Hechinger's Field Guide to Ethnic Stereotypes

Book excerpt: Can you differentiate between the Amish and the Hasidic Jew? Do you know the single, shocking difference between the Redneck and the Appalachian? Can you successfully identify -- and avoid -- the Charismatic, Verbose Nigerian Cabdriver or the Honda-Driving UCLA Korean Gangster Wannabe? If the answer is "no" to any of the above, then Hechinger's Field Guide to Ethnic Stereotypes is the book for you. Home to people from over 168 nations, the bourgeoning ethnic melting pot we call America can be a frightening and disorienting place for the uninitiated. In order to successfully navigate this culturally rocky terrain, it's essential that one understand the ethnic landscape we inhabit. Hechinger's Field Guide to Ethnic Stereotypes, by world renowned cultural anthropologists Kevin and Curtis Hechinger, is a comprehensive, groundbreaking, and painstakingly assembled collection of everything you need to know about this puzzling world in which we live. Whether tracking the migratory pattern of the Northeastern Jew, cataloging the breeding habits of the Passive Asian Male, or highlighting the almost imperceptible differences between Cubans and Dominicans, these two fearless naturalists have devoted their lives to the study of human variety. An instant classic and invaluable tool for the professional cultural anthropologist, the amateur enthusiast, or anyone lost on the subway, Hechinger's Field Guide to Ethnic Stereotypes will reshape the scientific community just as surely as it will settle the age-old question of whether Vodka-Loving Stalin Haters can out-drink Irish-American Firemen. Are we very different? Or are we exactly the same? For the answers to these and other probing questions that may well be all that stand between happiness and de-spair, read Hechinger's Field Guide to Ethnic Stereotypes. Now.