Religion In Latin America: A Documentary History

By Lee M. Penyak and Walter J. Petry Orbis Books, 2006 Available from Amazon Books: Paperback Boring, I thought, when I first saw the title. Fascinating, I thought, after I had finished looking through it. Religion in America is published by Orbis Books, which “endeavors to publish works that enlighten the mind, nourish the spirit, and challenge […]

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Lake Chapala through the ages, an anthology of travelers’ tales

Tony Burton’s passion is Mexico, and particularly Western Mexico. Most readers of MexConnect find his many articles on Mexico to be both fascinating and useful, articles with titles like “Guayabitos – the Family Vacation Spot,” or the four-part series, “Can Mexico’s Largest Lake Be Saved,” or “Butterflies by the Million: The Monarchs of Michoacán.” Burton currently puts […]

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The Isthmus: Stories from Mexico’s Past, 1495-1995

iUniverse, 2009 Available from amazon.com (In Hardcover and Paperback) For years, I have been curious about “the isthmus,” or more formally “The Isthmus of Tehuantepec,” perhaps in part because Frida Kahlo loved so much the traditional clothing of this rarely visited section of southern Mexico, or perhaps because I love the Zapotec rugs that come […]

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Gods, Gachupines and Gringos: A People’s History of Mexico by Richard Grabman

Gods, Gachupines and Gringos: A People’s History of Mexico First Edition, 472 pages Editorial Mazatlán (Mazatlán, Sinaloa, México), 2008 Available from Amazon here I have about fifteen feet of shelf space devoted to books about Mexico and novels set (at least in part) in Mexico. I have one foot of space for favorites, which include […]

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Drums in the Hills: A personal story of the Mexican Revolution

First Printing, 387 pages PublishAmerica (Baltimore) 200 Available from Amazon Books: Paperback Frank Dolezal, fighting for Pancho Villa during the Mexican revolution, was captured by some of Venustiano Carranza’s troops, taken before a mockery of a trial, and was charged with “Treason against the legitimate government of Mexico.” With fifteen other prisoners he was taken to […]

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Did You Know? Puerto Vallarta in Mexico will become an island and float away

Literary-minded travel writers describing Puerto Vallarta as an “island of tourist delights” probably don’t realize that their words are closer to the truth than they might imagine. At present, Puerto Vallarta has plenty of tourist facilities but is certainly not an island. The Pacific Ocean may swish against Vallarta’s beaches on one side, but there […]

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