Ask a Mexican!

From award-winning columnist and favorite talking head Gustavo Arellano, comes this explosive, irreverent, smart, and hilarious Los Angeles Times bestseller.

Ask a Mexican! is a collection of questions and answers from Gustavo Arellano that explore the clichés of lowriders, busboys, and housekeepers; drunks and scoundrels; heroes and celebrities; and most important, millions upon millions of law-abiding, patriotic American citizens and their illegal-immigrant cousins who represent some $600 billion in economic power.

At a strong eighteen percent of the U.S. population, Latinos have become America's largest minority--and Mexicans make up a large part of that number. Gustavo confronts the bogeymen of racism, xenophobia, and ignorance prompted by such demographic changes through answering questions put to him by readers of his Ask a Mexican! column in California's OC Weekly. He challenges readers to find a more entertaining way to understand Mexican culture that doesn't involve a taco-and-enchilada combo.

From lighter topics like Latin pop and great Mexican food to more serious issues like immigration and race relations, Ask a Mexican! ​runs the gamut. Why do Mexicans call white people gringos? Are all Mexicans Catholic? What's the best tequila? Gustavo answers a wide range of legitimate and illegitimate questions, in the hopes of making a few readers angry, making most of us laugh, sparking a greater dialogue, and enhancing cross-cultural understanding.

Author: Gustavo Arellano
Publisher: Scribner Book Company
Published: 04/01/2008
Pages: 272
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.55lbs
Size: 8.38h x 5.56w x 0.66d
ISBN13: 9781416540038
ISBN10: 1416540032
BISAC Categories:
- Humor | Form | Essays
- Social Science | Ethnic Studies | American | Hispanic American Studies

About the Author
Gustavo Arellano's ¡Ask a Mexican! column has a circulation of more than two million in thirty-eight markets (and counting). He has received the President's Award from the Los Angeles Press Club, an Impact Award from the National Hispanic Media Coalition, and a 2008 Latino Spirit Award from the California State legislature. Arellano has appeared on the Today show, Nightline, NPR's Talk of the Nation, and The Colbert Report.