Teaching Books

As books have served throughout time as a link between generations as well as

cultures, literature serves as an encompassment of all the endeavors of women and men,

giving its students a profound sense of cultural and historical identity as well as the

linguistic power to express each unique perspective.

In 1994 I decided to take advantage of one of the overseas program that the University

of Oregon had to offer. My Spanish teacher and mentor recommended that I visit his

hometown of Guanajuato, México, where he continues to spend every summer with his

family. He assured me that it was an excellent city to both absorb the culture of the

country while attending courses at the public university, "which is itself older than the

United States,” he added. Arriving there I found the cliff-surrounded city of cobble-

stoned streets every bit as enchanting and full of mystique and lore as Gabriel Garcia

Márquez had described his imaginary L...