Fleming Community Library

"Series of 12 essays on Mexican culture, history, and politics, originally published as Nuevo tiempo mexicano (1994). Time and memory are recurring motifs connecting essays. Some autobiographical chapters. Several centered on Mexico's 1994 political crossroads are somewhat dated given the outcome of the 2000 elections. Fluent translation; no supporting or introductory materials"--Handbook of Latin American Studies, v. 58.

It is 1865. Jesse Wilder has survived the horrors of Shiloh, the hell of a Yankee prison camp, and the shame of volunteering for the Union army of the West - the only way to escape certain death in the camp. Now the war is over and he has come home to Tennessee. But the word of his "treachery" has preceded him and Jesse finds himself shunned by his neighbors, and worse, disinherited by his late father. Like so many disillusioned survivors of the old...

In rural Mexico, during the peasant revolts of the 1970s, Plutarco, his son Genaro and grandson Lucio lead double lives. On the one hand, they are simple country musicians, and on the other they actively support the peasant guerrilla movement against the oppressor government. When the army occupies the village, the rebels are forced to flee and leave their ammunition behind. Making the most of the fact that he looks like an inoffensive violinist,...