The Oxford History of Mexico

by Michael C. Meyer and William Beezley

Book Overview

The Oxford History of Mexico is a narrative history of the events, institutions and characters that have shaped Mexican history from the reign of the Aztecs through the twenty-first century. When the hardcover edition released in 2000, it was praised for both its breadth and depth--all aspects of Mexican history, from religion to technology, ethnicity, ecology and mass media, are analyzed with insight and clarity. Available for the first time in paperback,...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0199731985
• ISBN13: 9780199731985
• Release Date: August 2010
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
• Length: 688 Pages
• Weight: 2.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.5" x 6.3" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

An detailed and thorough account for history buffs

As someone who loves to fill their personal library with books of every subject, I've been itching for a good book on my own country's history as I haven't been able to find one in my mother tongue. I'm hoping to find more in spanish one day, and of course from well-renowned historias, but this volume has what I need for now.

Exhaustive Treatment

The "Oxford History of Mexico" is a well researched multidisciplinary book of history. It is an edited book, meaning that many authors devote their energies to the analysis of a single aspect of the glorious and heartbreaking history of Mexico. Thus, while each topic is well covered, there is some lack of narrative flow. Editor Michael Meyer is the author of another excellent history "The Course of Mexican History" that has a great narrative pace combined with a high level of detail. However, his book has been criticized for slighting the colonial experience. So, I guess with a story as complicated, long and eventful as the history of Mexico, you must sacrifice some narrative flow to provide detail or sacrifice detail to narrative flow.That quibble aside, this is truly an excellent book. The colonial experience is vividly detailed with sections on the resistance of the Indian to exploitation, the social stratification of the Indian class during the colonial period, and the role of women in society including marriage and childbirth. Further, Santa Anna, an enormously polarizing character comes in for justifiable criticism (Texas, his ideological flip flops and lack of constancy to any of his allies over the years) but also is praised for his bravery and consistent patriotism and opposition to all forms of foreign domination of Mexico. Finally, the role of ideology in the revolution is explored. While there were socialist overtones to much of the rhetoric that came out of the revolution, pragmatism and Mexicanidad prevail. That is, a truly independent course, truly Mexican, emerges without the ideological straight-jackets worn by other revolutionaries. A remarkable effort and a recommended read to anyone with a interest in Mexican culture, history and politics.

A remainder of México's historical path

A must-read book to understand México's post-modern conscious. Meyer and Beezley are right when they wrote that a mix of Catholic dogma, medical advances and poverty had been the pillars of México's current population (about 100 million). The analysis on the indigenous matter is brilliant. It's a reminder on how México hasn't solved the indigenous problem even after almost 200 years as an independent country. The authors dissect the socioeconomic web that gave birth to the concept of the modern Mexicano.