Mexico Books

I got this book when I first came to Yucatan, a year ago. I have lived here ever since. This book is a great resource, as are most of the LP books. Definitely worth getting.

I live in Merida now and love it...

I am a college student who lived in Merida, capital of the Yucatan state, for 3 1/2 months with 16 other students through Centre College. Much of our time was spent with our host families or traveling to different parts of Mexico and South America, but I was given this book as a Christmas present before I left. Each weekend during our stay was a 3-day weekend, so we spent much of our time exploring the peninsula and the Caribbean. This book, while a little Cancun-heavy, is a definite must for anyone spending a short or long period of time in this area of Mexico. It guides you to any accomodations and activities you might find interesting, and it outlines everything in an easy-to-find and understand manner. There were so many times we were "those tourists," clutching what we referred to as the "Yucatan Bible" while wandering around places unknown and using this book as a guide. It's completely indispensible, not to mention the fact that Mr. Doggett is a phenomenal author who managed to find humor in everything, from spectacular wonders the Yucatan has to offer to warnings and dangers. It is a definite must...don't leave your hotel without it!

JUST BACK FROM THE YUCATAN AND THIS BOOK WAS INDESPENSIBLE! IT TOOK ME TO THE LITTLE SPECIAL OUT OF THE WAY PLACES I NEVER WOULD HAVE FOUND ON MY OWN. THIS IS THE BOOK FOR THE INDEPENDENT TRAVELER.

I've used Lonely Planet guides for 20-odd countries and found this one to be solid and reliable for my recent trip there. As usual, this one has its quirks, but the problems were pretty minor. It hasn't gotten very dated yet, so most of the prices and transportation options are still on track--except for the fact that collectivos were seldom mentioned on the routes I was traveling, even though they were hard to miss. Good background info on the Mayan ruins and local culture.

Tim Leffel, author of The World's Cheapest Destinations

As part of my studies in the University of PR, I had the extraordinary experience of reading "the soul" of Jose Maria Arguedas. He trully wrote from his heart about his lack of belonging of either culture he was exposed or came from. As a Hispanic dealing with Hispanics in the States, I strongly recomend this book as an eye opening to the struggles that other people have faced in their life.

José María Arguedas escribe desde lo profundo de su corazón, sobre su incapacidad para encontar pertinencia en una u otra cultura de las que fue parte. Es un profundo buscar de las raíces de un ser humano. Toda mi vida ha sido impactada por este trabajo y en este momento en el que trabajo con Hispanos en EU, recomiendo absolutamente el mismo para dar una perspectiva impactante sobre el problema que muchas personas han confrontado a través de los tiempos.

As part of my studies in the University of PR, I had the extraordinary experience of reading "the soul" of Jose Maria Arguedas. He trully wrote from his heart about his lack of belonging of either culture he was exposed or came from. As a Hispanic dealing with Hispanics in the States, I strongly recomend this book as an eye opening to the struggles that other people have faced in their life.

José María Arguedas escribe desde lo profundo de su corazón, sobre su incapacidad para encontar pertinencia en una u otra cultura de las que fue parte. Es un profundo buscar de las raíces de un ser humano. Toda mi vida ha sido impactada por este trabajo y en este momento en el que trabajo con Hispanos en EU, recomiendo absolutamente el mismo para dar una perspectiva impactante sobre el problema que muchas personas han confrontado a través de los tiempos.

As part of my studies in the University of PR, I had the extraordinary experience of reading "the soul" of Jose Maria Arguedas. He trully wrote from his heart about his lack of belonging of either culture he was exposed or came from. As a Hispanic dealing with Hispanics in the States, I strongly recomend this book as an eye opening to the struggles that other people have faced in their life.

José María Arguedas escribe desde lo profundo de su corazón, sobre su incapacidad para encontar pertinencia en una u otra cultura de las que fue parte. Es un profundo buscar de las raíces de un ser humano. Toda mi vida ha sido impactada por este trabajo y en este momento en el que trabajo con Hispanos en EU, recomiendo absolutamente el mismo para dar una perspectiva impactante sobre el problema que muchas personas han confrontado a través de los tiempos.

En la novela Los Ríos Profundos, un niño que ha vivido su infancia en un ayllu (comunidad indígena), emprende un viaje con su padre, quien más tarde lo deja -en busca de un mejor trabajo- en una escuela religiosa. El niño protagonista, Ernesto, nos entrega su visión del nuevo mundo que se le presenta. Así, en su particular percepción del entorno, el lector va decubriendo un entramado de matices de desencuentro, de sometimiento, de represión, de confluencia, de presencia: matices que posibilitan una mirada sobre los mismos elementos constituyentes de la realidad latinoamericana que se tematizan en esta novela.

I took this book with me on my first drive from Tijuana to Cabo and found it indispensible. I have since made that same drive about 12 times and always take this book with me and always discover something new I had overlooked on previous trips. It is the ONLY book you will need for exploring Baja.

I already had 3-4 books on Baja, including Lonely Planets, but Jack and Patti's book is the most thorough, well laid out book I've ever seen on an area. Every gas station, boat ramp, and dirt road is logically and easily listed. Great backroad recommendations. This book will be used more than any other on your trip. Buy it.

Without exception "The Magnificent Peninsula" guidebook stands literally head and shoulders over its peers. Its strength lies in its ability to provide travelers with a glimpse of what they'll see on the peninsula through the use of pictures, prose, detailed maps, and real-life testimonials. Besides the universal appeal of including ratings on accommodations and dining, this guide goes the extra mile; Surfing spots? Listed. Where's the next gas station? Listed. What's the name of that off-lying island? Listed. I'm quite certain a traveler could leave San Diego and head south solely with this book, a backpack, and a fistful of Pesos--well done, complete in all respects and truly worthy of the elusive 5 star rating!

THIS BOOK IS A "MUST" FOR ADVENTURERS TRAVELING BY THEIR OWN IN THE BAJA PENINSULA

A great story told in a simple and colorful tone. Mark Sundeen is a great American writer who melds the classics with the modern. A tale of travel that envelopes the reader in characters and color.

Cleverly plotted and well-executed, packed with dancing, ironic prose and endearing characters, Mark Sundeen's The Making of Toro was an excellent read. Fun, light and true, this short excursion across the border into Mexico's bullfighting culture had me bent over and sniveling with laughter. I smile to think of it.

This book is an easy-going, comedic exploration into the sad impotence of modern American masculinity. Set against the backdrop of the bloody bullring and the grit of Mexico City, the reader sees what the protagonist himself is not able to recognize - that he is not his alter-ego Travis La France, the great bullfighter and irresistable romantic - that he is in fact simply an author and a man, accident-prone and lovable, trying to set the record straight about his misunderstood first novel, and doing his best to amend himself for being the man that he is, and not the man he would like to be.

Sundeen has done it again. This is another deep, multi-layered composition much like "Car Camping". It's very humorous book, but the best parts are when the narrator breaks through his veneer of self-delusion and discusses his true feelings. Whenever I read a book like this, I hope for one or two passages that will resonate within me and justify (in my head) my own experiences. This book is filled with them.

"The Making of Toro" is one of those books (like, say, "A Confederacy of Dunces") that may not make much of a splash when it first appears, but that is destined to be passed from hand to hand and reader to reader until a small cult builds around it and its author.

For starters, this book is flat-out hilarious. But it also marks the arrival of a writer who is bound to make a huge impact. Comparisons with Eggers and Sedaris aren't out of line: Sundeen blurs the line between memoir and fiction with the requisite postmodern relish. "Toro" is a tale told by a narrator so charmingly unreliable and self-deluded that we actually can't help rooting for him.

But the writer Sundeen most resembles is probably Mark Twain (seriously!). In "Toro" (and in his earlier book "Car Camping"), Sundeen shows the same dry wit, the same trust that the reader will actually get the joke, and the same faith that sometimes the naive, deluded bumbler might see truths that more worldly types do not. And, like Twain, Sundeen conceals genuine depth beneath light humor. "Toro" begins as a comedy, but by the end it deepens into a surpringly poignant coming of age story.

So buy this book--it's funny and original and thoroughly enjoyable--then pass it on.

I loved it. It's written and laid out just like those all-inclusive travel guides made for "straight" people, but of course this one is written with us in mind. It's so much better than the others. It's about time. Do check it out you'll really enjoy it.

I bought the book on the recommendation of a friend. Though I have various other guides, I truly enjoyed this one and consider it the best. The book is written on a personal level with frank commentary and insighful and curious observations. It certainly made for a more colorful and pleasing trip. As a solo traveler, I wasn't disappointed because meeting people and going to the right places was made much easier with the guide. Two Thumps Up ! .

I agree. I used the guide on my trip to Costa Rica. I had the chance to browse others, but this guide had more listings. Not only does it help you meet locals, but it even has listings on local male escort services besides the usual club hangouts! I was impressed because no one else did. I can't wait for his other guides.

What can I say. Life can really be odd. I was looking for a quick vacation destination just to get away from my stressful job. While reading the guide, I got interested in Puerto Vallarta. It described P.V's nightclubs and boy haunts with amusing detail. It didn't take much before I was there. My week in Puerto Vallarta was more then I expected because by the third day I had met a wonderful local artisan. We quickly became an item. I can't promise you'll find a "Jorge" in you trip, but I did and it was the guide that motivated me to take my trip. I can almost say it was God sent !

Massacre of the Dreamers is Ana Castillo's transdisciplinary book about the deconstruction of Mexic pallocentric "pyramids," as she herself puts it. By re(w)riting history, Castillo reconfigures the role of the Amerindian/Xicana/Mexican woman, allowing her to draw strength from Mesoamerican female goddesses. In this remarkable text, furthermore, Castillo employs her "own raw materials" (104) as an antidote to male-centered cosmic consciousness that operates in binary frames of dualisms, dichotomies, and schisms. In resurecting her spiritual mother goddesses, Castillo, like Anzaldua and Cisneros, reinserts "the forsaken feminine into our consciousness" (12). By exposing the manner in which the xicana has been "gagged" for hundreds of years, Castillo rejects colonization and mapps a xicana history with a difference that allows the Amerindian woman's various selves to coexist simultaneously, reinforcing her identity

Ana Castillo is an inspiration/orguyo to all Latin women. A role model for the latin women, who still fined them selves confined to their social imprisionment and traditional impairment. In this book, Ana Castillo through a collection of essays touches on a wide range of controversial issues, which many Latinas-surprisingly-will fined they relate.Castillo writes on topics; such as, Machismo, a women's sexuality and lesbianism. Castillo also writes about her experiences and struggles with society's exceptances in the oppression of the Latin women. Trough her struggles, she stays true to her values and never conforms to social pressures.Castillo a true woman in every senses of the word, resilient, bountiful, and amorous. There is no doubt in my mind the Castillo intended this book to give voice, strength, and hope through her words of inspiration and examples of triumph. To those women not yet free, because of their social and religious imprissonment to submission.I recommend this book to any women who wishes to be enlightened, inspired and empowered by Ana Castillo's ideology.

It would be impossible to tell what this book did for me, especially during my days in law school. As a Chicana I felt isolated. I was often made to feel intellectually inferior. Castillo's brilliance soared like a flame to rescue my quickly freezing soul. If it weren't for this book I think I would have not survived that alienating environment bound to make me fail. She is not rhetorical but driven with reasoning. When women of color explain themselves we are dismissed as simply bitter. This book explained why I would have the right to be bitter and anger but why I must push forward. It saved my life.

Castillo has obviously tapped into her power for this one. Her fiction is moving, thought-provoking, angering, sometimes even humorous... but this essay collection is even more impressive. I'm sure some will consider her xicanista views extreme, but Castillo calls it as she sees it.

I was first introduced to Matt's family restaurant, El Rancho, in Austin 20 years ago during college and still make a point of going there when visiting. I grew up in TX and now live in the wilds of NJ with nary a Tex-Mex joint in sight - or within a days drive. I can make the very simple recipes from this book, close my eyes and feel like I'm home again. After making several of these dishes for a very Italian NY friend of mine she demanded I spend an afternoon showing her how to make her favorites from this book. Very high praise indeed.

If you are interested in Tex-Mex cooking, do yourself a favor and buy this book. You won't regret it.

I've owned this cookbook since around the time it was released and still use it. The recipes are generally easy and very delicious. I really like Matt's Big Time Eatin' Chili.

This is a simple to use, easy to read, enjoyable cook book that is not only a pleasure to work out of, but is intresting and fun to read.

The recepies are straight forward, Martha Stewart would hate this book.

For years I have been tring to make enchalidas for my family without them having the consistantly of tree bark. Matt has shown me how to share the recipies I enjoyed so much growing up in Texas to my family being raised in New York City.

Great recipes. Great stories. The #1 authority on Tex-Mex Cooking in America. A "Best Buy" book for yourself or gift.

I recently moved to the Sonoran Desert but had no idea what treasures awaited me until I bought and read this small book. This guide has opened my eyes to what is around me. I've taken pictures of interesting plants along the roads but didn't know they were medicinal or edible until I read about them here. The next time I go for a walk or drive, it will be with newly opened eyes. The illustrations are good, the instructions are specific. Some of the explanations and narratives are so hysterically funny, you will have no problem understanding effects of either taking or not taking described potion or poltice. I heartily recommend this quide on several different levels.

I've been utilizing this book for over 10 years as a teaching tool and reference for my Medicinal Plants of the Baja class. Michael Moore is
a hoot, excellent research on plant constituents and medicinal uses. Couldn't have done it without him! Check out www.bajabotanicals.com
Thank you, Michael.

This book was very easy to use. I wished there was more color photos but with such good descriptions and drawings you really don't need them. There are color photos for about half the plants described in the book. I love the way Michael Moore writes. He makes it so easy to read and understand. This book will be used for years to come in my home.

This book makes it easy to understand the preparation and use of herbs for a variety of everyday family herbal-aid applications. The instructions include the part of the plant used - flower, root, leaves, berries, bark etc. It goes on to explain why fresh or why the dry plant is useful and how to deal with your own gathering of the plant and what to do in simple A to Z instructions.

Loved this book and all the wonderful plates of Mexican Folk retablos. Gives a comprehensive review that will answer questions and inform the average reader. Highly recommend.

I can't believe this is the 1st review...This inspirational, beautifully put together book was awesome. The research into the art work alone, is masterful. Then Ms. Giffords tells you a story about the pictures content and the symbolism in each artists work. This book alone, has inspired me to delve further into the lost art of retablos' and the lives of the saints. I recommend this book to art students, theologians, and anyone interested in igniting their sprituality!!!

This book isn't large, but it's full of the incredible beauty of Mexican folk art with 82 color illustrations. It's well written, very detailed, and in three sections.

Part 1, "The Mexican Folk Retablos": The origins of these small religious oil paintings, usually on tin, are described, as well as terminology, materials, the artists (mostly unknown), and much more. The chapter is completed with 28 images of the Holy Family, and each plate is described on the facing page. The wonderful piece depicted on the cover, "La Inmaculada", is one of them.

Part 2, "Saints as Subjects": This starts with the problem of identification, as finding out which saint is pictured is quite a feat. It goes into the function of these retablos, and their changing popularity as time progressed. It concludes with 36 images of saints, that are inspiring and beautifully executed. I find # 31, "San Antonio de Padua", extraordinary.

Part 3, "The Mexican Ex-Voto Painting": An ex-voto is a story painting, done as a commemoration to answered prayer. This chapter deals with the characteristics of these lovely pieces, their development and decline. It gives 17 examples of this unique art form, along with a description, as well as a legible printing of the writing on the painting, in Spanish and English. The back of the book has bibliography, notes, indexes, etc.

If you appreciate Mexican art, this will be a wonderful addition to your library, and if you like Russian icons, as I do, it makes a fascinating comparison, especially plate # 4, "Nuestro Señor de los Trabajos", and plate # 62, "Santiago", pictured with sword in hand and on horseback.

The author, Gloria Fraser Giffords, has done a marvelous work with this volume, bringing us an area of Mexican culture that doesn't get as much attention as it deserves.

Gloria Fraser Giffords does an excellent job in researching an often ignored corner of art history, Mexican folk art. She provides insight into how these images were made, but also helps the reader understand the devotional context in which these images were used by people in the nineteenth century (and are still used by people today). A must for a student in this area, especially as there is not yet abundant information in this field. The images are compelling and beautifully reproduced and the book is easy and interesting to read. I thoroughly enjoyed it!

This is the ultimate authentic Mexican food cookbook. Not only are the recipes easy to follow they also have wonderful, enticing pictures and a rich history of which part of Mexico the recipe comes from and how many dishes originated. It has recipes from sauces and snacks to drinks, deserts, and holiday specialties. This cookbook has wonderful hard to find recipes and includes many basic recipes in addition to the many specialty dishes. If you can only afford one Mexican cookbook or only have space for one - this is the cookbook to choose. I use it all year round and it is my favorite cookbook.

Forget the Beautiful Cookbooks... this (much too-)short series from Thunder Bay publishers -- one Mexican, one Italian, and one Chinese book -- is the best of the genre. It is at least as attractive as the Beautiful Cookbook series, and comprises a far more serious study of ethnic cooking. It concedes not one inch to Western kitchens at the expense of its authenticity (and for that reason may not alway be practical, but I don't care), and includes many abundant and enlightening discussions of the customary use of ingredients and traditional recipes. I like cookbooks -- I own a lot, and I read them a lot. These three are my most prized. I suppose this is partially because they are now out of print, which is a great shame; the series ended after only three entries. It would have been great to see what they could do with some other venerable cuisines like, say, French and Indian. The ones that do exist, however, are real food-lovers books.

This lavishly illustrated book is more than just a great collection of authentic mexican recipes, it's a wonderful introduction to the flavors, aromas, colors, and textures of ingredients that are going to be largely unfamiliar to anyone outside mexico. Likewise, special techniques used by the mexican cook are explained, so that the book teaches something of the culture (as well as being a great collection of recipes). Learn about the flavors and textures of authentic mexican-style cheeses, the range of flavors and uses for different types of chilis, and the intricacies of the humble torilla. Torres really knows her stuff!

This is one of the very best cookbooks I have ever discovered! It is as much an enclycopedia as a cookbook - offering much information on unfamiliar ingredients, utensils and techniques. I have learned more about Mexican cooking with this book than with any other. The recipes are authentic - some seem exactly as I have tasted in Mexico. The photos and layout are very attractive and easy to read. Would recommend this cook book to anyone who really wants to learn about Mexican cooking.