Many events from Fuentes' personal life as a young man growing up in Mexico City at midcentury are no doubt reflected in La región más transparente. Some are known and a few can be deduced, but it is the broader panorama of the national intellectual, political and cultural scene which will now be our principal focus.

We have previously discussed the Alemán era in our introductory remarks and will not repeat these observations. Suffice it to say that the period represented a time of substantial change and growth which has seldom been duplicated in Mexican history. Carlos Fuentes' family belonged to the social and political elite. As a handsome, articulate, wealthy and extroverted organizer he was not simply a witness of the changing face of Mexico, but a participant in its inner circle. Two of his acquaintances, Pablo Palomino and Daniel...