Customer Reviews

Yesterday's Train: A Rail Odyssey Through Mexican History

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I've now completed Pindell's North American train trilogy, and have found him to be the perfect traveling companion. If this book is slightly less successful than the earlier ones, it is only because the central metaphor -- trains as history -- sits less comfortably on Mexico than it does on the US and Canada. For those who love trains, geography, or cultural history, this book provides some clean connections.

Any gringo who has traveled extensively in Mexico will enjoy this read. It captures the essence of this wonderful place, and recognizes the differences of how things work from north of the border, without degrading the Mexican culture. I rate as one of the best books of travel in Mexico.

You might find it hard to believe that someone who can't speak Spanish would undertake a travel book about Mexico. However, this turns out not to be an authentic travel book, but simply a re-hashing of Mexican history obviously taken second-hand from other American & English writers, & arbitrarily attached to a map of various train rides (which are perfunctorily described but not effectively connected in any way with Mexico)

This book makes an attempt to be a travel memoir, history book and a political statement all in one. It does not cover any one area very well. Your time would be better spent on concentrating on books that cover these areas in proper detail. The author gets too far off on politics in the second half and it was a struggle to not just put the book away and forget it. There are a few good tales of travel on the Mexican trains, but you have to put up with the rest in between. Not worth the time.

A great idea on how to venture into Mexico via various train trips mainly focused on how these trips are journeys into Mexico's soul. The author also blends in enough history without overwhelming us all. It certainly turned me on to some areas of the nation I've missed. I also liked how he was able to blend the politics of today with the past and on how so many times throughout history Mexico missed the boat. Plus add to that his obvious love of Mexico, he never allows that pointed criticism of political leaders to descend into the typical "we're superior" Yanqui stance.

The only thing I never get about most travel essay writers, and he is no exception, is how they can travel all over a nation and miss, or never comment on, events involving hundreds of thousands of locals held almost weekly. I'm talking the impact of soccer on Mexican lives. I know this is off on a tangent but I found soccer matches esp. involving America, Chivas, Cruz Azul or Guadalajara brought me more insight into the Mexican psysche than many other better known explosions of color and emotion (i.e., "festivals").

I found this book on a remainder table and coudn't resist the train travel theme. For the first few dozen pages it seemed promising but was, overall, something of a disappointment.

What's missing in this book is an interesting and cohesive travel narrative. It's not clear to me how the author could spend an entire year riding the rails in Mexico and not have more interesting personal experiences to relate. Instead the book is padded with extended sections that could be gathered together and titled "Mexican History for Dummies". Being a something of a history dummy myself, those sections were what kept me reading. But I wouldn't recommend this book to others unless they have an immediate interest in mexican trains in addition to a need for the quick history lesson.

Having said that, it was interesting for me to read about the periodic advance and decline of the national rail system and its impact on Mexico's revolutionary history. In particular, the route from Mexico City to Oaxaca brought back memories of a trip my wife and I took with two friends in 1989. At that time the service was at its peak, with nicely restored sleeper cars featuring ensuite lavatories and comfortable (if small) folding beds. That's a trip we would like to do again but it's no longer possible with the same level of comfort; according to Pindell the sleeper cars are long gone and the train schedules are erratic.

The author does not speak a word of Spanish, yet he presumes to interpret the Mexican culture after riding the Mexican rails for awhile. I have lived in Mexico for years. My wife is Mexican, and I can tell you he missed the cultural boat significantly, as do most non-Hispanic foreigners who pass superficially through our troubled land.

It is impossible to interpret the culture of a people when you do not even speak the tongue. It is a presumptuous thing to even attempt. Instead, he dragged along on the journey a Cuban-American friend to interpret. Yes, a Cuban.

Interspersed with his questionable cultural observations are pages of Mexican history. Those are interesting. That is where he earns his review stars. I give him two because it is history available in a million other places. But he does write clearly.

The author also exhibits an annoying anti-Americanism. Mexicans noble. Gringos bad. As the adolescents often say: Puh-leeze!

This is a so-so book. The historical parts are in good order. The cultural observations way off base.