The Life and Times of Mexico

by Earl Shorris

A San Francisco Chronicle Best Book of the Year. "A work of scope and profound insight into the divided soul of Mexico." —History Today

The Life and Times of Mexico is a grand narrative driven by 3,000 years of the Indian world, the Spanish invasion, Independence, the 1910 Revolution, the tragic lives of workers in assembly plants along the border, and the experiences of millions of Mexicans who live in the United States. Mexico is seen here as if it were a person, but in the Aztec way; the mind, the heart, the winds of life; and on every page there are portraits and artists, shamans, teachers, a young Maya political leader; the rich few and the many poor. Earl Shorris is ingenious at finding ways to tell this prostitutes in the Plaza Loreto launch the discussion of economics; we are taken inside two crucial elections as Mexico struggles toward democracy; we watch the creation of a popular "telenovela" and meet the country's greatest living intellectual. The result is a work of magnificent scope and profound insight into the divided soul of Mexico.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Politics, Travel, Historical, 20th Century, 19th Century

801 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 1, 2004

About the author

Earl Shorris was an American writer and social critic. He is best known for establishing the Clemente Course in the Humanities, named after baseball great and humanitarian Roberto Clemente. The Clemente Course is an "educational institution founded in 1995 to teach the humanities at the college level to people living in economic distress." He was critical of Western culture as "sliding towards plutocracy and materialism." Shorris published extensively on Mexico and Mexican history. Shorris made the acquaintance of Miguel León-Portilla, who published a widely-read anthology of accounts of the conquest of Mexico from Aztec viewpoints, The Broken Spears. The two subsequently published an important anthology of Mesoamerican literature, bringing to a mass market the existence of significant body of writings by indigenous Mexicans.

Reviews

[William Hamman · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's sad to think that I've lived within shouting distance of Mexico my entire life and never really made a systematic effort to learn anything about the country or its people. Or, maybe just as sad, was never made to do so by junior high and high school curricula, even though at the time I would have been happier reading science fiction novels. And yet, the presence of Mexico has always been around me: Mexican culture, language, people, architecture, ways of life. I even spent a summer living and working on a farm with undocumented Mexicans - me, the enormous sunburned American who couldn't speak a word of Spanish (well, maybe enough to trigger a fistfight, if that was what I'd wanted) amid a group of Mexican farm workers who found me endlessly amusing.

But what did I really know about Mexico? To borrow a word, nada.

"The Life and Times of Mexico" goes a long distance toward filling that vast chasm of ignorance. It is not a scholarly or academic history of Mexico - no long lists of Presidents, not much in the way of dry statistics, and it covers the brutal civil wars of the early 20th century without turning into anything approaching military history. The history is more in the form of essays, often linking events in early Mexican history with consequences in modern Mexico, or drawing parallels between the lives of notable Mexicans of history with the lives of notable Mexicans today. If you want a hard, precise, rigorous history of Mexico, this may not be the best book for you. But if you want something more organic, more lyrical, this might be a good start.

To be sure, there IS a lot of history in this book. Foreshortened, simplified, but it's still there, the war of independence, the Porfirio, the civil wars, the disastrous impact of NAFTA, the collapse of the peso, the rise of the PRI and its ultimate (or maybe it's safer to say "apparent") end.

But most of the book is about people, culture, language, striving, art, survival, and, in many cases, quiet and not so quiet despair. The author takes a good swing at what he thinks Mexico's greatest challenges are (including the obvious ones, like an educational system that fails most people, corruption, and a population growing faster than the means to support it can be arranged, and less obvious ones like the fact that Mexican academics often have nowhere to go and, in his phrase, end up being the best-educated and best-informed taxicab drivers in the world. In his view, this dooms Mexico to be led by mere caciques while the men and women best equipped to think about the future are left driving cabs or going abroad to find jobs in industry.)

One of the most surprising parts of the book, to me anyway, was what NAFTA did to Mexico. There is a certain subset of people in America that think NAFTA was a disaster in America, and maybe in some ways it was. But the impact of NAFTA on Mexico was almost apocalyptic, leading to the collapse of Mexican agriculture and shackling Mexico in apparently permanent servitude to the United States, the creation of a "maquiladora nation" perpetually beholden to US economic interests. This was something I had never thought about - had never had reason to think about. (The author goes so far as to say that for all practical purposes, Mexico is now governed by the United States and certain large Mexican industrial concerns, based mostly in Monterrey. Is he right? I don't know, but it's food for thought.)

I highly recommend this book. At times it seems a little slow and distracted, and it's hard to tell sometimes where the author is going with some trains of thought, but in the end, it's an interesting and worthwhile endeavor.

The worst part of the book is that it ends halfway through the administration of Vicente Fox, and thus misses the eventful years of Felipe Calderon's presidency, including his attempted reforms in education and the war against the cartels, which plunged Mexico into violence that may not quite rival the civil wars for sheer horror, but is still plenty bad. I'd be interested in having a beer with Earl Shorris and asking him if he still thinks Vicente Fox was a failure and what he thinks Calderon's legacy will be, but alas, Mr. Shorris is no longer with us.

And that is a tragedy.

[Tom · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a roller-coaster coaster ride, but in the sense that some of it was super interesting, and other parts.. not so much. I moved to Mexico from the U. S. about 3 years ago with my wife who is Mexican. To make a long story short, I've been struggling to adapt to many things (the things I've taken for granted in the U. S., I could write a book about). I found myself really not liking the culture, food, or even the weather, to name a few things. I decided to try to find some things I do like. Or why even be here?
Anyway, what does that have to do with this book? Well, I started reading about Mexico because I want to understand it. And if there is something I like, it's history. Mexico has plenty of history, and it is fascinating.
This book was all over the place. The timeline, the stories of people and places, the culture of Mexico (what I really want to better understand), the artists, writers, Aztecs, Mayas, Diego Rivera, Frida Kahlo, Juan Ruflo, Pancho Villa, Zapata, Presidente Fox, Huizliopocthtli, Alvaro Obregon, Quezalcoatl, Maria Felix, Cantinflas...
You get the point. It's just all over the place. It touches on a thousand different things, but I can't say I got much from it. The scope of this was too big for a 750 page book. I don't know...
Wasn't bad either. I'd give it 3.5 stars.
Goodreads should have 10 stars instead of 5! There are many books, I'd give 7 stars.

[Brian Griffith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shorris's life of Mexico is a huge 700-plus-page collective biography. It seems to grow almost piecemeal from a lifetime of friendships and conversations -- it's a kind of slow-motion journalism that expands into a vista of history. The informants are real people from almost every corner of Mexico and almost every level of power, wealth, intellect, or sanity. These hundreds of people tell about themselves and those who came before them. Their efforts to shape the future always involve revising their past. The clashing dreams of native rights activists, religious traditionalists, ambitious nation builders, or agents for international corporations, all cast flashes of light on related struggles in the rest of North America.

Shorris takes the time to get close to people and paints a big picture from the ground up. He makes us feel the pressures or hammer blows people face. The book gets long winded, but the author's fascination never flags. His stories are sobering, sometimes horrifying, and challenging for any thinking person.

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

To understand the political climate, culture and the history of Mexico, read this book. Shorris talks about everything relevant to Mexico from the pre-Columbian era up to modern day Mexico. This book helped me dig deeper into my experiences and understanding of Mexico, and in particular, it helped me learn more about Mexico's prominent figures like Pancho Villa, Miguel Hidalgo and Diego Rivera. You can learn a lot about nation's history and values by reading about the people who helped shape their nation.

This book is highly political, which I wasn't expecting. It times it was too much and too dry, but for the most part, I'd say I enjoyed this read.

[Nicholas Kohler · Rating 3 out of 5]

A frustrating book, too brilliant to put down, but too woolly, repetitive and unfocused not to want to. The first half or so a fabulous historical and cultural overview. Things begin to break down badly around the Mexican revolution; at that point the judicious reader begins to see the merit of the book as something to dip into but not commit to entirely. Certainly well worth the effort, Shorris himself a fascinating character, and at its best his colourful writing a pleasure (elsewhere it grows much too purple).

[Lora · Rating 4 out of 5]

Massive research involved in this history that weaves together (apparently) disparate historical events in the place that has come to be known as Mexico. Shorris illuminates Aztec decisions that helped lead to the 70 years of PRI and finally the election of Fox in 2000 using both verifiable fact and personal narrative and anecdote. A massive, engaging read. Alas, Shorris did not live to comment on the insecurity and subsequent return of PRI to office.

[Whitaker · Rating 3 out of 5]

A really great book shows us how everything is great and worth to die for

[Kent Fortin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mexico: lots to dig into there. Eras, regions, perspectives, political/social/artistic/economic considerations. This subject’s scope is more than 730ish pages can do justice to. Despite this, both the what and the how of this book are capably handled by Earl Shorris.

The what: a whole bunch of topics are prerequisites to accomplishing a reasonably complete frame that contains a country, its life and times, in one volume. So this is a primer, but a good one in setting up what Mexico is. Good mix of catch-you-up-on-the-basics history, glancing introductions to major political and cultural figures, and narrative flourishes - vignettes of this person or that person encountered and aimed by the author - to put the most critical pieces within the frame. Complaints? I tend to shut down when confronted with discussions of macroeconomic trends here, there, anywhere. No one’s fault - just a me thing - and there was enough of that to shut me down pretty regularly throughout this book.

The how: I really appreciated Shorris’ organization and the regular use of vignettes to humanize concepts. I also appreciated his evident love of and facility with language throughout. He writes with enough energy and dramatic flair in enough places to keep even the repetitions or overlaps (necessary in a task so vast) humming along. He also lets his biases loose, which means we are clearly getting Earl Shorris’ Mexico, not Mexico. Well, ok. He doesn’t quite get Iñárritu or Cuaron, but that’s ok. He clearly prefers Cantinflas. But what we aren’t getting are encyclopedia entries, and I appreciate that this writer doesn’t aim for that. He wears his political and cultural preferences on his sleeve. Good for him - it’s a big meaty book that’s clearly a labor of love, and it’s passion rather than bland objectivity that sustains it.

I’ll continue to read and visit and learn about this complex place - but gracias to Mr. Shorris for a worthy introduction and starting place that sings in the right places.

[Charles Walker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most of the stars here are for the depth of research- in archives, interviews and a massive amount of personal experience - which come through in the passionate tone of this 700+ page reflection on Mexican history and culture. It provides plenty of “history,” but it does so in a way that tries to think about chronology, society and culture from a “Mexican” perspective (I put that in quotes because the book makes clear how problematic even that adjective is.) It certainly seems like the editor took a profoundly hands-off approach to this one, but it’s also pretty unique, and it’s hard to fault the author for what is clearly the capstone of a lifelong love affair. Probably shouldn’t be the only book you read about Mexico, but it certainly deserves a place in your collection.

[Scott Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A detailed account of the history of Mexico, and how that history ties into the day-to-day struggle of life in Mexico. There is a lot to this work, and while the writing at times can get in the way of the narrative and historical/cultural data, there is a lot to get out of the work. Might require multiple readings to fully get the mindset/intent of the author and all of the nuances of the country. Then again, one book is never going to answer everything there is to know about a country like Mexico, so there is that.

[Robin Zink-Welten]

I didn't read the whole thing. Maybe one day. Daniel loaned me this book and dog eared the pages that mark the span of chapters discussing the 1910 - 1920 Mexican revolution.

[Bob · Rating 5 out of 5]

A cultural history of Mexico that emphasizes the contributions of the great Mesoamerican civilizations and the indigenous people whose cultures have been transformed but not assimilated to a European model. As always Shorris presents this through delightful portraits and interviews.
Three women work to improve an elementary school in a slum in Morelos: "When they walk the alleyway of Las Vias, disdaining the menace of the dogs, chatting with the women who come out to greet them, the three doctors -- sweet, formal, and quick -- could not be more out of place or more at home. They have connected La Buena Tierra to the Colegio London, one of the best private schools in the city. They and the director of La Buena Tierra would like the children of Las Vias to have all the advantages of the children who attend the private school. All of them wished for a swimming pool so that the children might have healthy exercise, but there was no space and no money for such a grand project. The director said, 'So we found a space and we painted the ground blue like a swimming pool. We told the children to step into the blue area and move their arms as if they were swimming. All of them went into the blue, but one. "Why don't you go in, like the other childre?" I asked. "I can't," he said. "I'm afraid of the water."'"
He can also be somber: "Since then neoliberal policies in Mexico -- austerity, productivity, and the shame of indebtedness -- have sought to turn the country into a Protestant nation, based on the belief imposed by the rich nations of the world that no other kind of nation can fully adopt the captitalist spirit. The crime laid at the feet of McDonald's and rock and roll, the destruction of Mexican culture, is at its deepest level the work of the assembly line and the worship of austerity. Monterrey is the model for Mexico. While it is the most Catholic city, with the possible exception of Guadalajara, it is the most Protestant city in terms of its life-style and thinking. Monterrey is garbed in darkly puritanical colors, prim and diligent in the management of the Lord's time."
The book was written midway through the sexenio of Vicente Fox, the first President in decades from outside the PRI, and it is interesting to see how Shorris' predictions have fared.

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is an awesome blend of political history and ethnograpy. The author appears to have some choice connections to the political and academic intelligentsia of Mexico and his anecdoes and experiences with these people put a face of modesty on some of the power brokers in Mexican society. The organization of the book based upon Aztec mythological concepts and the detailed prose itself is remarkable in its meticulousness and metaphor. I was a bit turned off by the author's distillations of "Mexicanness" and what exactly "The Mexican" feels, believes and acts upon. Some of these treatments appear to build a stereotypical or mythical Mexican "specimen" to which a number of psycho-social generalizations are affixed. Overall this is one of the best books I can remember reading in years.

[Sarah Finch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully written and thought-provoking, Earl Shorris weaves a tapestry of a narrative that spans across centuries of Mexican history. Shorris' book is not a linear history, but one that hops, skips, and jumps through different geographies, cultures, and eras while never leaving the reader scrambling to catch up. There is an almost dreamlike quality to the way he tells the tale, but he skillfully avoids romanticizing the past. I admit I was initially skeptical of reading a history of Mexico written by an American writer, but Shorris -- who grew up in El Paso -- spent years in the country and knows people across the political, cultural, and socioeconomic spectrum, and includes two oral histories at the end to ensure that the reader hears more than just the author's voice. Highly, highly recommended.

[Allisonperkel · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book starts off so well - weaving Mexican history from Olmec to modern day. The story of the people really came alive and made connections that, while some are a stretch, helped create a sense of continuum.

Sadly the second and third sections didn't quite follow up the first. In the short second section Mr Shorris moves towards art in Mexico and its here where he begins to falter. To me, there were too many critiques and not enough tying back to the country.

The last section was better than the middle and yet it was still too political - and modern day political at that. In other words it was unexpected and very dry.

This is a good overview of Mexico - especially the first section.

[Lisa Basile · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is the perfect blend of fiction and non-fiction. Though it's labeled "fiction," it is told from the author's perspective in a dreamy lush way. The story tells the tale of Earl—or the narrator—and his relationship with "the old man of prieto." The imagery is stunning, the descriptions of Mexico are vivid and haunting and at times, sad. The respect and honor for telling history and beauty are ever-present, as is the book's hunger for the proper understanding of Mexico's history. It's a beautiful read for all interested in Mexico's people, wars and history. Plus, it serves as an encyclopedia for all things beautiful.

[Dave Clark · Rating 2 out of 5]

Earl Shorris takes a very artistic approach to the telling of a complicated history of a complicated people. He provides insight to the culture that is Mexico through his narratives of various people he has known and historical figures. He tries to invoke the voice of a people in his lyrical writing; however, his attempt is at times cumbersome and clumsy because no matter how hard one tries to convey the voice of Mexico it can never be captured by one man, much less a Gringo.

[Shan O]

I've just started this one after returning from a trip to Arizona and Mexico to learn first-hand about immigration issues. So far, it's fantastic. I'll have more on it later when I've gotten more than 25 pages into it.

[Jenni Bradley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Must read if you are interested in learning about Mexico past and present, very interesting, well researched and above all easy to read b/c he weaves personal narratives, historical tidbits in with the facts, and also injects his thoughtful POV.

[Tiffany · Rating 5 out of 5]

Phenomenal overview of the history of Mexico up to current times, told through compelling narrative and great insight into how the different civilizations and Spanish rule contributed to current day Mexican culture. Must read if you are visiting Mexico city

[Carrie]

Very interesting and informative but not linear.

[Cheryl Schibley · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the most interesting books on the rich history of Mexico. A complicated country. Great read.

[Bramble · Rating 5 out of 5]

A tour de force. If you are a gringo who wants to understand Mexico, and you aren't already Earl Shorris, you ought to read this.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a big book but very comprehensive. some new stuff and some old but well told.

[Anne]

One of the most comprehensive and best books about Mexico I have read

[k · Rating 3 out of 5]

The last quarter or third dragged, but I learned a lot in the rest of the book that I hadn't had any clue about. Mexico's history is... nuts. I now have many books queued up to learn more about it.

[Janell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots and lots of corruption...so, nothing new! I finally did put it down a hundred pages or so before finishing, but I learned mucho about Mexico, the land that I love.

[Jeffery Lee Radatz · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wasn't expecting a book like this...I was looking for more history, like at the beginning, not from an Aztec point of view.