Description

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The first anthology in any language to represent the full trajectory of this remarkable literature.

From new interpretations of the glyphic writings of the Maya through the poetic response to events in modern Chiapas, here is a history of Mexico and Central America from the Indian point of view. In these pages the reader will encounter, often in new translations, the deeply affecting Aztec poems, the horrific battles of conquest, and the thoughtful philosophy of the Mayan "bible," the Popol Vuh. Full, clear introductions make this extraordinary material accessible to all readers. In the Language of Kings is a gemstone of cultural strength for those who trace their ancestry to Mesoamerica, as well as an essential resource for historians and anthropologists. Above all, it is literature: intimate, grand, painful, proud, and finally renascent in the new awakening of the original peoples of Mesoamerica. "[A] magnum opus of Mesoamerican literature...achieve[s] nothing less than the human and divine."—Bomb

About the Author

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Miguel León-Portilla is the author of more than forty books, including Broken Spears through Aztec Thought and Culture. He lives in Mexico.

Earl Shorris (1936–2012) was the author of many works of both fiction and non-fiction including Latinos, Under the Fifth Sun, In the Language of Kings, and Riches for the Poor. He was awarded a National Humanities Medal by President Clinton for his founding of the Clemente Course in the Humanities®, Inc.