On the Plain of Snakes, by Paul Theroux

Few have seen the world like Paul Theroux has.  Since the 1960s, Theroux has been writing novels and travel books that specialize in getting to know the cultures and people he experiences and meets.  His most recent book, On the Plain of Snakes: A Mexican Journey, relates his experiences traveling through Mexico and the U.S. borderlands. 

Part of the stated reason for his journey is in response to the election of President Trump, who has been vocal about strengthening the border with Mexico and who has been criticized for some of his public statements about Mexican immigrants.  Theroux makes his contempt for Trump and his views pretty clear, and is happy to report when he finds Mexicans who share his contempt.

Theroux's writing vividly captures the landscape and features of the land, but his strength is meeting everyday people and telling their stories.  (He does tend to spend too much time on Mexican literary traditions; I just found those portions of the book to be a bit dull.)  Personalizing the people of Mexico accomplished Theroux task of helping his readers see them as neighbors and peers.  He's less friendly to the Mexican government.  He's constantly in fear of getting pulled over, acknowledging that in some areas the police are actually members of drug cartels.  He also reports on mass kidnappings and murders, at the hands of cartels and of the state.  So his task of trying to make me more sympathetic to Mexico really made me want to avoid it even more.

Is Mexico a friendly neighbor?  In many ways, yes.  Theroux's time on the border towns emphasize the economic symbiosis that is so clear between our two nations.  But overall, the corruption and crime that mark so much of the country, by his reporting, give me pause and make me tend to agree with Trump--get that wall built!  This is a beautiful country with rich cultural traditions with a rotten ruling class that badly needs to be democratized and reformed.


Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!