy makers, this inter-
disciplinary work provides an overview of
the role of globalization in producing
changes in the spread of disease, the norms
governing health policy, and the availability
of social and economic resources for combat-
ing ill health. The book provides not only
a summary of the historical context of global
health governance to date, but also a review
of the concepts and frameworks that are
most vital to understanding global health
policy. This discussion focuses on both the
inter- and intra-nation forces that shape
world health. The unifying theme through-
out is the assertion that, given the confluence
of resources and awareness of health issues
spurred on by globalization, policymakers
and non-state actors are in the midst of
a unique opportunity to create sensible, last-
ing solutions to global health concerns;
however, the authors also note the limita-
tions imposed by current power imbalances,
which render the opportunity fragile. Sever-
al chapters are devoted to exploring the
complexities of existing global health poli-
cies targeted at specific health concerns,
such as HIV/AIDS and chronic illnesses. A
balanced discussion of existing policies is
provided, and policy recommendations are
interspersed throughout. Given the inclu-
sion of both a thorough, comprehensible
summary of the current state of global health
governance and well thought out policy pre-
scriptions, this work should prove useful not
only to policymakers, but also to those seek-
ing an introduction to global health policy.
358

How Markets Fail: The Logic of Economic
Calamities, by John Cassidy. New York, NY:
Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2009. 390pp.
$28.00 cloth. ISBN: 9780374173203.
Offering a simultaneously concise yet ambi-
tious exploration of the most recent U.S.
financial crisis, John Cassidy’s How Markets
Fail: The Logic of Economic Calamities should
be considered required reading for anyone
with an interest in the doxa of economics
or the processes through which economic
thought has influenced the sub-prime mort-
gage crisis. Cassidy, an economics writer for
The New Yorker, presents a lengthy analysis of
the development of economic thought which
spans between the ideas of Adam Smith and
David Ricardo to the likes of Eugene Fama
and Robert Lucas, to demonstrate what he
believes to be the primary cause of the
most recent financial collapse.
Beginning with the assumption that ideas
or ideology directly influence our behavior
(one which many social scientists make on
a regular basis), Cassidy develops a strong
argument suggesting that the primary cul-
prit in the recent financial collapse was
none other than the dominant free market
ideology that has been cultivated since the
works of Adam Smith but was not consec-
rated until much later through the efforts
of F. A. Hayek and Milton Friedman. In
order to demonstrate this, Cassidy traces
the events leading up to and during the
financial crisis, with a specific focus on the
role of dogmatic market fundamentalism
and the deregulation so commonly associat-
ed with it. He begins by offering a very effec-
tive depiction of the House Committee on
Oversight and Government Reform in which
former Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan was
questioned about his own beliefs in the free
market system. In this account, Greenspan
readily admitted to his own realization that
the foundations of his belief structure were
dramatically altered by the events occurring
in late 2007. From this point, Cassidy endeav-
ors to outline the development of what he
refers to as ‘‘Utopian Economics,’’ which is
captured in the free market idealism of Mil-
ton Friedman and the alleged mathematical
superiority of John von Neumann. Cassidy
also provides readers with an outline of
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Briefly Noted 359
‘‘Reality-Based Economics,’’ which takes
into account the developments of behavioral
economists, psychologists, and advances in
organizational theory. It is clear which of
the two forms that Cassidy values most, as
he argues for a necessary ascendancy of
reality-based economics in order to prevent
future crises.
Although Cassidy offers a wealth of infor-
mation in a single text, there are aspects of
his analysis that some scholars may find
lacking. In particular, very little attention is
paid to the development of Marxist eco-
nomics, which no doubt had an enormous
effect on the evolution of free market ideol-
ogy in the United States. Also absent is the
presence of a robust theoretical foundation
that explains the significance of ideology
and belief structures on human behavior
and actions. Regardless, Cassidy has written
a fine book that will benefit anyone seeking
information on the recent financial crisis or
anyone desiring a clear and concise histori-
cal account of American economics. More
importantly, this should be considered nec-
essary reading for any scholar whose inter-
ests or research intersect with economic
issues at any level, as it reinforces the need
to explore the importance of economic ideas
and ideology more generally.
Elsewhere, U.S.A.: How We Got from the
Company Man, Family Dinners, and the
Affulent Society to the Home Office, BlackBerry
Moms, and Economic Anxiety, by Dalton
Conley. New York, NY: Pantheon Press,
2009. 221pp. $24.00 cloth. ISBN:
9780375422904.
In Elsewhere, U.S.A., Dalton Conley contrasts
past with present, or more specifically, the
social realities belonging to Mr./Mrs. 1959
with Mr./Mrs. 2009, also known as Mr./
Mrs. Elsewhere. Through this comparison
he exemplifies his main point: several dra-
matic societal changes have occurred over
the past fifty years that pose new challenges
to families and individuals, and these changes
have created a new social landscape in
which the Elsewheres now reside. Conley
specifically defines the Elsewhere class as
the top-third of earners in the income distri-
bution who have children. As such, he clearly
Contemporary Sociology 39, 3
360 Briefly Noted
identifies the audience with whom this book
will most likely resonate. For this Elsewhere
class, Conley highlights three domains of
social change that have made particularly
significant contributions to the lives of the
Elsewheres: economic trends (i.e., rising
income inequality), family trends (i.e.,
increased female participation in the labor
market), and technological trends (i.e.,
increased diversity in the location in which
we work, and expanded work hours beyond
the 9-5). These three trends have combined
to replace the dominant ethic of the past
few decades, individualism, with a new
ethic of ‘‘intravidualism,’’ or managing our
multiple selves that result from the blurring
of the lines between work and leisure. He
concludes with a piece of advice for the Else-
where class in order to adapt successfully to
this new social reality: ‘‘blend and bend’’ to
the new social trends which blur the lines
of work and leisure rather than investing
effort in keeping the two entities separate.
A Tortilla is Like Life: Food and Culture in the
San Luis Valley of Colorado, by Carole M.
Counihan. Austin, TX: University of Texas
Press, 2009. 253 pp. $55.00 cloth. ISBN:
9780292719811.
A Tortilla is Like Life documents the experien-
ces of Hispanic women living in Antonito,
Colorado, a small town near the New Mex-
ico border. Carole Counihan interviews
nearly 20 women spanning various age
groups and occupations. Although the book
describes the experience of a diverse group
of Hispanic women, a common theme of
the relationship between the women, land,
and food emerges throughout the inter-
views. Some women hold a strong connec-
tion to the land from their early years of
food production by harvesting crops or rais-
ing domestic livestock. The younger women
did not share these same experiences with
the land, as the modern era signaled more
food products being brought into the town.
However, the interviews revealed the wom-
en’s effort to maintain a Mexicano influence
while preparing otherwise ‘‘Americanized’’
cuisine. Overall, the book reveals the wom-
en’s struggles and effort to maintain a cultur-
al identity in light of a globalized society,
Contemporary Sociology 39, 3
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specifically in terms of food production
and consumption.
Those with interests in feminist studies will
find the book enjoyable due to the author’s
ability to give voice to the women of Antonito
through semi-structured interviews followed
by the author’s reflection on how these
excerpts relate to the larger theme of land,
food, and culture. This book is also recom-
mended for those interested in Latino/
Chicano studies because it offers insight
into the cultural experience of Hispanic
women living in a non-traditional, rural
area, thus signifying the diverse experiences
of Hispanics and Latinos across the nation.
After the Car, by Kingsley Dennis and John
Urry. Malden, MA: Polity Press, 2009. 212
pp. $19.95 paper. ISBN: 9780745644226.
The authors of this interdisciplinary work dis-
cuss emergent technologies that may sup-
plant the use of the petroleum-based ‘‘car
system’’ in the 21st century. Drawing on
diverse sources, Kingsley Dennis and John
Urry make the case for the globe’s urgent
need for accessible new fuel sources (present-
ing evidence from studies on climate change,
the peaking of oil supplies, economic and
social digitization processes, and population
growth) and lay out how the private automo-
bile became the predominant mode of trans-
portation in the 20th century. The authors
then address the prospects for a reorientation
away from the car system, highlighting a num-
ber of ‘‘disruptive innovations’’ that offer new
transportation models that would require
changes in our social organization but would
also diminish our dependence on oil. Finally,
they present three scenarios—’’local sustain-
ability,’’ ‘‘regional warlordism,’’ and ‘‘digital
networks of control’’—to describe the circum-
stances in which humanity might find itself by
2050 if different ‘‘mobility systems’’ are not
adopted in the coming decades. The authors
acknowledge that there will be ‘‘no smooth
transition to a post-car future’’ (p. 135), but
within their discussion they do not anticipate
a major disruption such as that which hit the
world in late 2008: the economic downturn,
which resulted in bailouts of some European
and U.S. car makers and the extinction of
others, as well as reduced financial resources

with which governments and private citizens
alike might invest in alternative technologies
to the car.
Criminal Disenfranchisement in an International
Perspective, edited by Alec C. Ewald and
Brandon Rottinghaus. New York, NY:
Cambridge University Press, 2009. 285pp.
$85.00 cloth. ISBN: 9780521875615.
This edited text provides the first interna-
tional study of the political rights of criminal
offenders, and in doing so, addresses some
of the core issues surrounding criminal dis-
enfranchisement. In Part I, Laleh Ispahani
employs an exhaustive study of disenfran-
chisement policies to demonstrate that
despite American exceptionalism, numerous
democracies allow and facilitate voting by
inmates. Next, Uggen and colleagues use
quantitative methods to explain why some
countries allow prisoners to vote, while
others bar convicted criminals from voting.
In Part II, Nora Demleitner draws on her
expertise in American and German law
and argues for the ‘‘German model’’ as an
alternative to most of the current U.S. poli-
cies. Richard Wilson refers to suffrage laws
around the world to claim that there is a cus-
tomary legal norm protecting universal and
equal suffrage. Next, Elizabeth Hull asserts
that U.S. disenfranchisement laws are con-
sistent with a ‘‘social consensus’’ regarding
the place for felons in society, using history,
political culture, and public opinion to
explain American punitiveness.
Part III consists of five case studies in dis-
enfranchisement law. The five countries
studied include Australia (by Ronnit Red-
man, David Brown, and Bryan Mercurio),
Ireland (by Claire Hamilton and Rick Lines),
South Africa (by Lucas Muntingh and Julia
Sloth-Nielsen), Denmark (by Anette Stor-
gaard), and Canada (by Christopher
Manfredi). In the final chapter, Manfredi
defends prisoner disenfranchisement by
arguing that its continued practice is con-
sistent with liberal democratic principles.
Students in political science, sociology,
criminology, and law will find this text use-
ful, especially those interested in under-
standing where American punitiveness fits
into the larger international arena.
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Briefly Noted 361
Women Build the Welfare State: Performing
Charity and Creating Rights in Argentina, 1880-
1955, by Donna J. Guy. Durham, NC: Duke
University, 2009. 252pp. $22.95 paper. ISBN:
9780822343301.
This book develops a framework for under-
standing the formation of the welfare state
in Argentina. Drawing inspiration from pre-
vious work on women’s involvement in
building welfare states, the colorful text
illustrates the complex interplay between
upper and middle-class women’s involve-
ment in philanthropic goals and the wide-
spread rise in feminism. The ‘‘performance
of charity’’ as a sign of social status and com-
munity recognition led women to engage in
activities to ensure the welfare of society
while at the same time, feminists focused
on legal reform for mothers’ rights, such as
child custody and the ability to control their
own salaries. Though female philanthropists
and feminists differed in ideology, class, and
approach, the book tells the tale of how the
two harmoniously worked to ensure the
increasing welfare of mothers and children.
The book is the result of tremendous perso-
nal devotion on behalf of the author. The text
grew out of years of arduous research on thou-
sands of archived files from the Argentinean
government agency that monitors institutions
for children, minors, and the family. The rich
text includes direct quotes and individual
case studies that provide the reader with
a raw historical account. Despite the richness
of her child-focused, gendered approach, the
author provides a succinct portrayal that is
accessible and enjoyable to read. The range
of potential readers is wide, including histori-
ans, sociologists, and feminist scholars.
Regardless of particular interests, readers
will exit the book with a more nuanced per-
spective of and appreciation for women’s
involvement in Argentine political history.
Filling the Ark: Animal Welfare in Disasters, by
Leslie Irvine. Philadelphia, PA: Temple
University Press, 2009. 166 pp. $24.50 cloth.
ISBN: 9781592138340.
Although we generally associate the term
disaster with loss of human life and destruction
Contemporary Sociology 39, 3
362 Briefly Noted
of infrastructure, Leslie Irvine devotes her
book to the consideration of a topic that
often receives far less media attention: ani-
mal welfare in disasters. As she explains,
human beings place animals on a ‘‘sociozoo-
logic’’ scale in terms of their value to us as
companions, food, pests, or research sub-
jects. In disaster situations, an animal’s place
on this scale often determines whether or not
it will be rescued, left to die by exposure, or
killed through euthanasia or less humane
practices.
As Irvine describes, companion animals
are highly valued in our society and the
most likely to be rescued. However, pet
owners may not be able to provide for their
animals during disasters due to inadequate
preparation, lack of transportation, or the
disorganization of officials and organiza-
tions attempting to manage the disaster. Ani-
mals on factory farms fare far worse. These
animals are often raised in conditions that
prevent the possibility of escape or survival
in a disaster. Additionally, producers see
the animals from a cost-profit perspective.
The loss of their lives is equated to a mone-
tary loss. Similarly, when animals in research
facilities are killed, we bemoan lost research,
not lost lives.
As Irvine argues, we have a responsibility
to minimize the vulnerability of animals
within our care and those that can be aff-
ected by our actions. To protect animals
requires that we rethink our use of animal
products, engage in sustainable farming,
and pass legislation to protect animal wel-
fare across the sociozoologic scale. Aimed
at general readers and those interested in
animal-human interaction, this book serves
as a reminder that disasters put more than
human life at stake.
Biosecurity Interventions: Global Health and
Security in Question, edited by Andrew
Lakoff and Stephen J. Collier. New York,
NY: Columbia University Press, 2008. 307
pp. $27.50 cloth. ISBN: 9780231146067.
When news broke of a possible Swine Flu
pandemic in May of 2009, the sudden threat
of that particular disease caught most by sur-
prise, although the scenario is a familiar one.
Despite hubristic proclamations by public
Contemporary Sociology 39, 3
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health scholars of the twentieth century
that modern medicine would render micro-
bial epidemics a thing of the past, the specter
of infectious disease continues to haunt us,
and the threat has only been exacerbated
by globalization. In an economy which shifts
untold tons of people and food across the
globe daily, unforeseen diseases can quickly
escalate beyond the control of policy makers.
Consequently, public health research and
policy have shifted from a paradigm of risk
calculation to one of universal preparedness.
In Biosecurity Interventions, Andrew Lakoff
and Stephen Collier have assembled a collec-
tion of essays which attempt to summarize,
integrate, and elaborate this new paradigm,
with an eye to improving public health pol-
icy. Because the paradigm of universal pre-
paredness includes not only traditional
public health organizations, such as the Cen-
ter for Disease Control and the World Health
Organization, but others such as those con-
cerned with national security, one of the vol-
ume’s major goals is to address how
different organizations, with different goals,
can work together to tackle sudden infec-
tious outbreaks.
Sociologists of health and public health
scholars of all stripes will be piqued by the
imminence of the topic. Those interested in
inter-organizational and inter-institutional
collaboration may benefit from the book’s
engagement with these issues as well.
Lewis Mumford: Critic of Culture and Civilization,
by Shuxue Li. New York, NY: Peter
Lang, 2009. 241pp. $49.95 paper. ISBN:
9783039115570.
Lewis Mumford is perhaps most famously
known for his work on architecture, the
city, and technology. Author of more than
two dozen books, Mumford was one of the
most prolific cultural critics of the twentieth
century. However, as Shuxue Li demon-
strates in Lewis Mumford: Critic of Culture
and Civilization, Mumford has yet to receive
his due as a forerunner to cultural and
American studies, and his work exhibits
a theoretical and critical integration which
has been overlooked by scholars who have
tended to focus only on his more influential
later works, such as The City in History (1961)

and The Myth of the Machine (1967-1970). To
correct this oversight, Li focuses instead on
Mumford’s early career in the 1920s and
1930s, when he was more preoccupied with
literary criticism than technology and urban
civilization. While Mumford scholars have
tended to view his great skepticism with
civilization as a later development in his
thought, Li shows with a close reading of
Mumford’s early works that his stance
toward civilization and technology is consis-
tent throughout his career. Li views Mum-
ford’s early literary criticism as necessary
groundwork for his more sociological and
philosophical later works.
Despite the volume and sophistication of
his work, Mumford was, and still is, some-
what of an outsider to the academy. He nev-
er received his doctorate, never held
a permanent academic appointment, and
never became involved with an academic
community, earning his living primarily as
a lecturer and an author. Mumford was
more at home writing for the New Yorker
than for technical trade journals, and this
perhaps partly explains his neglect among
academic circles. But this is to the peril of
social theorists, especially those concerned
with social criticism and the material bases
of culture. Seventy-six years after Technics
and Civilization, the world is vastly more
urbanized, mechanized, and bureaucratic,
and those who wish to better understand
the consequences of these trends would do
well to explore Mumford’s ideas.
Shoes, Glues and Homework: Dangerous Work
in the Global Footwear Industry, by Pia
Markkanen. Amityville, NY: Baywood
Publishing Company, Inc., 2009. 120pp.
$34.95 cloth. ISBN: 9780895033284.
In this book, Pia Markkanen offers us a view
of the hazards associated with home-based
footwear production in developing nations.
Using interviews and inspections of local
shoe workshops, the book focuses on shoe
production in Indonesia and the Philippines.
However, Markkanen’s findings can be
extended easily to other developing nations
as well as to other industries characterized
by home-based manufacturing.
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Briefly Noted 363
The term ‘‘homework’’ refers to paid work
conducted within the home (or similar set-
ting) where an employer retains control
over the specifications for the final product.
In the shoe industries of the Philippines
and Indonesia, hazards often emerge when
work is conducted in cramped conditions
using toxic chemicals without a clear distinc-
tion between work space and living space.
Although less toxic alternatives are now
available, many home shoe workshops still
utilize highly toxic glues and cleaners associ-
ated with a multitude of negative health out-
comes. Many of these chemicals are shipped
in unlabeled or mislabeled containers, leav-
ing homeworkers without directives for
proper handling or warnings of possible tox-
icity. These chemicals present a potential fire
risk and are often stored and used in areas
with poor ventilation.
Much of the difficulty in removing these
and other hazards lies in the lack of regula-
tion and protection for ‘‘informal’’ workers.
Particularly in developing nations, govern-
mental organizations often lack the resour-
ces needed to enforce policies addressing
occupational health and safety, especially
in the informal, home-based work environ-
ment. As Markkanen describes, workers in
the informal economy, particularly women,
are often overlooked. Aimed towards read-
ers interested in occupational safety, global-
ization, and industrial organization, this
book helps to give these individuals a voice.
Cool Capitalism, by Jim McGuigan. London,
UK: Pluto Press, 2009. 282pp. $26.95 paper.
ISBN: 9780745326788.
The ideological foundations of capitalism
have been a much discussed topic in critical
theory and political economy. From Marx’s
‘‘false consciousness’’ to Weber’s ‘‘Protestant
Ethic’’ to Marcuse’s ‘‘one-dimensional man,’’
critics and champions of capitalism alike
have recognized that for the economic wheels
of capitalism to turn, the affirmation of
ideological assent is required. In Jim McGui-
gan’s Cool Capitalism, capitalism has co-
opted ‘‘coolness,’’ thereby turning disaffec-
tion toward the capitalist system into a tool
of capitalist exploitation. Thus, capitalism
Contemporary Sociology 39, 3
364 Briefly Noted
maintains its ideological justifications
through absorbing and exploiting dissent.
Building on Thomas Frank’s ‘‘conquest of
cool’’ thesis, McGuigan argues that being
‘‘cool’’ entails a rejection of mainstream
values, and that this irreverent disposition
becomes the tool of advertising by capitalist
corporations. In a sense, ‘‘cool’’ is a market
unto itself, and capitalist organizations use
appropriate cultural cues to lure the ‘‘cool’’
into consumerism, thus neutralizing what-
ever resistance to capitalism ‘‘coolness’’
harbors. What results is a ‘‘marriage
between counter-culture and corporate busi-
ness’’ (p.9).
Cool Capitalism is a unique piece of schol-
arship which presents a history of the cultur-
al meanings of capitalism and shows how
these meanings serve the various ideologies
which have been employed to justify that
form of economic organization. It is a deft
synthesis of cultural studies and political
economy, and should be of interest to schol-
ars of those stripes.
The Irish War on Drugs: The Seductive Folly
of Prohibition, by Paul O’Mahony.
Manchester, UK: Manchester University
Press, 2009. 244pp. $32.95 paper. ISBN:
9780719079023.
On January 18th, 2010, New Jersey became
the fourteenth state to pass a medical mari-
juana law, in which the otherwise illicit
drug can be consumed legally given an
endorsement from a proper medical author-
ity. This was one more victory for the legali-
zation movement which, failing to make
headway on human rights grounds, has
managed successfully to reframe marijuana
as a medical issue. One might think that
the spread of legal pardon for the consump-
tion of a forbidden drug would necessarily
be a setback for prohibitionists, but as Paul
O’Mahony shows in The Irish War on Drugs,
public policy discussions concerning drugs
are rife with confusion and contradiction,
and specific policy measures which seem
efficacious within a narrow area are often
at odds with parallel policy efforts directed
at other aspects of drug regulation.
O’Mahony takes Ireland as a case study of
drug policy and use, focusing on how
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criminal law and public policy interact to
produce the Irish ‘‘War on Drugs.’’ O’Mah-
ony observes that, despite escalated efforts
in recent years to establish a ‘‘drug-free
world’’ via law enforcement, drug use has
in fact steeply increased, and he makes use
of empirical data to demonstrate that prohi-
bition has in fact had a deleterious effect on
health, crime and social problems in Ireland.
Though the abolition of prohibition is rec-
ommended, O’Mahony acknowledges the
nearly insurmountable political obstacles to
worldwide legalization. In the final chapter
of the book, O’Mahony sets himself the
task of dismantling the prohibitionist argu-
ment in light of its empirical oversights
and logical fallacies, with the hope that
future drug policy discussions can be made
clearer and based on sound social science.
The Irish War on Drugs will be of interest to
criminologists and scholars of public policy,
but also to those who may wish to find, in
social science, a vindication of their under-
ground recreational activities.
Personal Decisions in the Public Square: Beyond
Problem Solving into a Positive Sociology, by
Robert A. Stebbins. New Brunswick, NJ:
Transaction Publishers, 2009. 166 pp. $39.95
cloth. ISBN: 9781412808262.
No one can accuse sociologists of being
overly optimistic. Our focus on power,
inequality, and social control make cynicism
and a robust distrust of the status quo prac-
tically required dispositions for working in
the profession. That is, unless you are Robert
Stebbins. In his latest effort in the sociology
of leisure, Stebbins elects to focus not on
social problems, but on how people con-
struct meaningful, happy, and fulfilled lives;
this he calls Positive Sociology, and contrasts
this approach with the ‘‘negativity’’ of
problem-centered mainstream sociology.
He reasons that solving social problems
can only bring relief to suffering, but cannot
bring the kind of deep satisfaction that lei-
sure activities do, and so the sociology of lei-
sure has much to offer in understanding
how people make lives for themselves.
Central to Stebbins’ sociology of leisure
are the concepts of agency and activity. Lei-
sure is what people choose to do in their

free time, and the main attraction of leisurely
pursuits is their core activities, or the actual
practices which contribute to the ultimate
goal associated with partaking in the lei-
surely pursuit. The concept of leisure is bro-
ken down into three dimensions: casual,
serious, and project-based. The core activi-
ties of casual leisure are typically simple,
such as watching a sunset or watching tele-
vision. However, activities associated with
serious and project-based literature can
become exceedingly complex (for instance,
mastering a scientific literature would be
an example of serious leisure, and organiz-
ing a fundraiser would be an example of
project-based leisure).
Aside from sociologists of leisure, scholars
interested in collective action might take
note of Stebbins’ approach. While collective
action is often framed as a free-rider prob-
lem, the concept of serious leisure forces
a rethinking of collective action, in that par-
ticipation can be viewed not as a cost which
must be reclaimed but as a means of con-
structing a fulfilling lifestyle, done in one’s
spare time as an activity elected among
a myriad of other possible activities.
Caught in Play: How Entertainment Works on
You, by Peter G. Stromberg. Stanford, CA:
Stanford University Press, 2009. 218pp.
$22.95 paper. ISBN: 9780804761116.
This book combats the notion that
entertainment—in both our lives and as
a topic of study—is frivolous. Peter Strom-
berg effectively de-trivializes entertainment,
exploring its centrality in contemporary
social life and examining the process of
becoming immersed in entertainment.
Chapter One introduces the term ‘‘caught
up,’’ to describe the phenomenon by which
one becomes lost in play. Chapters Two
and Three discuss romanticism and its
impact on contemporary consumer culture,
in which romantic realist images and fictions
predominate. Chapter Four examines role-
playing games, an ideal example illustrating
how immersion in play can affect a player’s
movement, language, and emotional
response.
Chapter Five discusses the mechanics of
getting caught up by examining the
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Briefly Noted 365
constituent processes of imitation, attention,
entrainment, mimicry, absorption, and
trance. In Chapter Six, getting caught up is
examined in its entirety as a form of meta-
action that is distinct from, but similar to,
ritual. Chapters Seven and Eight consider
romance and legal drug use, both of
which are unconventionally conceptualized
as play. However, Stromberg makes the
compelling argument about these activities
as social types of entertainment.
In Chapter Nine, contemporary conceptions
of boredom are discussed. Chapter Ten details
modern ideas of the self and entertainment’s
role in modifying these notions. The brief con-
clusion discusses entertainment’s predomi-
nance in modern life and the consequences
of this reality. This book will benefit social sci-
entists with interests in modern entertainment
and its ideological influences on contempo-
rary consumer culture.
American Gun Culture: Collectors, Shows, and
the Story of the Gun, by Jimmy D. Taylor. El
Paso, TX: LFB Scholarly Publishing, 2009.
167 pp. $60.00 cloth. ISBN: 9781593323806.
Jimmy Taylor’s American Gun Culture: Collec-
tors, Shows and the Story of the Gun discusses
the American gun culture by utilizing mixed
methods to delve into the history, ritualism,
and symbolism of gun ownership and cul-
ture within the United States.
Taylor begins with an examination of the
prevalence and pervasiveness of guns with-
in American culture; detailing gendered
processes within gun culture as well as
the visibility of guns in the media. In Chap-
ter Three, Taylor discusses the mixed meth-
odology behind his current study in which
he uses ethnographic techniques driven by
grounded theory as well as content analy-
sis. Chapter Four deals with the content
analysis of music lyrics involving guns or
gun references, examining the lyrics in
terms of masculinity maintenance and gen-
dered processes, ritualism, and comedic
value.
Chapters Five-Six are Taylor’s greatest
additions to the literature as they provide
highly detailed and authentic accounts of
his visits to gun shows and gun competi-
tions as well as interviews with gun owners.
Contemporary Sociology 39, 3
366 Briefly Noted

Taylor continues to explore the gendered List of Contributors:

nature of gun culture, examining differences Amy Brown
in vendor and consumer behavior based Jennifer Buher-Kane
upon gender. Within Chapter Five, Taylor Patrick Cundiff
explores the ritualism in which gun owners Lacey Dre
engage, with a specific interest in the pro-
Jasmine Fledderjohann
cesses related to the bragging, naming, and
Sarah Fuller
retirement of a gun. Chapter Six explores
the identities and identity management Mike Light
used by gun owners. Dominique Marsalek
Individuals interested in an in-depth G. W. F. Meyer
examination of gun cultures or strong Luis A. Sánchez
ethnographic methods will find this text Richard M. Simon
useful. Emily Smith

Contemporary Sociology 39, 3

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