PETER STANDISH is Professor of Spanish at East Carolina University.
STEVEN M. BELL is Associate Professor of Spanish and Latin American Studies at the University of Arkansas.

Acknowledgments
Series Foreword
Introduction
Chronology
Context: History, Land, and Society
Religion
Social Life, Leisure, and Food
The Media
Cinema
Performing Arts
Literature
Visual Arts and Architecture
Conclusion
Selected Bibliography
Index

Mexico, with some 90 million people, holds a special place in Latin America. It is a large, complex hybrid, a bridge between North and South America, between the ancient and the modern, and between the developed and the developing worlds. Mexico's importance to the United States cannot be overstated. The two countries share historical, economic, and cultural bonds that continue to evolve. This book offers students and general readers a deeper understanding of Mexico's dynamism: its wealth of history, institutions, religion, cultural output, leisure, and social customs.