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Books, Maps and Videos about Oaxaca
As far as travel guides are concerned, chances are that Bruce Whipperman's Oaxaca Handbook is all you need. We used this book extensively during our researches for the Oaxaca DVD.
Buy Oaxaca Handbook
Buy Pacific Handbook on: amazon.com or
overstock.com (includes most of Oaxaca's Handbook)
If you are more of an armchair traveler, or simply want to immerse yourself deep into Oaxaca's culture, consider "Oaxaca, the Spirit of Mexico" by Judith Cooper Haden, a photographer, with notes by Matthew Jaffe. Full of artistically beautiful pictures where you can feel the connection Judith makes with her subjects - she even got the elusive artist Francisco Toledo to pose for a picture -, as her art makes a joyous celebration of Mexican life and culture.
Buy Oaxaca, the Spirit of Mexico on: alibris.com, amazon.com
For those seeking to understand how Oaxaca's culture is rooted in its indigeneous past, I recommend "Zapotec Struggles" focusing on the city of Juchitan, close to Tehuantepéc. This anthology draws articles, poems, testimonies, songs, speeches, stories, and art from the COCEI movement -- a radical leftist Zapotec Indian coalition that has dominated politics in the Juchitan region of Mexico since the 1980s. A hotbed of independence and resistance to federal rule (while the official ending date of the Revolution is 1919, the region held out against Benito Juarez' troops until 1924), Juchitan's latest rebellion by a leftist coalition of students, workers, gays, peasants and intellectuals, the people of Juchitan overthrew the bosses of the then-ruling PRI party. With scholarly articles, poetry, and oral histories, the authors give a insider look at what being an "ethnic" community means in modern Mexico.
Buy Zapotec Struggles on: alibris.com, amazon.com
A charming book about the region's artcraft is "Oaxacan Ceramics", with photos by Vicki Ragan and narration by Lois Wasserspring. Focusing on the great doyennes of Ocotlan and Atzompa, this celebration of Mexican ceramics combines a gallery of more than one hundred stunning photographs with an insightful text that illuminates the artistry and the artists -- all of whom are women. The narration lets us into the daily lives of the ceramicists and creates a historical context for understanding the phenomenal growth of this local industry, through remarkable inside stories of six of the most renowned artisans.
Buy Oaxacan Ceramics on: alibris.com, amazon.com
Oaxaca is a wonderful place for ecotourists in general, and bird-watching in particular. I have never seen a bird-watching book specifically written for Mexico in English, but for newbies I would recommend "A Field Guide to Western Birds", by R.T.Peterson. Built around inspiring paintings (no photo) of over 1,000 birds from 700 species, it contains well-written descriptions, range maps with their distribution and natural history, and many identification tips. The book was clearly intended for American birders, and you are expected to know and recognize the North American birds. Also covers Belize and Guatemala.
Buy A Field Guide to Western Birds on: amazon.com
Another worthwhile reference is "Field Guide to the Birds of Mexico", by E.P.Edwards. Contains good artwork and a full list of all Mexican birds, but descriptions and geographical distributions are cryptic at time. National Geographic also released a field guide, prettier and heavier than the Peterson's it is clearly aimed at less seasoned bird-watchers.