Rich in its array of reading selections, each chapter contains three carefully selected authentic readings.  Authors represent different time periods (some are very young and recently published, others are well-known writers from the 20th-century "canon") and offer a unique point of view on different socio-cultural aspects of that region's life.  Readings vary greatly in difficulty and length as well as in style and tone; they include unabridged and abridged short stories, excerpts from novels or plays, interviews, and newspaper articles.   Male and female writers are equally represented.