"A sweeping yet personal overview of Latino America, drawn from hundreds of interviews and prodigious research, that explores the diversity of our largest and fastest-growing minority. Census reports project that by 2050, as much as 30 percent of the US population will claim Latino heritage. But Latinos are not a single group of people. They are Mexicans, Puerto Ricans, Dominicans, Salvadorans, Cubans, and many others. Each has a different cultural and political background. Some are Indigenous, with ancestors who were here long before the continent's earliest immigrants; others arrived in the 1500s. More came later, from many parts of the world. Their history and contributions are bound to surprise you. They are racially diverse, a random fusion of White, Black, Indigenous, and Asian. Once overwhelmingly Catholic, they are becoming increasingly Protestant and Evangelical. Formerly solidly Democratic, they now vote Republican in growing numbers. They range from domestic workers and day laborers to successful artists, athletes, corporate CEOs, and US senators. They are as varied culturally as immigrants from Europe or Asia. Along with her extensive research, Marie Arana, the daughter of a Peruvian father and American mother, draws on her own experience of coming to the United States at age nine, straddling two worlds as many Latinos do. LatinoLand unabashedly celebrates Latino resilience and character and shows us why it is essential that we understand this booming segment of America." -- Jacket flap.