I am a Mantel fan.

I loved this book -- it made my personal Top Ten that year, though it received a mixed reception on Readerville, IIRC.

It's a disturbing read, and I say that like it's a good thing.

Fordlandia succeeds especially well at examining the mythic Henry Ford and his grandiose plans for transforming the meaning of work -- and the lives of the working class, in America as well as in Brazil.

Fordlandia moves strongly, with great detail, through the 15 years or so that Ford maintained a personal interest in developing Fordlandia and nearby Belterra. War production in the US, and his own increasing infirmity -- as well as persistent failure to produce a viable rubber crop -- caused Ford to abandon his Brazilian venture finally.

The post-war period of Fordlandia, and its reversion to the Brazilian government, are only touched on lightly in the book; I'd have liked to learn more about its modern history and current state.