Book excerpt: A statistical reference compiling census data from 1900 through 1990 and comparing data for each region, state, and major city within the US. Wright (author, statistical volumes) enlivens this material with concise commentary teasing out the social and political implications of, for example, the northern migration to the southern "sunbelt" or how the Brooklyn Dodgers' move to Los Angeles in 1958 dovetails, not coincidentally, with that city's rapid population growth. He also speculates about increased growth and decline in the states and cities by the year 2000 based on current data. Includes, of course, tables. Lacks an index. Annotation copyright by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR