Mexico has long held sway over the passions of travelers and has been featured in the writings of such keen observers as Katherine Anne Porter, Paul Bowles, Langston Hughes, Elizabeth Borton de Trevino, and John Steinbeck. Their eyewitness accounts are gathered with those of a score of other writers in this remarkable collection of some of the best travel writing ever about some of the most popular destinations for travelers, from Cabo San Lucas to Mexico City to Yucatan.

Says editor Alan Ryan about this collection, "I wanted a book that would be like a trunk filled with letters from a branch of the family that's lived and traveled for many years in Mexico. Some of these imaginary relatives loved the country and made it their own. Some visited briefly, saw what there was to see, and left. A few disliked it, complained about everything, and couldn't wait to get away.

All of them sent back reports." These personal "reports" accentuate Mexico's diversity and provide an incomparably richer perspective of this complex country than could possibly be offered by any standard guidebook. As Booklist commented in an exultant boxed review, this is a "sometimes startling collection that would indeed make a fine traveling companion."