Mexico (Blue Guides) [Paperback]

John Collis (Author), David Jones (Author)

Book Description

Series: Blue Guides | Publication Date: November 1996

This guide discusses in detail the archaeology, architecture and art of prehistoric Mexico, New Spain and post-Independence Mexico into modern times. It conveys the splendour and strangeness of one of the world's great heritages. It is illustrated with maps, town and site plans and photographs.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

In this latest entry in the "Blue Guide" series, which has a long history with different publishers since 1915, veteran travel authors give a good deal of background information (history, culture, food, and archaeology, in particular) and practical information on Mexico. After 100 pages of this, the book is organized by areas of the country. Within the various regions there are chapters on the large cities and important places. For each place there are paragraphs on railroads, buses, airports, restaurants, hotels, post offices, and the like. However, the authors do not usually list specific hotels or restaurants. Instead, they indicate the general locations of the expensive, moderate, or inexpensive hotels and restaurants. Then they present routes from one city to another with the kind of detail the old Baedekers had. The guide has a slightly British flavor and spelling (it is British in origin), but this does not detract from the value of this large, extensive, and detailed work. The maps and photographs were not seen, but if they live up to the standard of the other guides, they will be fine. Recommended for public libraries.?George M. Jenks, Bucknell Univ., Lewisburg, Pa.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Paperback: 960 pages
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company (November 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0393300722
• ISBN-13: 978-0393300727
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 4.7 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,039,855 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A fantastic companion for the historical traveler, February 7, 2000

By 

K. Gilbert (Boulder, CO) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mexico (Blue Guides) (Paperback)

The Blue Guide is not meant to be practical - the entry for Mexico City says "there are many hotels in Mexico City." However, the depth and amount of information about history, art, architecture, and culture are astounding. We used this book on a driving trip through Mexico City - Queretaro - Guanajuato - Taxco - Acapulco - Cuernavaca, plus a side trip to Merida - Chichen Itza - Uxmal. The guide pointed us to numerous fascinating sites that were not mentioned in our other guidebooks. Some examples: An 80+ page section on the National Museum in Mexico City takes you through piece-by-piece, adding much to the placards in the museum and also pointing out exhibits that are not to be missed. The sections on Chichen Itza, Uxmal, and Xochicalco were all fantastic. My personal favorites were the guides to the work of the Mexican muralists Rivera/Orozco/Siqueiros. Want to know where all their works are and what was significant about each one? it's all in this book. If you're the kind of traveler who wants to know everything about the places you visit, this book is a must-have companion. And the best part about having a guide book that doesn't preoccupy itself with hotels and restaurants is that this book will never go out of date...

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great "before you go" book, March 23, 2006

By 

Salty Saltillo (from the road, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mexico (Blue Guides) (Paperback)

Blue Guide Mexico does a wonderful job of filling a gap in the Mexican travel guide market. Far and away this is the best guide book in English for discovering the art, architecture, and history of Mexico. It is obvious after reading this guide book how culturally deficient and shallow the Lonely Planet and Rough Guides are (not just for Mexico but in general).

I do have one complaint. This book is huge. There are over 100 pages written on Mexico City alone. When is a traveller to have time to read and digest this information? Not on the road, that is for sure! So I have not quite figured out how best to use the information contained herein. Should I read it all before I travel? I am likely to forget half of it by the time I go. Do I read it after the trip? That will just frustrate me and remind me of all the things I should've seen but didn't know to look for. So that is the puzzle of this otherwise rich tome.

(One last warning: fortunately this book does not waste space or your money listing hotels and restaurants for every major city in Mexico. Who needs that anyway? But if you are the kind of person who thinks that is what a guide book is for, maybe you should just get a different guide book... or better yet, get a copy of the yellow pages when your plane lands.)

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars excellent reference for archaeological and historical sites, March 15, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Mexico (Blue Guides) (Paperback)

Unlike most travel guides, this does not tell you where to eat or stay. Instead, it offers detailed information on the archaeology and hostory of numerous archaeological sites, colonial architecture and more. It includes site plans for many sites and step-by-step information on museum exhibits. It also explains the archaeological excavations that have been done at various sites. I recommend it highly to anyone traveling to Mexico to view archaeologial and historical sites.