Mexican Lives by Judith Adler Hellman is an amazing and important book, which focuses on the lives of Mexicans; ranging from the rich and poor, urban and rural, north and south. The author gives an insight of the truth of every Mexicans struggle. A great book to learn and enjoy about the government dealing with political issues. I personally did not enjoy this book, but I highly recommend this book to readers that are interested in politics and governmental policies.

I take a group of graduate nursing students to Oaxaca every year for a two-week language acquisition and practice experience. Previously I used a collection of articles from popular press and health care literature to provide background. Now, I use Mexican Lives to prepare these students with excellent results. I cannot imagine a better reading assignment of this type for the students. To me, it is a perceptive, thoughtful and beautifully written book.

Adler is a professor of Social and Political Science and it shows in this book. Her book is very similar to Patrick Oster's "The Mexicans". Both intend to accomplish the same goal: show readers how political situations in Mexico affect everyday lives. Adler's book is much more analytical in nature and thus more appreciated from the academic point of view. Adler paints a somewhat rosier picture of the society than does Oster and is a bit drier in writing but does an excellent job in providing historical and analytical facts while making suggestions for change in Mexican politics.

Judith Hellman's book reflects the care and respect she gave to the people she studied. This is always a good thing to see from a social scientist!! (Nothing like Margaret Mead!!) Since Judith Hellman was my professor this year at York University, I saw first hand how much she enjoyed her work, and how seriously she took it too. This is a GREAT read for anyone who is interested in Mexican lives from the human level.....not just what the media tells us!!