Few ancient civilizations have caught the attention of the general public over the past 150 years, as have the Maya of Mexico and Central Mexico. Nineteenth century writing on the Maya progressed from the sober, well-considered Incidents of Travels books by John Lloyd Stephens to the more flamboyant works by Désiré Charnay to the outlandish unintended fiction of Augustus le Plongeon. The flights of fancy were always paralleled by the deadly serious (and at times seriously deadly) writings of scholars.
Only in the 20th century did professional novelists, exemplified by Oliver La Farge (cf. his collections of essays in The Door in the Wall), begin to produce fictionalized accounts of the ancient Maya that consciously drew inspiration from the accumulated body of scholarly knowledge. Most of these writings belonged to the "pulp fiction" or "science fiction" genres, and were not suitable for classroom use other than to hold up to ridicule. Recently however, Rob Swigart has written two "teaching novels" intended for class use: The Mirror, based on Neolithic life in Turkey, and Xibalbá Gate, a fast moving thriller about time travel back to the Maya world of the Classic Collapse at ca. AD 850.
Xibalbá Gate and Time Portals
Xibalbá Gate relates an almost believable story of an archaeology professor who creates a cyberspace time portal that allows him to observe and even participate in the collapse of a fictional Maya city. The action is fast paced, the characters well drawn and quite realistic. I had a difficult time putting the book down even after learning the outcome by simply flipping to the last page, where the professor's son utters, "The Lords are out. They are here now. All Xibalbá (the Maya Hell) is going to break loose." I was especially pleased by the author's insistence on sticking to the currently known facts of ancient Maya life, albeit in the rather dark and macabre version that scholars operate in today.
While the book is a great read, how would it work as a "teaching novel"? I am not clear what a teaching novel is, but I assume it is a book designed to supplement other texts and readings by bringing the essentially dull stuff of academia to life. Although I have never used the book in this fashion, I suspect it would add considerably to a student's appreciation for ancient Maya life and the unsettled times of the Late Classic. Three well-respected archaeologists provided ringing endorsements on the back cover, perhaps because they were happy to have an alternative to the movie "Apocalyto" to present their students.
