Conchas (education, Chicano/Latino studies, and sociology, U. of California, Irvine) examines successful examples of achievement among urban youth, looking at 80 low-income Black, Latino, and Vietnamese students in California, who he observed for two years. He aims to promote education that is increasingly equal and considers how urban school practices can empower these students to achieve social mobility. In the study, he addresses how and why some students achieve and how sociocultural processes affect them, in an examination of the connection between institutional structure, culture, and agency. Annotation ©2006 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)