PUERTO RICO: Island of Promise

This is a more personalized, livelier and more diversified view of Puerto Rico today than the Ralph Hancock book (Van Nostrand- p. 259) which appears the same week. Much of the material is inevitably the same- as both writers concentrate on the tremendous changes which have taken place in Puerto Rico since 1940; but while Hancock emphasized the leadership of Governor Munoz, Miss Gruber grants much of the success to Fomento (otherwise known as the Economic Development Administration) which is back of so much of her rapid industrialization. And while the Hancock book was primarily economic and political, this new profile of the island paradox shows the many processes of change and betterment, on the land and in housing, cultural and educational, and gives a warm view of this people- with its strong family-centered structure. Ruth Gruber, who has written on Israel (Israel Today- more of a tourist's book), ends with a comparison of the two countries- both new democracies on old soil.