Review by Choice Review
Nothing excites the imagination of prehistorians more than the mere mention of the word Maya--a term that designates a group of people who in prehispanic times constructed cities across much of southern Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, and western Honduras. One aspect of Maya civilization that has long intrigued scholars is its highly developed writing system, manifest in carvings on temple walls and stone stelae. Decipherment of complex Maya hieroglyphics lagged well behind scholars' ability to read the Maya calendar and astronomical inscriptions. Drew presents an excellent account of how Mayanists have labored to construct both a chronology of Maya rulers and a history of their accomplishments as related through the inscriptions. The book is very readable, requires little previous knowledge, and has numerous line drawings and color and black-and-white photographs. Although well versed in the field, Drew is not a Mayanist; he appears to have relied on certain specialists for several epigraphic interpretations. Also following Drew's slant is Linda Schele and David Freidel's A Forest of Kings: The Untold Story of the Ancient Maya (CH, Apr'91). Offering a different perspective on several key points, and in this reviewer's opinion still the best book on Maya writing, is Joyce Marcus's Mesoamerican Writing Systems (CH, Jul'93). Both general and academic readers at any level. M. J. O'Brien; University of Missouri--Columbia
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
