Business historians have good reasons to celebrate the publication of this book. Bringing together synthetic, well-crafted chapters on Latin American countries, Historia Empresarial en América Latina: Temas, debates y problemas [Business History in Latin America: Topics, Debates, and Problems] is a Spanish-language edited volume that addresses a variety of topics—the role of the family, economic groups, and multinational corporations—salient to Latin American business history.

Following a brief general introduction, the book comprises two sections. The first six chapters cover the business history of individual countries (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, and Peru) from the late nineteenth century to the present, with some chapters going as far back as the early sixteenth century. The second section contains seven chapters on a broad range of themes and regional focuses. The book's thirteen self-contained chapters can be read in any order and are useful for academic and nonacademic purposes.

According to the general introduction, this “continental-scale” collaborative work is meant for a broad audience, especially university students (p. 11). The editors’ claim that the book offers an organized overview of the evolution of Latin American capitalism and “the role played by el empresariado [businesspeople, companies, and associations] in the long term” is, on the whole, skillfully realized, particularly within the first section's chapters on Brazil, Chile, Mexico, and Peru (p. 14). Through abundant detail and well-chosen examples, these balanced and vivid chronological narratives provide a sense of the complex business history of these countries. Moreover, their analytical contribution should stimulate new research.

Anne Hanley's chapter on Brazil thoroughly examines the evolution of the links between government and business from 1822 to 2020, especially the role of the state in the configuration of family-owned enterprises. The chapter scrutinizes the changes over time in legislation—and the causes behind such changes—that either restricted or promoted private economic activity. Via a long-term cross-sectional analysis, the chapter on Chile by Manuel Llorca-Jaña and Rory Miller emphasizes certain continuities since Chile's independence. During the last two centuries, they write, “the evolution of companies in Chile was determined by the interaction of three main groups of actors: domestic economic groups, which are often based on family businesses; foreign companies, and the State” (p. 74). The chapter deftly recounts the interplay of these three actors. The chapter on Mexico by Aurora Gómez-Galvarriato and Gabriela Recio provides a well-crafted chronological synthesis beginning in 1521 and ending in the present, highlighting several key aspects of Mexico's long-term business history along the way. Most notable here are the geographic and demographic factors, including the “weakness of the State,” compadrazgo [crony capitalism], and the importance of networks (especially family networks). Likewise, the chapter by Martín Monsalve presents a balanced and well-wrought synthesis of Peru's business history over the long term (1530–2010), judiciously seasoned with accounts of specific businesses and entrepreneurs. His longue durée approach illuminates the congenital “fragility” of Peru's business culture, rooted in structural problems like the leading role of the state, a weak financial system, and the displacement of local business owners by multinationals (p. 166).

Norma Lanciotti's contribution on Argentina, covering the period from 1875 to 2010, presents a slightly different approach by focusing chronologically on sectors (e.g., agriculture, food industry), forms of organization (joint ventures, stand-alone companies, joint-stock companies), and capital/company origin (national or foreign). These foci provide key insights into broader questions of the role of the state and the impact of wars and crises during the period in question. The chapter concludes with the illuminating observation that the leading companies of today produce and export primary goods, just as a century ago. Finally, an additional contrast is provided by Carlos Dávila's panorama of Colombia's economic and business history from 1870 to 2019. Organized thematically rather than chronologically, the chapter highlights longstanding determinants of Colombian economic activity, such as local politics, the “regional and local nature” of el empresariado, and the central role played by individual entrepreneurs, families, and industrial interest groups (p. 100).

The book's country-based section lacks a chapter on Venezuela and its rich business history. Given the existence of active Venezuelan business historians and the country's prominent place in previous volumes—such as the 1999 edited volume by Dávila and Miller, Business History in Latin America: The Experience of Seven Countries—this omission is both curious and unfortunate. Nevertheless, Venezuela is mentioned frequently in the thematic chapters of the second section of the book, which goes some way toward filling the void.

Given the almost exclusive focus on single countries in the first section, it is worth noting that the volume's second section generally supports the editors’ argument that, national differences notwithstanding, there exists a coherent Latin American business history. Chapters by Geoffrey Jones on sustainability, Paloma Fernández and Andrea Lluch on family business, María Inés Barbero on economic groups, and Marcelo Bucheli on multinational corporations accordingly apply a Latin American perspective to these issues. Chapters by Sandra Ley and Angelika Rettberg on the role of violence, Bernardita Escobar on female entrepreneurship, and Xavier Durán on transport in the Andean region, meanwhile, take a somewhat more circumscribed approach by comparing selected countries wherein the thematic focus is particularly warranted.

These chapters, as with most of the contributions to the volume, offer fresh insights. However, here, as throughout the volume, the authors have generally neglected to signal gaps or possible research avenues, analytical categories, sources, methods, and approaches that would be particularly useful to the book's stated target audience of students. Moreover, a more robust introductory chapter or the inclusion of a concluding chapter would have tied up some of the book's loose ends. For instance, a valuable opportunity has been missed to explain why most Latin American countries remain underrepresented in the field of business history. A historiographic chapter highlighting this relative impoverishment and the specific opportunities it presents would have been extremely helpful. Even so, this book is a must-read for anyone wishing to obtain a deeper understanding of Latin America's rich and fascinating business history and its place in the multifaceted history of capitalism.