THE TRAVELS OF A T-SHIRT IN THE GLOBAL ECONOMY

Building on a comment from a student at Georgetown University, Pietra Rivoli, economics professor, traces the route of a T-shirt around the world from the raw materials to the finished product and beyond. The story starts in a West Texas cotton field, moves to China for various manufacturing steps, then it returns to the United States for marketing and distribution. The author writes in the fashion of John McPhee. But where McPhee starts with narrative and moves to exposition, Rivoli starts with exposition and uses stories as examples. This makes the production more lecture than storytelling. It's not boring, by any means, but it's not compelling. Eliza Foss modulates her voice and varies her pace effectively, keeping the delivery flowing. R.C.G. © AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine [Published: AUG/ SEP 07]