• Age: 0 to 18
• Grade: p to 12
• Reading age: 0

The Mexican-American War (1846-1848) was an event of major consequences, not only for the countries involved, but for the entire North American continent. It was also the first war to be documented with photographs and the first to be witnessed by press correspondents.

Rich in period illustrations and photos, this fascinating book recounts the war from both sides of the conflict. In addition to the extensive core text comprised of eyewitness accounts and documents from the wartime period, not and captions illuminate and explain the material. From great political and military strategies to individual soldiers' perceptions (the endless marches under searing sun or torrential rain, in wool uniforms and shoes made to fit either foot) the book shows the enormous complexity of the war from many perspectives.

More than 200 images illustrate the text, many of them lithographs based on images drawn by the soldiers themselves.

Krystyna M. Libura is an editor, translator and writer with a Master's degree in literature. She wrote - together with Ma. Cristina Urrutia - the first book in this series, the highly regarded Ecos de la Conquista, and has been involved in the editing, research and design of Ediciones Tecolote's acclaimed history books for children (available in English from Groundwood Books). She also teaches university courses in semiotics and iconography.

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Luis Gerardo Morales Moreno, a specialist in the cultural history of Mexico and museum studies, has been a professor in various Mexican universities. He has written prize-winning books about Mexican historiography and museum studies. He presently teaches at the Universidad Autonoma del Estado de Morelos.

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Jesus Velasco Marquez is a specialist in the history of the United States and the history of relations between Mexico and the United States. He has written several important books on the subject, and was one of the major advisers for the award-winning PBS documentary on the U.S.-Mexican War. He is presently Researcher and Lecturer at the Instituto Tecnologico Autonomo de Mexico (ITAM), is involved in academic activities at several universities in Mexico, including UNAM and El Colegio de Mexico, and has served as a member of the Mexican Foreign Service in Canada and the United States.

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Mark Fried has translated ten books of fiction and non-fiction from Latin America and Spain. He lives in Ottawa where he is advocacy coordinator for Oxfam Canada.

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