I enjoyed how the author talked about Mexico City neighborhoods and his grief for his wife. I was less compelled by his lengthy reporting on the violence of Mexico's drug trade and the corruption of the country's government. I especially disliked how frequently he described the physical appearance of young women, which make him sound like a creeper. Recommended for any reader with an interest in Mexico. ( )

I love his use of Spanish in the English. Very interesting how he maintains Mexico is safe while he describes routine violent crimes, but I see there really are two Mexicos now. ( )

Moving from the deeply personal, to the deeply political. I couldn't predict where this was going, and that made me love it. ( )

Goldman is an author and journalist who divides his time between NYC and Mexico City (District Federal or DF for short). The book is a chronicle or memoir of his life in the DF. His late wife was a Mexican national and writer, and he is still mourning and exploring her loss. The interior circuit refers to the highway loop around the DF. Driving is an immense challenge in the city, and he takes driving lessons in order to master the chaotic traffic. He takes a city map guide and randomly opens it and places his finger on a map; he the drives to that location. The book is very atmospheric and gives you insight as to what it is like to live there. Interestingly, he never mentions the air pollution, which our media seem to emphasize. He does note that contrary to popular belief in the United States, the DF itself is not very dangerous and has a lower crime rate than many US major cities. Outside the DF it is a different matter. As a journalist, he investigates a mass kidnapping from a nightclub, and in the process you learn a lot more about Mexican politics than you can from US media. In short, if want to know more about Mexico itself, this book will serve you well. It is well written, but the peppering of names of Mexican authors activists, politicians and narcos presumes a background knowledge on the readers part that necessitated a lot of googling on my part. Of course that leads to even more enrichment. ( )