Ray Acosta is a second generation Mexican-American His grandparents came from four different parts of Mexico… having fled during the height of the Mexican Revolution. After watching Ken Burns' TV epic on the U.S. Civil War, Acosta was struck by Burns' concluding with "something to the effect that the Civil War still has a profound impact on our lives." read more

Popular Ajijic photographer Jay Koppelman has two things to celebrate this winter: one, the recent opening of Studio 18, on Colón 18 in Ajijic, which features exclusively his photographs; and two, the recent publication of the first collection of his Mexico photographs, in a handsome coffee-table format, The Through Line. read more

Shooting Script: Door of Fire is a sequence of poems about several "heroes:" Diego Rivera, Frida Kahlo, Leon Trotsky, with bit parts from Trotsky's wife Natalia, actress Paulette Goddard, surrealist Andre Breton and others.We see them — Diego, Frida, Leon — as if we are watching them through a camera lens. Three people driven by obsessions. read more

Seventeen-year-old Caleana's parents go to Mexico to camp out in the jungle near the Palenque ruins, but in the jungle mist the pilot of their small plane loses control and crashes. The father — a gifted archaeologist — is killed and possibly the mother, although because the mother's body had not been found, no one is sure.
Uncle Aiden, Aunt Bette, Caleana and her brother fly back to identify the body of their father, and while there Aunt Bette takes the children to the Mayan ruins at Chichen Itza. Aunt Bette places in Caleana's hand "a beautiful amulet of green jade and crystals around a circle. In the middle of the circle was an ancient Mayan woman with a serpent on her head, and jaguar ears and claws." It had been found at the crash site and it was believed to be Caleana's mother's. read more

"Mexico admits you through an arched stone orifice into the tree-filled courtyard of its heart, where a dog pisses against a wall and a waiter hustles through a curtain of jasmine to bring a bowl of tortilla soup, steaming with cilantro and lime...."

Barbara Kingsolver seduces us once again into a tale well told, a tale of passion and intrigue, of politics and despair, of conspiracy and love. Much of her latest novel, The Lacuna, is set in Mexico, during the still turbulent decades that followed the Mexican Revolution. read more

I've read a lot of novels in the first ten years of this new century, and I must say that Sweet Spot is one of the three or four I like the best.
The story is set during seven spectacular days of Carnival in Mazatlán, the second largest Carnival in the world. A lot happens during those seven days, including scandal, murder, amoral politics, drug lords searching for our protagonist "Mundo," and bed time with a desirable young revolutionary, the amoral Mijares.
Sweet Spot is incredible. Linton Robinson should be catapulted to the top of the pile of contemporary authors. Why didn't this novel win the National Book Award or the Pulitzer Prize? read more

The Best How-To Book on Moving to Mexico is written by three people who have made the move. Carol Schmidt and Norma Hair moved to San Miguel de Allende in May of 2002. The third editor, Rollins "Rolly" Brook, "after visiting all 50 states in the USA and many countries around the world… found himself most at home in Mexico." In 2000 Rolly retired to Lerdo, Durango. Clearly this is no trio on extended vacation. They actually live here… permanently. These authors are bold and direct and the book is divided into four parts. Hats off to Carol, Norma, and Rolly! This just might be that best book. read more

The Isthmus of Tehuantepec is "without a doubt strategically significant as it provides a narrow land bridge between the Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. But it is nowhere near Mexico's major cities or the beaten tourist track." Bruce Stores presents the historical material through a series of stories in The Isthmus, Stories from Mexico's Past, 1495-1995. It is a work, the author acknowledges, of "historical fiction." For me, because I love stories, the history then became fascinating. read more

Rolling Homes Press, 2008 Available from Amazon Books: Paperback Available from Amazon Books: Paperback A while ago, I reviewed for Mexico Connect another useful book by Mike & Terri Church: T... read more

How about a romance novel set in Mexico? And complete with a beautiful young girl who is of course headstrong and independent; and a bad man who is handsome and powerful and in fact a legendary drug lord; and his equally handsome but not quite-so-bad assistant. read more

Gods, Gachupines and Gringos no more resembles the typical "history of Mexico" book than a rushing river resembles a dried-up arroyo. I was reading the book at the Lake Chapala Society in Ajijic this morning when a couple of buddies joined me. I told them about the book, and read them a few of the passages above as a little sampler. When I finished I looked up. They responded in unison, "Where can I buy a copy?" read more

In 1864 the Archduke Maximilian von Habsburg, accompanied by his ambitious and beautiful wife Charlotte, arrives in Mexico City. Louis Napoleon had previously sent thousands of French troops to the financially and politically unstable country. Even though Mexico is ruled by a democratically elected president, Benito Juárez, Maximilian is installed as Emperor of Mexico. Juárez must go into hiding. read more

A little over a year ago, I was searching for a title to pull these short poems together. Enedina stepped out to wash dishes in the cold water of the worn concrete tank immediately behind the house. She greeted that first morning of the new year in her short white dress and white high heeled shoes. read more

John Keeling's 2009 Restaurant Guide (Fifth Annual Edition) is not just for residents of the north-shore towns along Lake Chapala.

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This indispensable guide for campers exploring Mexico (and Belize) - using RV or tent - and now in its third edition is loaded with practical information.

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There is something for everybody in Tony Burton's, Lake Chapala through the ages. Whether you are fascinated by the early history of the place where you now live or visit (or would like to visit), or whether you are interested in early accounts of the natural history of the region, or of the lake itself.

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Many readers of Mexico Connect have discovered these illuminating words by Octavio Paz: "In the United States the word death burns the lips, but the Mexican lives close to it, jokes about it, caresses it, celebrates it, sleeps with it, it is his favorite toy." read more

  Available from the author Life in Mexico observed by someone who is bursting with affection for his new country. I have reviewed a lot of fiction and non-fiction books for Mexico Connect, but I... read more

"What can I tell you about Pedro Infante? If you're a Mejicana or Mejicano and don't know who he is, you should be tied to a hot stove with yucca rope and beaten with sharp dry corn husks as you stand in a vat of soggy fideos. If your racial and cultural ethnicity is Other, then it's about time you learned about the most famous of Mexican singers and actors." read more

In film or fiction, The Pearl is a good story. It is one of those stories so simple that it becomes profound.

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Latin America is a really enormous TEFL market, with tens of thousands of jobs available every year in language schools, binational centers and universities…. read more

Although the Baja coast has attracted thousands of visitors, among them some fine photographers, few have really journeyed to the interior

This exquisite coffee table book is a collaboration between two friends, both of whom are award-winning artists: photographer Miguel Angel de la Cueva and essayist (and poet and musician) Bruce Berger.

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    "A story filled with sex, violence, and drugs, even love, a story of treachery, where only power and money ultimately are valued." Author Belden Butterfield was born in Argentina, educat... read more

For this old brain of mine -- that threatens to retire before I do -- a book that makes simple what has always been somewhat complicated to me is a book that I will cherish.

Clark M. Zlotchew, Ph.D., has taught Spanish language at SUNY College at Fredonia in New York State since 1975. He has published more than a dozen books including translations of Spanish poetry and fiction as well as Alpha Teach Yourself Spanish in 24 Hours.

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If you live in the states and are thinking about living in Mexico, read this book. If you are thinking about building a house in Mexico, read this book. If you are thinking about retiring, read this book. If you already live in Mexico, read this book. read more