Down and Delirious in Mexico City: The Aztec Metropolis in the Twenty-First Century
In 2002, just out of U.C. Berkeley, Hernandez headed to Mexico City to trace his cultural roots. Five years later, he returned there as a journalist and immersed himself in the bewildering subcultures of the western hemisphere™s largest city. His explorations take him from fashion runways and cocaine after-parties, the street brawls of punk and emo kids, to the teeming festival of Mexico™s national icon, the Virgin of Guadalupe. As Hernandez wanders the labyrinths of the city, he also investigates his own uncertain identity as the American-born child of Mexican parents. Hernandez covers a lot of ground in his study of the city, maybe too much. Skimming from scene to scene, he doesn™t settle anywhere long enough to write with an insider™s perspective. Because of this, the observations rarely transcend the journalistic generalities found in the average feature story. Hernandez™s personal quest, which could have centered the book, never becomes compelling. While informative, his book often reads like a bulked up tour guide. (Feb.)(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC.  All rights reserved.