Lands of Promise and Despair: Chronicles of Early California, 1535-1846 (California Legacy Book)

Rating:
Summary: Good introduction to early California history
Review: This book covers the era when California (also known as Alta California) was a possession of Spain and Mexico. It is essentially a collection of first hand accounts from various people of this era.

Since most, if not all, of these accounts were originally in Spanish, they require translation, and that is the book's one weakness: almost all the accounts read like they were written by the same person; some of the character of the individual writers is lost.

Nonetheless, this is a good book, both readable and fast-moving. It is interesting that while we know a lot about the Revolutionary era and the founding of the United States, the topics in this book - which take place on the same continent at around the same time - are almost unknown. That, in itself, makes this book a good read.

Rating:
Summary: Good introduction to early California history
Review: This book covers the era when California (also known as Alta California) was a possession of Spain and Mexico. It is essentially a collection of first hand accounts from various people of this era.

Since most, if not all, of these accounts were originally in Spanish, they require translation, and that is the book's one weakness: almost all the accounts read like they were written by the same person; some of the character of the individual writers is lost.

Nonetheless, this is a good book, both readable and fast-moving. It is interesting that while we know a lot about the Revolutionary era and the founding of the United States, the topics in this book - which take place on the same continent at around the same time - are almost unknown. That, in itself, makes this book a good read.