"In this testimonio, or oral history, Luis Leal reflects upon his early life in Mexico, his intellectual formation at Northwestern University and the University of Chicago, and his work and publications as a scholar and teacher at several institutions, including the University of Illinois and the University of California, Santa Barbara. Through questions, included in the narrative, Mario Garcia draws out the connections between literature and history that have been a primary focus of Leal's work.

He also elicits Leal's assessment of many of the prominent writers he has known and studied, including Mariano Azuela, William Faulkner, Octavio Paz, Carlos Fuentes, Juan Rulfo, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Jorge Luis Borges, Tomas Rivera, Rolando Hinojosa, Rudolfo Anaya, Elena Poniatowska, Sandra Cisneros, Richard Rodriguez, and Ana Castillo." "Mario T. Garcia is Professor of History and Chicano Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara."--BOOK JACKET.