As I recall, reading for my first trip to Mexico was limited to a paperback Spanish/English dictionary and a very battered secondhand copy of Mexico on $5 A Day. In fact, it wasn’t until I’d actually experienced Mexico that a serious curiosity to know more about the country and its people infected me. Excellent books such as Incidents of Travel in Yucatán and Chiapas really came alive for me after I’d been over the ground and personally acquainted myself with the Maya.

The books and periodicals included here represent just a portion of the excellent publications on Mexico and Central America. We don't claim that this list is complete or even objective -- in fact, it tends to represent favorite titles from our personal libraries, including many older, out-of-print books that are well worth searching for. I also have a definite soft spot for self-published books, "desktop" newsletters and small press publications that rarely get mentioned by most reviewers. I’ve even included a few books that I haven’t yet read; they either sounded especially noteworthy or a trusted traveler gave me an enthusiastic, “Carl-you’ve-got-to-read-this!” recommendation.

The following book reviews more-or-less follow the order of the chapters in the The People's Guide to Mexico.

A special "¡Gracias!" for suggesting and reviewing some of the books and websites discussed here to David Eidell, Dr. Linda Nyquist, Ron Mader, Kay Rafool, Stan Gotlieb and "Mexico" Mike Nelson. Their names are in parenthesis after their recommendations.