Mexican Mornings: Essays South of the Border

Rating:
Summary: Great book on Mexico
Review: I am always skeptical about books written on Mexico by foreigners. However, Michael Hogan who has lived in the country for more than a decade is a careful, although often critical and sometimes humorous, observer. He also has an obvious love and affinity for the Mexican character and writes about it accurately and well. The book contains observations on the effect of globalization on the Mexican economy, a night at a Mexican concert with the Tigres del Norte, a revolution in Chiapas, a university riot,a meeting with Fidel Castro when he comes to Guadalajara, as well as more tranquil moments riding in the forests or hiking the mountains.
The book is far better than any tour guides I have read, especially of the Guadalajara area, both with its descriptions of the people and the flora and fauna. It is an expatriate equivalent to the Labyrinth of Solitude by Octavio Paz, who by the way, is an inspiring presence in several of the essays.
For someone visiting Mexico for the first time, this is a valuable handbook. For someone who has chosen Mexican as their adopted country it provides clear evidence that it was a correct choice. For all Mexicans living outside the country, and for those who have visited and not yet returned, it clearly evokes the love and the longing that so many have for this land south of the border. Hogan writes lovingly of the person and the poetry of Richard Shelton here as well. For those, like myself, who are enarmored by the Tucson poet, it is a refreshing visit to an old friend who also has strong conenctions to Mexico. All in all, a wonderful read. Hogan has an accesible style with occasional flashes of brilliance and a quiet but poignant wit.

Rating:
Summary: The Expatriate
Review: This is Dr. Michael Hogan's latest book, a collection of essays written over the past decade while the author has lived and taught in Guadalajara, Mexico. This is quite possibly his best book, displaying a wide range of topics and an incredible maturity and intelligence that only comes when one's perspectives have been expanded. In one essay, "Letter to a Troubled Student," he deals with the Zapatista uprising of Chiapas, Mexico, telling his student that it is not scary that a group of Indians are taking on the Mexican government, but that, in any war, the truth is always the first victim. To him, and to a lot of us, that is truly scary. Through this essay, marked for its open-mindedness and its intelligence, Hogan is able to explain how his fears transcend the egocentric level, acheiving a greater understanding and universality.
This is the modus operandi for the rest of the book, which is a collection of essays written in Mexico over a period of the past ten years. They relate the expatriate experience, but they differ from other expatriate books because these essays are observations told through the eyes of a person who is committed to the lifelong quest of knowledge, a person who is committed to learning about his surroundings. All the essays are examples of a deep thought process, and one gets the realization that the author is just as much the teacher as he is the student.
One of the best examples of this, and also one of the defining elements of the book itself is the obvious influence that Mexican Poet Octavio Paz had and still has on Hogan's life. Paz's presence is everywhere in the book; the musicality of his poetry helping Hogan the young boy overcome his stuttering problem, the incisive nature of his essays helping Hogan the teacher in teaching the Odyssey to his ninth graders, the profound depth of his social critiques helping Hogan the human being understand humanity and the Mexican better.
This book is a deep, insightful study into the psychology of the expatriate. In my opinion it is a peer to that other great book about the human condition, "The Labyrinth of Solitude." It is also the only expatriate book that is fully able to document the reasons why a person chooses to leave his home country. It interacts with the reader on many levels, displaying intelligence, while appealing to the poets, the teachers, the scholars, the human beings in all of us. It also displays a deep love for a country that is not the native land for the author, nor for many expatriates. And it is this love that makes the book, and the essays within so compelling. I am reminded at this point, while searching for the place to end my review, of some lyrics from the song "Atlanta" by the Stone Temple Pilots.

"Visions of Mexico seduce me,
It goes to my head so carefully."

Rating:
Summary: The Expatriate
Review: This is Dr. Michael Hogan's latest book, a collection of essays written over the past decade while the author has lived and taught in Guadalajara, Mexico. This is quite possibly his best book, displaying a wide range of topics and an incredible maturity and intelligence that only comes when one's perspectives have been expanded. In one essay, "Letter to a Troubled Student," he deals with the Zapatista uprising of Chiapas, Mexico, telling his student that it is not scary that a group of Indians are taking on the Mexican government, but that, in any war, the truth is always the first victim. To him, and to a lot of us, that is truly scary. Through this essay, marked for its open-mindedness and its intelligence, Hogan is able to explain how his fears transcend the egocentric level, acheiving a greater understanding and universality.
This is the modus operandi for the rest of the book, which is a collection of essays written in Mexico over a period of the past ten years. They relate the expatriate experience, but they differ from other expatriate books because these essays are observations told through the eyes of a person who is committed to the lifelong quest of knowledge, a person who is committed to learning about his surroundings. All the essays are examples of a deep thought process, and one gets the realization that the author is just as much the teacher as he is the student.
One of the best examples of this, and also one of the defining elements of the book itself is the obvious influence that Mexican Poet Octavio Paz had and still has on Hogan's life. Paz's presence is everywhere in the book; the musicality of his poetry helping Hogan the young boy overcome his stuttering problem, the incisive nature of his essays helping Hogan the teacher in teaching the Odyssey to his ninth graders, the profound depth of his social critiques helping Hogan the human being understand humanity and the Mexican better.
This book is a deep, insightful study into the psychology of the expatriate. In my opinion it is a peer to that other great book about the human condition, "The Labyrinth of Solitude." It is also the only expatriate book that is fully able to document the reasons why a person chooses to leave his home country. It interacts with the reader on many levels, displaying intelligence, while appealing to the poets, the teachers, the scholars, the human beings in all of us. It also displays a deep love for a country that is not the native land for the author, nor for many expatriates. And it is this love that makes the book, and the essays within so compelling. I am reminded at this point, while searching for the place to end my review, of some lyrics from the song "Atlanta" by the Stone Temple Pilots.

"Visions of Mexico seduce me,
It goes to my head so carefully."