Amanecer en el Zócalo. Los 50 días que confrontaron a México. (Dawn in the Zocalo: The 50 Days That Confronted Mexico)

Reviewed by Carolyn Kost, Stevenson Sch. Lib., Pebble Beach, CA -- Críticas, 4/1/2008

Poniatowska, Elena.
Mexico: Planeta. 395p. ISBN 978-970-37-0610-5. pap. $34.95. CURRENT EVENTS

In this captivating documentary, journalist, novelist, and beloved leftist pundit Poniatowska (b. Paris, 1932) turns her attention to the controversial events of the 2006 Mexican presidential election. In this election, frontrunner Andrés Manuel López Obrador, candidate of the Partido de la Revolución Democrática (Party of the Democratic Revolution) and former mayor of Mexico City, lost the by less than one percent. Charging fraud and campaign interference, he appealed, mobilizing enormous popular support. Hundreds of thousands converged for weeks in the Zócalo, the vast space in the capital city that serves as symbolic center of the power of the people. Poniatowska presents a multifaceted chronology of the event, the divergent political perspectives of both intellectuals and peasants, and the sense of solidarity arising from the people’s desire to gather to express their deep frustration, mistrust, and weariness of the corruption of the traditional ruling parties. Contextualized in Mexico’s broader recent history, including the lingering effects of flawed socioeconomic policies and the 1985 earthquake, the stunning portrayal of this singular event is profoundly moving. Highly recommended for bookstores and libraries, particularly those serving Mexican populations.

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