ISBN: 0-927534-81-9
224 pp. | cloth | $25.00

lithocase binding  

nonfiction by Kent Paterson

In recent years the chile pepper has become one of the most popular foods in the United States. In The Hot Empire of Chile, journalist Kent Paterson takes us on a fascinating journey into heart of chile plant itself, Paterson looks at the role of migrant farm labor, the life of farmworkers, the rise and influence of labor movements, the impact of university research on chile breeding, salsa wars, changes in U.S. eating habits, the use of pesticides to combat diseases affecting the chile plant, the absorption of small farms by conglomerate agribusiness, and the impact of NAFTA.

Kent Paterson lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and has been reporting on the chile business since 1985. His radio stories have been featured on KUNM-FM in Albuquerque, the High Plains News Service in Montana, and Southwest Public Radio in Dallas. His articles have appeared in The Texas Observer, The Progressive, and The Santa Fe Reporter. He has won several awards from the Associated Press for his reporting.