Customer Reviews

The Ticos: Culture and Social Change in Costa Rica

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Heading for Costa Rica? Take The Ticos along with a guidebook. The Ticos is a fascinating and beautifully written account of Costa Rica, past and present. The authors bring to bear on the subject their more than half-century of residence in the country, as well as their formidable anthropological expertise. As a permanent resident of Costa Rica, I compared my own observations and experiences with those of the Bizantzs. For every topic examined - community, health care, religion, family, education and so forth, the authors' descriptions were consistent with my own, and their keen analyses deepened my understanding of the country I have adopted as my own.

Beyond what The Ticos tells us about Costa Rica, this book is also extremely valuable for its examination of the effects of structural adjustment economic policies imposed on this country by the international financial institutions and by the United States (through bilateral agreements) as conditions for loans. These policies are having the same deleterious effects worldwide on developing countries. Normally, discussions of the impact of structural adjustment policies are abstract and academic. The Ticos, in contrast, provides us with a concrete and specific assessment of the "fall out" institution by institution, free of technical jargon. For foreign residents of Costa Rica (and prospective residents) I would say this book is a "must". But even short-term tourists will benefit from reading it.

After having spent a year in Costa Rica as an exchange student, I'm always looking for good reads about the Ticos and their culture. By pure chance I ended up at Barnes and Nobles one day and Richard Biesanz was doing a book signing for the collaborative book release. I found the book to be wonderfully insightful. Even if you aren't familiar with the Ticos you will find the book to be very intersting. The Biesanz let you look into all aspects of the life that the Costa Ricans lead, from the type of economy they have right down to their everyday lifestyle. From reading the book you will walk away with a better understanding of what makes the Ticos so special, and it will make you want to travel to Costa Rica and see it for yourself! It is a job well done! The Biesanz have a deep understanding and enjoyment of this culture and people, and you will feel that as you read the book.

While Biesanz & company have produced a lucid and info-packed "insider's" book on Costa Rica, I still find that it comes in second to my favorite CR book, "Costa Rica: The Last Country The Gods Made": a hybrid of a coffee-table book, a social/ politcial discussion and a geological history in a series of essays and sidebars.

The Last Country The Gods Made truly does live up to it's scope of topics. Aside from geology and social history, it covers the political and economic history of the country and emphasizes its liberal reformist tradition as exceptional in Central America.

I just like the writing better because the subjects are leavened by humor and, at times, almost poetical diction.
Also, frankly, the photos are better! And the prices are comparable so, maybe check them both out! But if you're on a budget, just buy The Last Country.

This book was a little dry and psuedo-academic at times, considering the informal methods used by the authors. Chapters on history and economy read a little like high school history lessons but are informative none the less. The rest of the book moves more quickly and the subjects of culture, class and society are interesting. The major strength of this book is that it burts the mythical bubble of Costa Rica as a perfectly tolerant utopian paradise where all problems have been solved by universal health care and the welfare state. It instead paints a more humane, down to earth picture of contrasts and presents a view of the dynamic social and cultural forces at work in Costa Rica. Aside from the occasionally overly-academic tone, the only other drawback is the composite picture/ broad brush approach the authors use. Many generalizations are made relative to each of the subjects covered by the book, but arguably no book that sums up an entire culture could avoid doing this--so its moot compared to the eye opening revelations presented by the authors. Lots of "guide books" are written like second rate book reports by people with no familiarity with the culture or country. This book is tryly authentic. It is not marketed as a guide book, and that makes it an even better guide!

I purchased this book at the airport in San Jose, Costa Rica at the end of a two week trip and read the book cover to cover on the way home to Los Angeles. It answered all my questions about why this is such a unique country. The book explained for instance why the town square was empty at San Isidro last Sunday: the World Cup soccer match was on TV. I would recomment this book to anyone who is planning to travel to Costa Rica or anyone who has completed a trip.

After spending a month in Costa Rica, traveling with Ticos from farm to farm. I read this book when I came back to the states, it filled in so many gaps in my experience as well explained local customs in a more formal sense. Its great introduction to Costa Rican history, government, local mores and customs.

The book came in good time and I am glad that I bought it. There is a lot of useful information that I needed for what it was for.

My wife was all set to retire to Costa Rica before she read "The Ticos".
Now however she is more hesitant. From that I conclude that maybe the
book is too honest and tells too much. (Warts and all).
Anyway, we were going to go and see for ourselves what we find. Thanks for making us aware of the possible pitfalls.
This is a very detailed book and I enjoy it very much.

Do not expect an "in-depth" book about Costa Rican politics and sociology, but a light reading compendium for those who want to learn a bit about the political and social background of this wonderful country...

Other reviews suggested this for anyone moving to Costa Rica and I totally agree. I stuggled through it but it took me back to my days in college and some of dryer courses engineers had to take as compulsorary's to broaden our character and view of the world. :)
Just going as a tourist, I am sure I will appreciate a lot of this information once I get to Costa Rica. But I was looking for more of a Michner novel where I could learn about the country and its history through a story line. (Still looking if anyone has any ideas.)