Mexican Memoir: A Personal Account of Anthropology and ... (ISBN 0897897811)

Very informative and enjoyable, even for non-academics:
I was expecting this book to be an anthropology text, but instead found it it be a very engaging, delightful personal account of an anthropologist's experience living in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec in Oaxaca, Mexico. Don't let the fact that it is an anthropology book scare you off- it is not overly dry or academic in the least. While it is very informative and contains a lot of info about politics and ethnicity in the Isthmus, it's written in a casual, personal style that is extremely readable. It contains a lot of funny anecdotes that really brought the Isthmus alive for me. I found myself becoming immersed in the author's vivid descriptions of the countryside, the towns, the colorful characters he met and the political rallies that he attended. More than anything it reads like a travel book, but with a bit more substance. I enjoyed this book thoroughly and would recommend it to anyone who plans to travel to Oaxaca, or is remotely interested in indigenous Mexico.