Synopses & Reviews
David Torres-Rouff significantly expands borderlands history by examining the past and original urban infrastructure of one of Americaand#8217;s most prominent cities; its social, spatial, and racial divides and boundaries; and how it came to be the Los Angeles we know today. It is a fascinating study of how an innovative intercultural community developed along racial lines, and how immigrants from the United States engineered a profound shift in civic ideals and the physical environment, creating a social and spatial rupture that endures to this day.
Review
andldquo;A major contribution to the urban history of the American West, along with environmental and Mexican American history.and#160;Before L.A. deepens our understanding of Mexican California and builds on the recent works that are invigorating the field of borderland history.andrdquo;andmdash;Maria Raquel Casas, University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Review
andldquo;An engaging and innovative study of nineteenth-century Los Angeles and the complex racial and ethnic relations that defined this time period, Before L.A. is remarkable for its originality in scope and depth of analysis. . . . A solid piece of scholarship that is brilliantly organized, analytically sound, and clear in its prose.andrdquo;andmdash; Rudy P. Guevarra, Jr., Arizona State University
Review
and#8220;Torres-Ruffand#8217;s first book is a good one that makes meticulous use of documents.and#8221;and#8212;Choice
About the Author
David Samuel Torres-Rouff is an assistant professor of history at the University of California, Merced. He lives in Merced, CA.