Book Reviews 85 5. Small holders who are educated do better than those who have not had formal education, but the Kenyan educational system, because of high drop-out rates, is socially producing enough 'small farmers', 6. Only twenty per cent of household heads could find employment off the farm, so that there exists a 'large unsatisfied demand for employment,' etc. (p 11-14). There is, therefore, nothing that exceptional about such happenings under the African sun as far as socio-economic descriptive trajectories go, so that the recommendations concerning the increased production of maize are hardly surprising. It is also never clear how high employment in Kenya affects nutrition, and other facets of social reproduction. What would have been of more value in a study of this nature would have been a careful examination of the structural changes in the domestic economies of Kenya, without imposing a priori categories. If ifaste' is such an important variable, clear theroretical statements on the origins of such 'individual preferences' is required, not only with respect to food, but also with respect to collective economic action, and the non-market allocation mechanisms that operate through the territorial social economy. What is the best unit of analysis for studying changes in African social economy? Can the analyst use the household as a unit of analysis and at the same time articulate the complex interrelationship between non-capitalist modes of production and the more hegemonic capitalist mode of production and consumption that permeates African social realities. What does the scientist have to do to contribute to territorial efforts to recompose labour power? These ae only some of the questions that are raised by the mensuration techniques used in social science in Africa, but which are taken for granted in this ILO publication. Reviewed by Thomas D Shopo, Senior Research Fellow, Zimbabwe Institute of Development Studies, Harare. References David Knight, (1981) Ordering the World: A History of Classifying Man, Burnett Books in association with Andre Deutsch, London, p 149. Communities in Crisis, Albert Cherns and Moshe Shelhav (eds), Gower Publishing Company, Aldershot, 1985 (pp 291 US$37) The various contributors to this book have presented some of the problems and concerns that plague communities in the late '80s. With their focus on 'communities in crisis', the authors examine both the problems faced by recently established 'designed' communities (such as the kibbutzim of Israel), as well as the malaise of post- industrial urban communities elsewhere. Part 1 of the book is devoted to an analysis of community changes that have taken place in Israel; Part 2 concerns itself with contrasting cases of communities struggling to survive: two examples feature urban situations, one an industrial city in New York State and the other an industrial suburb in Edinburgh in Scotland, and there is a rural example from Norway. Part 3 presents a methodological study of workplace participatory research, the quality of working life in kibbutzim, the relationship of the mentally handicapped to the wider community and finally the problems faced by Bedouin nomads in Israel-. Interspaced throughout the book are chapters of discussion and interviews which provide some further insight into the articles. 86 Book Reviews I would like to start by presenting my criticisms of this anthology. Firstly, I found the book difficult to read, partly as a result of an apparently inadequate editorial structure to the chapters. Although the 'discussion' sections between chapters are a redeeming feature of this edited work, and indeed provide a clear, direct and useful extrapolation of the subject matter, there appears to be an assumption that readers are familiar with the entire book at first reading, as references are made in these sections to later chapters. Secondly, I do not feel that the editors have succeeded in bringing together a harmonious grouping of contributors and the reader is left wondering why certain topics have been included - for example the inclusion of a chapter on the mentally handicapped. Thirdly, and most seriously, I wonder why in a book in which the central theme concerns the crisis facing communities in Israel (an Israel which includes the occupied territories), there is not a single reference to the Palestinians and only passing reference to Arabs regarding their use as labour by the kibbutzim. Certainly if we think of communities facing crisis and deep uncertainty, we cannot fail to consider the traumatic dispossession of their land and extreme suffering of the Palestinian people. Despite these reservations, the book contains a wealth of detail and insights across a wide variety of areas. The widest coverage has been given to Israel, and parrticularly the strains and stresses affecting the kibbutzim. The Israel kibbut is an innovative, socialist social system, traditionally characterised by small-scale autonomous communities where a degree of equality, collaboration and mutual responsibility has been seen to be important. The basic model consists of 50-150 families in a single community, based on mixed farming, with each community trying to cover all the needs of its members. There is now an estimated population of 150 000 people living in 280 autonomous communities. As the kibbutzim developed in size and complexity, so they also developed umbrella organisations, regional enterprises and services, sometimes in cooperation with family-based co-operative farms (moshavim). In many cases low-skilled, blue-collar workers were employed to take over some of the more menial tasks on the kibbutzim. All this created a dilemma for the movement, as values of uniqueness and autonomy became questionable, and values of centralised versus de-centralised systems required consideration. These problems are left with the reader, although the contributors indicate that perhaps creative opportunities relating to the balancing of community values and organisational effectiveness may lead to new solutions in the 1990s. Perhaps an essential question concerning the future of the kibbutz is indicated in the discussion as follows: "Can you build a socialist society within a capitalist society without losing your soul in the process?" We would do well to ponder this statement in contemporary Zimbabwe. Further contributions examine in more detail the attempts to increase worker participation in a regional co-operative owned by a kibbutz, problems of managerial responsibility in the regional organisations, and a consideration of how education can be used to bring about community development. This last study centred on a development town in the Northern Negev region in Israel, which in the 1950s absorbed a mass immigration of Jews from various countries of the Islamic world. The chapter is interesting as it outlines in detail how a paraprofessional project team managed to bring about a positive change in community identity by focusing in great detail on the educational needs of the town's children. The use of an integrated or systems perspective permitted the project team to widen the scope of their efforts to encompass social development on a much broader scale. Subsequent chapters consider the topic of communities under threat and facing crisis. Firstly there is a consideration of a differential experiences of three moshavim and two kibbutzim in coping with the requirements of forced resettlement following the Camp David Peace Agreement between Israel and Egypt. We learn of the confusion, grief, denial, accusation and compensation experienced by the settlers following these political changes; however, we are told that the members of the kibbutzim were able to deal with the crisis more adequately partly as a result of their highly developed communal collaboration and partly due to their perhaps greater tolerance Book Revuws 87 for change and adaptation. Nevertheless the resettlement exercise evidently brought considerable turmoil to the communities involved. Two contributions concern the problems faced by decaying urban communities: these concern Jamestown in New York State and the Craigmillar Estate in Scotland. The article on Jamestown traces the development of a co-operative effort between labour, management and government leaders in an area of severe industrial decline. Poor labour management relations were transformed after a combined effort by all concerned. Craigmillar, a sprawling housing estate catering to the poorer section of Edinburgh, suffered from typical inner-city deprivations and was characterised by despair. This was tackled by the development of a creative community arts programme which managed to provide an outlet for local residents. This in turn brought about a community awareness of local problems, which led finally to community action. A further contribution relates how several deprived communities in the USA managed through community action, drama and igenuity, to establish their own electricity supply through the establishment of renewable energy resources, such as solar and wind energy, and in the process outwitting the exploitation of landlords and uncaring utility companies. The prolific variety of this anthology may be seen with two further examples. One chapter describes the process of resettling traditionally nomadic Bedouins in planned settlements in southern Israel. Although political, economic and ecological changes have led to 'spontaneous sedentarisation', most attempts by the Israeli Government to resettle the tribes ended in failure. It was only when neighbourhoods and architectural house styles were designed to cater directly to the needs of the Bedouins (eg large, two-storied accommodation with space to keep livestock) that the resettlement exercise started to yield results. The second example concerns a small valley in the middle of Norway with a tradition of self-suffiency - yet in decline due to uneconomic production. Following the efforts of a local entrepreneur and outside funding, a local community development programme helped sponsor action research into the various economic and social problems of the community. This generated a self-supporting development process where the local people appeared to take a common responsibility for the future of their own community. A major theme that links these separate contributions is the contention that once people are convinced that certain conditions are intolerable a dynamic is set in motion that can lead to creative and constructive change. Indeed one of the discussion papers notes that a principal finding was that the success with which communities dealt with their crises depended on their recognition that they were indeed in crisis. This perspective is valuable as it reminds us that people have a right to define their own reality - perhaps to define their own crisis - and that development is something that should be shaped, defined and directed by those who are principally concerned, ie the local communities. Of course the other half of the equation - the structural inequalities, oppression, exploitation, governmental responsibilities to assist the poor and deprived and so on - is avoided, but at least we are reminded that people have the potential to bring about change if they so choose, and even in situations of poverty can create their own resources. As such, this anthology reminds us in. a positive and optimistic way that constructive social development is indeed possible, even in seemingly depressing and hopeless situations. Reviewed by N P Hall, School of Social Work, Harare. Land Reform in the Making: Tradition, Public Policy and Ideology in Botswana, Richard P Werbner (ed), Rex Collings, London, 1982 (pp XV + 162, no price given). It is a measure of the Botswana government's interest and perhaps faith in social research that this collection of articles criticising its policies is possible. Collections of diverse articles pertaining to a single developing country and based on field research are rather rare these days and, if for that reason alone, welcome.