Robin Nagle: 2 books

America's largest city generates garbage in torrents—11,000 tons from households each day on average. But New Yorkers don't give it much attention. They leave their trash on the curb or drop it in a litter basket, and promptly forget about it. And why not? On a schedule so regular you could almost...

In rich ethnographic detail, Robin Nagle chronicles the life of a poor Brazilian community in its relationship to the Catholic church and to the larger politics of Brazil. Centered in Recife, on the northeast coast, Nagle's work investigates how liberation theology attracted followers, and demonstrates why the movement never took hold as predicted.