Opening Mexico

"By combining a nimble narrative with a reporter's eye for detail, [Preston and Dillon] produce a gripping and insightful history of Mexico's democratic transition."—Daniel Kurtz Phelan, The Washington Post

"[Preston and Dillon] succeed brilliantly. The July 2000 election of Vicente Fox brought 71 years of dictatorial rule to a peaceful end, a singular democratic transition that this remarkable book describes in painteresque style. [A] brisk narrative, full of shrewd analysis and masterly old-fashioned reporting."—Kenneth Maxwell, Foreign Affairs

"[A] sweeping account of a nation's struggle for democracy . . . Classic, nuanced storytelling . . . Preston and Dillon's central explanation of why Mexico finally cracked open lies in the momentum created by . . . individuals, both mighty and meek, who took on a system that was decaying from within. And this is where Opening Mexico truly shines . . . [it] is equal in ambition and scope to Distant Neighbors, the monumental 1985 account by Alan Riding . . . Riding wrote in broad strokes, organizing his material thematically. By contrast, Preston and Dillon have filled in the spaces with the raw, vibrant details of the lives of contemporary Mexicans."—Michele Wucker, The New York Times Book Review

"An extraordinary book on the collapse of one-party rule in Mexico that also serves as an excellent introduction for Americans who want to understand Mexico better. This detailed insiders' account of the slow collapse of what was once called the perfect dictatorship and the messy emergence of a still-imperfect democracy gives readers the most intimate and accessible portrait they are likely to have of Mexico in a time of upheaval . . . The story of how that perfect dictatorship came unglued is one of the most fascinating stories of our time, and the authors tell their story well. The voices of intellectuals, Indians, political dissidents, businessmen, and ordinary Mexican citizens fill this densely researched and clearly written book. The fall of the PRI was a little bit like spring: here an early crocus pushed through the snow, there buds began to appear on bare branches, and then the first robins reappeared. Ms. Preston and Mr. Dillon are magnificent guides to this rebirth of Mexican freedom and paint a compelling picture of the cascading and accelerating change . . . Overall, readers familiar with the fall of Communism in Europe will be struck by the cultural and political similarities among the brave pioneers who struggled for freedom in both [Europe and Mexico] . . . Opening Mexico correctly emphasizes that the United States had very little to do with the triumph of democracy in Mexico."—Walter Russell Mead, The New York Times

"Preston and Dillon deserve an immense amount of credit for their achievement here, the payoff of their tireless reporting. At their best, the authors, using exhaustive research, personal testimony, and interviews at every stratum of Mexican society, provide blow-by-blow accounts of seminal moments in modern Mexican history."—Scott W. Helman, The Boston Globe

"Fascinating . . . The stories [Preston and Dillon] tell are informative, entertaining, and sometimes groundbreaking."—David Gaddis Smith, The San Diego Union-Tribune (cover review)

"A highly readable and revealing account of [Mexico's] dramatic recent history."—Geri Smith, Business Week

"Preston and Dillon have written what is probably the best summation in English of what happened—a decades-long struggle for democracy, orchestrated by no single leader or movement but resulting from a combination of factors."—Allan Wall, Chronicles

"Brisk, insightful . . . Julia Preston and Samuel Dillon [here] weave a narrative enlivened by vivid portraits of the main characters who helped bring about, or stubbornly resisted, the dramatic transformation of Mexico from what they term a 'perfect dictatorship' to an 'imperfect democracy' . . . The authors are particularly effective in presenting details to illustrate the types of corruption that infected all levels of government and private institutions."—Joseph A. Page, The Miami Herald

"An insightful and engaging account . . . The book is a highly readable primer on recent Mexican history and a fascinating case study of the multiple ways public pressure can undermine an antidemocratic regime."—Daniel Wilkinson, The Nation


"This is a book written by two journalists with an unfaltering capacity to select the telling anecdote or the compelling first hand account that will engage any reader, and will dispel any doubt that, as the saying embroidered on so many souvenir place mats, carved on onyx bookends, and engraved on sword-shaped letter openers puts it, ‘Como México, no hay dos' . . . Much of the spicy flavor and intensity of Preston and Dillon's narrative of these events and this process come from their use of arresting first person narratives and "witness to history" accounts provided to them by the intellectuals and the political figures they came to know and rely upon as sources during their work from 1995 to 2000 as correspondents of the New York Times . . . Indeed, in the 600 pages of this work, there is hardly a dull moment as Mexico lurches from calamity to crisis . . . The book should provide very stimulating reading for anyone who could wish to review this extraordinary epoch of change in Mexico."—Judith Adler Hellman, The Americas

"Opening Mexico tells the fascinating inside story of how Mexico became a multi-party democracy after seven decades of single-party rule. Julia Preston and Samuel Dillon, two of America's finest investigative journalists, recount the events that transformed Mexican politics and strengthened democratic momentum at a crucial moment in the history of Latin America. Opening Mexico is indispensable reading for those seeking an understanding of contemporary Mexico and would be a valuable addition to the library of any student of how political power is used, abused, or changed."—Madeleine Albright, Former U.S. Secretary of State

"Julia and Sam have produced one of the most important books on Mexico since the publication of Alan Riding's Distant Neighbors nearly twenty years ago. It is a clear reminder to U.S. policy makers of why America needs to remain engaged with the destiny of its Southern neighbor, and a superb introduction to Mexico for all those who simply want to get to know, and understand, a fascinating country."—Jorge Castañeda, Former Foreign Minister of Mexico

"The emergence of a vibrant democracy in Mexico is one of the underappreciated stories of our day. Opening Mexico details the political and democratic forces that moved our southern neighbor in this new direction, to the point where Mexico is now helping to set the standard for Latin American nations on the global policy stage. This book is an important analysis for anyone serious about policy-making and international relations in Mexico and the Americas."—Mack McLarty, former White House Chief of Staff and Special Envoy for the Americas

"This fascinating book is not the expedition of curious analysts into the archives and clippings of a country at change; it is the effort of two journalists to give their own version and cast lights on the shadows of a country full of secrets, untold stories and hidden compartments."—Adolfo Aguilar Zinser, writer, independent politician and former Ambassador of Mexico to the United Nations

"Opening Mexico takes us on a wonderfully humane and insightful journey, chock full of vividly portrayed villains and heroes, that brings to life Mexico's own troubled, triumphant journey toward a functioning democracy. Preston and Dillon introduce us to the worst and best of humanity, locked in an historic struggle of entrenched privilege versus individual liberty. This book is a great read for all Americans who are curious about our awakening southern neighbor."—Richard Feinberg, Director, APEC Study Center, University of California, San Diego


"New York Times reporters Preston and Dillon present an overview of the decline and fall of Mexico's Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) during the last three decades of the 20th century . . . Preston and Dillon tell the stories of the numerous reformers and activists who worked for 30 years to change Mexican politics. They also highlight the PRI's efforts to retain power, with a detailed study of the governments of the disgraced presidents Carlos Salina and Zedillo. Richly detailed and excellently written."—Library Journal

"Superb from-the-barricades portrait of Mexico's second revolution, which is still unfolding. New York Times reporters Preston and Dillon offer a vivid account of matters that would have been common knowledge to American readers had newspapers or newsmagazines showed interest in our southern neighbor's affairs: the complex transformation of a one-party system, the longest-ruling in the world, into a pluralistic democracy. In fairness to American readers, Preston and Dillon observe, the momentous process, known to Mexicans as el cambio—the change—caught many Mexicans unaware, too: 'Mexico's second revolution was accomplished so efficiently and peacefully that not many Mexicans, and even fewer outsiders, really grasped the historic dimensions of the event.' Whatever the case, the Mexican electorate ended more than 70 years of one-party rule in July 2000, turning out the ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) in favor of newcomer Vincente Fox's National Action Party (PAN). The change has many agents: labor activists, the disaffected urban poor, supporters of the Zapatista rebel movement, middle-class intellectuals, ordinary citizens shocked by corruption and the brutality of the police and military. It also had an unlikely ally in PRI president and party leader Ernesto Zebillo, who, like Mikhail Gorbachev (to whom he has been likened), bowed to the inevitable and accepted the will of the people—even if many party stalwarts, and their American hireling James Carville, did not. Though Fox, who won 43 percent of the vote in a three-way race, has been a disappointment—so Preston and Dillon conclude—the awakening has made all the difference . . . As good a look at Mexico as has been written by outsiders since Alan Riding's Distant Neighbors (1984), and essential for students of Latin American affairs."—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"Two reporters lately posted in Mexico by the New York Times review the country's recent political history in this hefty narrative. The authors structure their story line around the relinquishment of presidential power, which was held without interruption for the preceding 70 years by the Institutional Revolutionary Party (knows as the PRI), in the 2000 election. They develop the PRI's increasingly blatant rigging of elections over the course of the 1980s and 1990s and the types of opposition the chicanery provoked. They describe the protests and appraise the motivations of election monitors, intellectuals, candidates, Mexican journalists, and leaders of a rebellion in Chiapas. As for the PRI's response to discontent with its rule, the authors recount the ascent of figures such as Carlos Salinas and Ernesto Zedillo and their differences in handling the severe crises (assassinations, the collapse of the currency, the wave of hypercriminality) that wracked Mexico during their terms. With a concluding and diffident portrayal of current president Vicente Fox, [this is a] comprehensive survey for watchers of contemporary Mexican politics."—Gilbert Taylor, Booklist

"Preston and Dillon, former Mexico bureau chiefs for the New York Times, combine personal experience and journalistic accounts in this thoughtful report on the trials of Mexico's turbulent first taste of democracy after decades of authoritarian rule. With grace and candor, the authors capture this transitional period, which has been characterized by a slow and tense crumbling of Mexico's main political party, the PRI (a victim of its own incompetence and hubris), and a rapid increase in civic fervor . . . The authors detail government negligence and deception during the devastating earthquake of 1985, cunning reporters and renowned intellectuals attempting to pierce the regime's stronghold on the media, and the ongoing low-intensity warfare against deeply divided indigenous communities in the southern state of Chiapas . . . This type of coverage earned the authors strong criticism from the authorities in Mexico and a Pulitzer Prize—the latter well deserved."—Publishers Weekly