A series of ten essays span the five centuries of history, from Hernan Cortes's conquest of Mexico to San Francisco's AIDS epidemic.

Richard Rodriguez explores the conflicts of race, religion, and cultural identity for Mexican-Americans across the landscape of his beloved California—as well as the impact this history had on him.

Rodriguez positions Mexico and the United States as moral rivals—Mexico wearing the mask of tragedy and the United States, the mask of comedy. By the end, however, we come to recognize a historical irony: the United States is becoming a culture of tragedy, while Mexico is reveling in youthful optimism as the two nations are trading roles.