Book reviews and notices: Atlas de Cuba

Summary

This review evaluates two significant academic works. The first is a geographic atlas of Cuba, praised for its comprehensive and graphically rich portrayal of the island’s physical and cultural landscapes. The atlas employs colored maps, cartograms, graphic sketches, and symbols to depict historical, physical, demographic, social, communication, and trade patterns. Bilingual Spanish‑English text provides context, though its utility for English‑only readers is limited by extensive Spanish‑language captions, legends, and unfamiliar measurement units. Some maps suffer from disjointed color keys and incomplete legends, reducing accessibility for general audiences. Nevertheless, the atlas is deemed overall a reliable, carefully documented resource based on up‑to‑date statistics and the collaboration of a distinguished cartographer, filling a gap in Latin American geographic education. The review then turns to John Hope Franklin’s “From Slavery to Freedom: A History of American Negroes,” noting its focus on the African American experience within U.S. history, though the review’s text is incomplete.