James Woodard Book Named Outstanding Academic Title of 2020
鈥淏razil鈥檚 Revolution in Commerce鈥 earns designation from American Library Association
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Professor of History James Woodard鈥檚 latest book, has been recognized as an 鈥淥utstanding Academic Title of 2020鈥 by Choice, a book review service of the American Library Association.
Only about 10% of approximately 6,000 titles reviewed by Choice each year earn the prestigious designation.
鈥淚t is gratifying to have this work honored by Choice,鈥 says Woodard. 鈥淭he book being recognized by Choice means that more college and university libraries will likely acquire it, helping it to reach more readers 鈥 including non-librarian readers 鈥 which is what any writer hopes for their book. I am very pleased it has received this recognition.鈥
Published in May, Woodard鈥檚 book serves as a history of consumer capitalism in Brazil, today the world鈥檚 fifth most populous country. It tells how a new economic outlook took hold over the course of the 20th century, a time when the United States became Brazil鈥檚 most important trading partner.
Brazilians saw Chevrolets and Fords replace horse-drawn carriages, cheap roads replace railroads, and the fabric of everyday existence rewoven as commerce reached into the deepest spheres of family life.
By the 1970s, many elements once thought of as American had become Brazilian, and this process illuminates how the culture of consumer capitalism became a more genuinely transnational and globalized phenomenon. It is the untold story of Brazil鈥檚 20th century – that is, until Woodard鈥檚 book.
鈥淭he making of Brazilian consumer capitalism was, I think, the most salient aspect of the 20th-century entanglings of the United States and Brazil, the two geographic and population giants of the Americas,鈥 says Woodard. 鈥淚t has shaped the country in so many different ways, and will continue to impact it for years to come.鈥
For more information on the American Library Association and Choice, visit .