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Synopsis
A section of the fence being constructed along the southern border of the United States to stop illegal immigration from Mexico.
For nearly 3,000 years, art has flourished in the land now called Mexico. From architecture to music, from painting to poetry, many forms of creativity have revealed the culture of the Mexican people. Through the vitality of their art, Mexican artists have demonstrated what it means to be Mexican.
Long ago, ancient Mexicans, like the Mayans and Aztecs, expressed themselves with powerful works of art and unique structures. The arrival of the Spanish in the 16th century brought new artistic influences to Mexico. Today's artists and architects combine their rich native heritage with European influences to create styles that are unique and powerful.
Come explore the art and architecture of Mexico. The buildings, as well as the visual, performing, literary, and folk arts, are beautiful and varied. You'll find that the Mexican style is like none other in the world.
VOYA
This multi-book review addresses two entries from the Mason Crest series "Our Southern Neighbor Mexico." How successfully can the story of Mexico's more than three thousand years of political history and art be told in such brief books? These slender volumes, which cover different aspects of Mexican life, merely scratch the surface, but the scratches go surprisingly deep. Each book begins with the same introductory essay emphasizing that Mexico is undergoing profound change that will significantly impact the United States. The six chapters in Hunter's book The History of Mexico and the five in Carew-Miller's Mexican Art and Architecture share the same weaknesses and strengths. The large type, the overall layout, and especially the many apt and vivid color photographs are compelling. The writing is dry, jam-packed with dates and names, wars and elections in Hunter's book, and literary movements and architectural styles in Carew-Miller's. Refreshingly, both highlight important twenty-first-century figures and events. Nevertheless, after the factual richness, the format leaves little room for deep or balanced analysis, making the books read like expanded outlines. Hunter characterizes Porfirio Diaz, president of Mexico from 1877 to 1880, as a "ruthless dictator." This statement is true in many ways, but he was so much more. Fortunately, the author's Web site and further reading suggestions point serious students toward harder sources. Older readers will find the writing quite basic and might be irritated to see "difficult" words, such as "peasant," in bold type. The series, which includes other titles on the economy, food, and geography of Mexico, will work best in middle school libraries.Glossary. Index. Photos. Maps. Further Reading. Chronology. VOYA CODES: 3Q 2P M (Readable without serious defects; For the YA with a special interest in the subject; Middle School, defined as grades 6 to 8). 2003, Mason Crest, 64p. PLB Heslin