Description: In a Volume Hailed as "Masterful" (Washington Post) and "amazingly ambitious ... necessary reading" (New York Times Book Review), Enrique Krauze presents the definitive portrait of modern Mexico -- its religion, culture, politics, and more. In a country where the traditional concentration of power is in the caudillo or leader, Krauze's insights into the personalities of these figures become compelling insights into Mexico's history. The author begins with the late-nineteenth-century leaders like Porfirio Diaz, and moves through the Revolution and the agony of political unrest that continued through the 1940s. He then describes the development of the modern state and the contemporary period, from the presidencies of Camacho through Salinas. This paperback edition will include a postscript covering the presidency of Zedillo and the recent elections. Krauze believes a critical question for the future is whether the political system will continue to centralize power in the presidency, thus perpetuating Mexico's history as a biography of power.

"A stunning achievement". -- Daniel Bell

"A book worthy of Mexico's tumultuous history and vital to our understanding". -- Boston Globe

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