Mexico is a country of fascinating contrasts--glorious history and tumultuous politics, extraordinary culture and desperate poverty, ancient traditions and rapid modernization. Yet despite the growing curiosity about Mexico due to increased trade and commerce, mostly resulting from NAFTA, as well as increased tourism and immigration, there is presently no up-to-date, accessible history of Mexico for general readers.
The Oxford History of Mexico, edited by Michael Meyer and William Beezley is a comprehensive, lucidly written, and fully current narrative history by twenty of the most...

The Mexican revolution began in 1910 with high hopes and a multitude of spokesmen clamoring for a better life for ordinary Mexicans. This anthology examines how the revolution brought change and often progress. Women, the landless, the poor, the country folk are among those receiving consideration in the twenty-seven readings, which range from political and economic to social and intellectual history. About half of the selections are previously unpublished.

Combining the best new scholarship by modern historians; outstanding work by distinguished Mexicanists of the past; excerpts from...

This unique collection emphasizes the human element in thestudy of Latin American history by focusing on the lives of twenty-three men, women, and children. Though they differ widely from each other in background and circumstance, these individuals share a common experience: all are caught up in some way by the profound, sometimes devastating, changes that accompany the modernization of a traditional society. Their stories bring vividly to life the impact that revolution, economic upheaval, urbanization, destruction of community life, and the disruption of family and gender roles have on...

Latin America is moving toward democracy. The region's countries hold elections, choose leaders, and form new governments. But is the civilian government firmly in power? Or is the military still influencing policy and holding the elected politicians in check under the guise of guarding against corruption, instability, economic uncertainty, and other excesses of democracy? The editors of this work, Brian Loveman and Thomas M. Davies, Jr., argue that with or without direct military rule, antipolitics persists as a foundation of Latin American politics. This study examines the origins of...

SR Books' two popular Human Tradition in Latin America titles covering nineteenth- and twentieth-century history have been combined into one exciting new volume. The most compelling chapters from these books are now presented in The Human Tradition in Modern Latin America. This collection offers powerful, fascinating biographies of ordinary people caught in the sometimes devastating historical changes that have occurred in Latin America. From the turbulent struggles for independence in the 1800s to the profound and often overwhelming transformations that have accompanied modernization in this...

The twentieth century has been scarred by political violence and genocide, reaching its extreme in the Holocaust. Yet, at the same time, the century has been marked by a growing commitment to human rights. This volume highlights the importance of history-of socially processed memory-in resolving the wounds left by massive state-sponsored political violence and in preventing future episodes of violence. In Genocide, Collective Violence, and Popular Memory: The Politics of Remembrance in the Twentieth Century, the editors present and discuss the many different social responses to the challenge...

In Genocide, Collective Violence, and Popular Memory: The Politics of Remembrance in the Twentieth Century, the editors present and discuss the many different social responses to the challenge of coming to terms with past reigns of terror and collective violence. Designed for undergraduate courses in political violence and revolution, this volume treats a wide variety of incidents of collective violence-from decades-long genocide to short-lived massacres. The selection of essays provides a broad range of thought-provoking case studies from Latin America, Africa, Europe, and Asia. This...

In this enlightening book, the well-known historian William Beezley contends that a Mexican national identity was forged during the nineteenth century not by a self-anointed elite but rather by a disparate mix of ordinary people and everyday events. In examining independence festivals, children s games, annual almanacs, and the performances of itinerant puppet theaters, Beezley argues that these seemingly unrelated and commonplace occurrences not the far more self-conscious and organized efforts of politicians, teachers, and others created a far-reaching sense of a new nation.
In the...

In this enlightening book, the well-known historian William Beezley contends that a Mexican national identity was forged during the nineteenth century not by a self-anointed elite but rather by a disparate mix of ordinary people and everyday events. In examining independence festivals, children's games, annual almanacs, and the performances of itinerant puppet theaters, Beezley argues that these seemingly unrelated and commonplace occurrences--not the far more self-conscious and organized efforts of politicians, teachers, and others--created a far-reaching sense of a new nation.

In the...

On November 20, 1910, Mexicans initiated the world s first popular social revolution. The unbalanced progress of the previous regime triggered violence and mobilizedindividuals from all classes to demand social and economic justice. In the process they shaped modern Mexico at a cost of two million lives.
This accessible and gripping account guides the reader through the intricacies of the revolution, focusing on the revolutionaries as a group and the implementation of social and political changes. In this volume written for the revolution's centennial, William H. Beezley and Colin M....