The Mexican Shock: Its Meaning for the United States

In his book castaneda discusses the immigration ocurring from Mexico to California, the inequality between the people and the voters. The inequality in Mxico with the economy and society and the corruption that is openly ocurring in the goverment. Castaneda fully explains his point of view about California and Mexico; by providing statistics, history and facts. He knows what he is writting about, the book is well written, except when he interrupts his book by referring to himself in the third person. It is a challenging book and it would be helpful to know some history about Mexico.

This book is informative and well-written. It argues that the economic problems of Mexico, and the 1994 financial crisis in particular, have deep political roots. I recommend this book for anyone who wants to learn more about Mexcio or international political economy. I only have one gripe with the book. Cataneda argues that Americans have always misunderstood Mexico. I think that this is true of many people, but not of everyone, and certainly not of American political elites. They may have presented Mexico as a long-standing problem for the U.S., an economically backward country which nevertheless is nearly democractic. But in reality, they understood the dynamics of Mexican politics quite well. I do not think that this book presents a revolutionary and shocking perspective. But those not very familiar with Mexico, or those who think that it is a democracy will find the book an eye-opening experience.

This is one of the best works I have read recently on Mexican politics. Castaneda's review is one of clarity and insight. This book is a great resource for analysis on the Mexican electoral system, popular dissent, and the history of the PRI. I highly recommend this one.