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On the Plain of Snakes
- Narrated by: Joseph Balderrama
- Length: 19 hrs and 58 mins
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On the Plain of Snakes
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Summary
The master of contemporary travel writing, Paul Theroux, immerses himself in the beautiful and troubled heart of modern Mexico.
Nogales is a border town caught between Mexico and the United States of America. A 40-foot steel fence runs through its centre, separating the prosperous US side from the impoverished Mexican side. It is a fascinating site of tension, now more than ever, as the town fills with hopeful border crossers and the deportees who have been caught and brought back. And it is here that Paul Theroux will begin his journey into the culturally rich but troubled heart of modern Mexico.
Moving through the deserts just south of the Arizona border, Theroux finds a place brimming with charm, yet visibly marked by both the US border patrol looming to the north and mounting discord from within. Attending local language and culinary schools, driving through the country and meeting its people, Paul Theroux gets under the skin of Mexico.
From the writer praised for his 'curiosity and affection for humanity in all its forms' (New York Times Book Review), On the Plain of Snakes is an urgent and mesmerising exploration of a region in conflict.
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Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- John
- 12-03-21
A brave book
Not just crisscrossing the border in his Massachussets car, Paul Theroux ventures south to Chiapas where he encounters trans people Muxes and writes about discrimination in Mexican society. Then he meets with masked subcomandante Marcos, leader of the Zapatista uprising and is invited to make a speech.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- RL
- 09-01-24
Lovely narration and pronunciation of Mexican names and languages
Really gripping story and descriptions, Paul Theroux is a wonderful travel writer and takes time to understand and explain something about the places he visits. I did not want this book to end.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 01-05-20
A Sublime piece of work
A wonderful journey and very well read. A master of travel and scrivening. An inspiration.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- apritisesame
- 27-12-19
Great voice but strange pauses
Great performer, lovely voice. But why do you treat commas like full stops (periods)? long pauses between listed items made for confusing listening. but still great.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 14-05-22
Didn’t get into
Really wasn’t able to get into unfortunately, just felt like I was listening to someone’s diary but with a lot of information that didn’t feel captivating eg had lunch here spoke to this random dude…also in the beginning he says how he won’t talk about how dangerous Mexico is and then goes on to talk about it how dangerous Mexico is. Maybe it gets better as the book goes on…
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