The publication of this book finally places the exquisitely carved but little known monuments of Caracol with those of Quirigua, Copan, and Tikal. New breakthroughs in the decipherment of Maya text have enabled the graceful hieroglyphic inscriptions to be translated. University Museum Monograph, 45

Alfonso Cruz Espinosa's life was not an easy one but one supported by the rich cultural values of his Mexican ancestry. 'Fonso was born into the loving arms of his parents in 1927, in El Pueblo de Nuestra Senora, La Reina de Los Cielos y Los Angeles - Los Angeles, California - where his parents had settled after immigrating from Mexico. Following their own American dream, he and his family migrated from Los Angeles to the San Joaquin Valley of California. There they moved from labor camp to labor camp, following the crops and opportunities for work. Alfonso and his family faced the hardships many Depression-era workers encountered, multiplied by the fact that discrimination against non-white workers was blatant and widespread. Faced with leaving school at an early age to help support his family, Alfonso found it more and more difficult to work alongside his father in the sulfur-laden agricultural fields of the "Great Valley." Not only would he face a crisis that would mean the end to all his dreams, he would be in a battle for his very survival. A tale lovingly told by Espinosa's daughter, El Caracol is a beautiful testament to the strength and tenacity of the human spirit. A story of both tragedy and triumph, Alfonso's story is that of an everyday hero, simply standing up to be heard in the world. Full of the rich details of a loving family in harsh times, the result is both as simple, and as complex, as the spiral shell which shares its name."

Para la pequeña Marina, poder ver de cerca el mundo marino era un sueño que se le va a cumplir, a pesar de las malvadas intenciones de un ser lleno de crueldad, que odia todo lo bueno. Gracias al heroísmo de Luz, una de las hijas del Rey de los Mares, Marina es rescatada en un final emocionante, lleno de sorpresas y moralejas que hacen de esta historia un tesoro educativo.

Settlement archaeology in the Maya area has focused much of its attention on the polar extremes of the settlement continuum. As a result of this urban/rural bias, a whole range of complex rural settlements remain under-explored. The chapters in this volume highlight the variable quality of these "middle level settlements".