His intro is very informative but also entertaining.

I've only visited Puerto Rico once, but having driven through the area discussed in the book, it's already incredibly rich with cultural signifiers about class and race that are familiar and yet obviously different from those we are accustomed to in the US.

I've been on a huge salsa kick for several weeks, buying a ton of old records and listening non-stop. Cortijo and his childhood friend Ismael Rivera were giants of the genre and paved the way for many other musicians afterwards, and the story of the two musicians is integral to the story of the music.