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Journey to the Sun: Junipero Serra's Dream and the Founding of California
The fascinating narrative of the remarkable life of Junípero Serra, the intrepid priest who led Spain and the Catholic Church into California in the 1700s and became a key figure in the making of the American West.
The fascinating narrative of the remarkable life of Junípero Serra, the intrepid priest who led Spain and the Catholic Church into California in the 1700s and became a key figure in the making of the American West
In the year 1749, at the age of thirty-six, Junípero Serra left his position as a highly regarded priest in Spain for the turbulent and dangerous New World, knowing he would never return. The Spanish Crown and the Catholic Church both sought expansion in Mexico—the former in search of gold, the latter seeking souls—as well as entry into the mysterious land to the north called “California.”
Serra’s to spread Christianity in this unknown world by building churches wherever possible and by converting the native peoples to the Word of God. It was an undertaking that seemed impossible, given the vast distances, the challenges of the unforgiving landscape, and the danger posed by resistant native tribes. Such a journey would require bottomless physical stamina, indomitable psychic strength, and, above all, the deepest faith. Serra, a diminutive man with a stout heart, possessed all of these attributes, as well as an innate humility that allowed him to see the humanity in native people whom the West viewed as savages.
By his death at age seventy-one, Serra had traveled more than 14,000 miles on land and sea through the New World—much of that distance on a chronically infected and painful foot—baptized and confirmed 6,000 Indians, and founded nine of California’s twenty-one missions, with his followers establishing the rest. The names of these missions ring through the history of California— San Diego, San Jose, San Juan Capistrano, Santa Clara, and San Francisco—and served as the epicenters of the arrival of Western civilization, where millions more would follow, creating the California we know today.
An impoverished son, an inspired priest, and a potent political force, Serra was a complex man who stood at the historic crossroads between Native Americans, the often brutal Spanish soldiers, and the dictates of the Catholic Church, which still practiced punishment by flogging. In this uncertain, violent atmosphere, Serra sought to protect the indigenous peoples from abuse and to bring them the rituals and spiritual comfort of the Church even as the microbes carried by Europeans threatened their existence.
Beginning with Serra’s boyhood on the isolated island of Mallorca, venturing into the final days of the Spanish Inquisition, revealing the thriving grandeur of Mexico City, and finally journeying up the untouched California coast, Gregory Orfalea’s magisterial biography is a rich epic that cuts new ground in our understanding of the origins of the United States.
Combining biography, European history, knowledge of Catholic doctrine, and anthropology, Journey to the Sun brings original research and perspective to America’s creation story. Orfalea’s poetic and incisive recounting of Serra’s life shows how one man changed the future of California and in so doing affected the future of our nation.
The fascinating narrative of the remarkable life of Junípero Serra, the intrepid priest who led Spain and the Catholic Church into California in the 1700s and became a key figure in the making of the American West
In the year 1749, at the age of thirty-six, Junípero Serra left his position as a highly regarded priest in Spain for the turbulent and dangerous New World, knowing he would never return. The Spanish Crown and the Catholic Church both sought expansion in Mexico—the former in search of gold, the latter seeking souls—as well as entry into the mysterious land to the north called “California.”
Serra’s to spread Christianity in this unknown world by building churches wherever possible and by converting the native peoples to the Word of God. It was an undertaking that seemed impossible, given the vast distances, the challenges of the unforgiving landscape, and the danger posed by resistant native tribes. Such a journey would require bottomless physical stamina, indomitable psychic strength, and, above all, the deepest faith. Serra, a diminutive man with a stout heart, possessed all of these attributes, as well as an innate humility that allowed him to see the humanity in native people whom the West viewed as savages.
By his death at age seventy-one, Serra had traveled more than 14,000 miles on land and sea through the New World—much of that distance on a chronically infected and painful foot—baptized and confirmed 6,000 Indians, and founded nine of California’s twenty-one missions, with his followers establishing the rest. The names of these missions ring through the history of California— San Diego, San Jose, San Juan Capistrano, Santa Clara, and San Francisco—and served as the epicenters of the arrival of Western civilization, where millions more would follow, creating the California we know today.
An impoverished son, an inspired priest, and a potent political force, Serra was a complex man who stood at the historic crossroads between Native Americans, the often brutal Spanish soldiers, and the dictates of the Catholic Church, which still practiced punishment by flogging. In this uncertain, violent atmosphere, Serra sought to protect the indigenous peoples from abuse and to bring them the rituals and spiritual comfort of the Church even as the microbes carried by Europeans threatened their existence.
Beginning with Serra’s boyhood on the isolated island of Mallorca, venturing into the final days of the Spanish Inquisition, revealing the thriving grandeur of Mexico City, and finally journeying up the untouched California coast, Gregory Orfalea’s magisterial biography is a rich epic that cuts new ground in our understanding of the origins of the United States.
Combining biography, European history, knowledge of Catholic doctrine, and anthropology, Journey to the Sun brings original research and perspective to America’s creation story. Orfalea’s poetic and incisive recounting of Serra’s life shows how one man changed the future of California and in so doing affected the future of our nation.
465 pages, Hardcover
First published November 5, 2013
13 people are currently reading
101 people want to read
About the author
Gregory Orfalea
15 books4 followersGregory Orfalea was born and raised in Los Angeles. He is the author of ten books, including Journey to the Sun: Junipero Serra’s Dream and the Founding of California, published in January 2014 by Scribner.
With degrees from Georgetown University and the University of Alaska, Orfalea has published ten books, including a history of his father’s unit in World War II, Messengers of the Lost Battalion, and Angeleno Days, a memoir of growing up in Los Angeles, which won the Arab American Book Award and was a finalist for the PEN USA Prize in Creative Nonfiction. He is also the author of a collection of short stories, The Man Who Guarded the Bomb, as well as the seminal study, The Arab Americans: A History.
Orfalea directed a writing program at the Claremont Colleges and has taught at several universities, including his alma mater, Georgetown University and California Lutheran University. For the past six years (2010-2015) Orfalea has been writer-in-residence at Westmont College in Santa Barbara and director of its Creators of California speakers series.
In 2013, Orfalea visited Turkey and Armenia with the University of Iowa International Writers Program and the US State Department.
Orfalea and his wife have three sons. He divides his time between Santa Barbara and Washington, DC.
With degrees from Georgetown University and the University of Alaska, Orfalea has published ten books, including a history of his father’s unit in World War II, Messengers of the Lost Battalion, and Angeleno Days, a memoir of growing up in Los Angeles, which won the Arab American Book Award and was a finalist for the PEN USA Prize in Creative Nonfiction. He is also the author of a collection of short stories, The Man Who Guarded the Bomb, as well as the seminal study, The Arab Americans: A History.
Orfalea directed a writing program at the Claremont Colleges and has taught at several universities, including his alma mater, Georgetown University and California Lutheran University. For the past six years (2010-2015) Orfalea has been writer-in-residence at Westmont College in Santa Barbara and director of its Creators of California speakers series.
In 2013, Orfalea visited Turkey and Armenia with the University of Iowa International Writers Program and the US State Department.
Orfalea and his wife have three sons. He divides his time between Santa Barbara and Washington, DC.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
March 5, 2014
Every kid who grows up in the Bay Area has probably seen the statue of Junipero Serra along 280, as well as had the assignment of building a mission of one's choice out of sugar cubes. (My sister and I joked about starting a black market site when her kids hit the age: "I'll trade you a Mission Santa Barbara for a San Juan Capistrano.") But that was the extent of my knowledge.
Now that I live in WA State, when I heard about this book, I was hit with a wave of nostalgia and quickly put it on my to-read list. I'm glad I did! Author Gregory Orfolea has written a lyrical, sympathetic, and fascinating portrait of a brave and compassionate visionary who lived in exciting times. (The book reminded me several times of another favorite, Willa Cather's DEATH COMES FOR THE ARCHBISHOP.)
Can I say how glad I am that we're past the stage we were in when I was in grad school, where Colonialists = Vicious Murderers Who Did Everything Wrong and Natives = Utopian Residents in a State of Nature? Orfolea did an even-handed job representing the cultural factors at play on each side.
Having only seen Mission San Jose in Fremont, Serra's story made me want to schedule a road trip this summer to check out some of the other Serra-founded ones within reach, not to mention putting Mexico City on the bucket list.
Who knew that he only began his "Alta California" work when he was 56? (Take that, early retirement!)That he suffered for the rest of his life from a spider bite received when he landed in Veracruz, Mexico, upon reaching the New World? That male California Indians went around buck naked, and only added breechcloths after encounters with the Spanish? That explorer DeAnza was the one who noticed and marked "El Palo Alto," which I drove past every stinking day for years?
Lots of goodies in here. If you like CA history, the Spanish Conquest, and sympathetic Catholic history, give this book a try.
Now that I live in WA State, when I heard about this book, I was hit with a wave of nostalgia and quickly put it on my to-read list. I'm glad I did! Author Gregory Orfolea has written a lyrical, sympathetic, and fascinating portrait of a brave and compassionate visionary who lived in exciting times. (The book reminded me several times of another favorite, Willa Cather's DEATH COMES FOR THE ARCHBISHOP.)
Can I say how glad I am that we're past the stage we were in when I was in grad school, where Colonialists = Vicious Murderers Who Did Everything Wrong and Natives = Utopian Residents in a State of Nature? Orfolea did an even-handed job representing the cultural factors at play on each side.
Having only seen Mission San Jose in Fremont, Serra's story made me want to schedule a road trip this summer to check out some of the other Serra-founded ones within reach, not to mention putting Mexico City on the bucket list.
Who knew that he only began his "Alta California" work when he was 56? (Take that, early retirement!)That he suffered for the rest of his life from a spider bite received when he landed in Veracruz, Mexico, upon reaching the New World? That male California Indians went around buck naked, and only added breechcloths after encounters with the Spanish? That explorer DeAnza was the one who noticed and marked "El Palo Alto," which I drove past every stinking day for years?
Lots of goodies in here. If you like CA history, the Spanish Conquest, and sympathetic Catholic history, give this book a try.
July 18, 2014
Father of California. Curious, but somewhat intimidated by 400 pages of small type, I selected this book to read and am glad I did. Like many others living east of the Rockies I'd never heard of Father Junipero Serra. What I found was a captivating story about an intrepid Franciscan cleric, a slight built man with a deep basso profundo voice who possessed the instinct and zeal to instigate nine missions along the length of El Camino Real. Prominent cities of today grew from those missions: San Diego, San Luis Obispo, Monterey, San Francisco, and later, after his death, Santa Barbara, San Jose, Santa Cruz and others. Establishing these missions was no easy accomplishment. It involved cajoling Spanish authorities in Mexico City, clashing verbally with military officers and "soft conversion" of Indians to the faith. He lived a seemingly charmed life (surviving six close brushes with death), was a hands-on man who saw the positive in tough situations and rose above adversity. He's truly a California icon and rightly so.
December 24, 2015
Very fine work! Written in biographical fashion Orfela presents a candid account of the newest saint! Even-handed and responsive to the criticisms Serra has received...even raising Serra's own voice to questions about the mistreatment of Native Californians.
The politically-correct won't like this book because it will undermine their ideology. Nor will well-intended but ideologically-rigid people . On the other hand thoughtful people will be appreciative.
The politically-correct won't like this book because it will undermine their ideology. Nor will well-intended but ideologically-rigid people . On the other hand thoughtful people will be appreciative.
April 5, 2022
Very well written and very well researched biography. I think the author treats Serra’s legacy fairly and with tact. Lovers of history will enjoy this account of Junipero Serra’s life and history of early colonial California.
January 1, 2016
Everyone who has lived in the San Francisco Bay Area has heard the name Junipero Serra, since one of the two freeways that connect San Francisco to San Jose is named after the man, and next to the freeway there is a huge concrete statue of Serra kneeling. Before reading this book I knew nothing about the man save that he was a missionary converting Indians to Christianity. Junipero Serra (1713-1784) was in fact a Franciscan monk who was a professor of philosophy and theology in Spain before he heard the call at age 36 and sailed to Mexico. Serra served as a priest in missions in the Sierra Gorda mountains of central Mexico and helped build new ones; he also served in Oaxaca. In 1769 Serra went as the head priest of the Portolá expedition, which explored Alta California (modern State of California) and opened it to Spanish colonization. The Franciscans founded one mission in Baja California and 21 missions in Alta California, 9 of them founded by Serra personally. Towns such as San Diego and San Francisco grew around these missions and concomitantly founded presidios (military forts).
In the missions, the Indians grew crops and raised cattle in a state of virtual slavery; runaways and shirkers were whipped, a practice Serra approved of personally, in line with the practices of his era. On the East Coast, the Anglo-Americans wanted land and pushed the Indians aside; in California, the Spanish were far outnumbered by the natives, so there was less pressure on land, but life was still a disaster for the Indians because of germs, germs and germs. Syphilis, measles, typhus and other diseases killed them; gonorrhea sterilized women without killing them; neither the padres nor the native shamans knew how to treat these diseases. From 1783 to 1831, the death rate at Mission San Carlos Borromeo was 79 deaths per thousand people. The Coast Miwok went from 1500 to 2000 people in 1770 to 300 in 1848 to 60 in 1880 (this book gives an unbelievably high number for the precontact population of the tribe); in 2007, Bishop Francis Quinn of Sacramento apologized to the Miwoks on behalf of the Roman Catholic Church for mistreating their ancestors and eradicating their culture.
As I was reading the book, I had the feeling that I was reading about Bishop Diego de Landa of Yucatan, who lived almost 200 years before Junipero Serra, though Serra was more tolerant of native religious practices than de Landa, and not about an older contemporary of Thomas Jefferson and Thomas Paine. During a sermon Serra could illustrate the suffering of Jesus by beating himself with a chain or thumping his chest with a stone; a parishioner of his imitated him and beat himself to death, probably of a heart attack. No wonder Serra approved of Indian malfeasants being whipped for their own spiritual good. This kind of sadomasochistic spirituality was as utterly alien to the Indians as it is to the modern age.
In the missions, the Indians grew crops and raised cattle in a state of virtual slavery; runaways and shirkers were whipped, a practice Serra approved of personally, in line with the practices of his era. On the East Coast, the Anglo-Americans wanted land and pushed the Indians aside; in California, the Spanish were far outnumbered by the natives, so there was less pressure on land, but life was still a disaster for the Indians because of germs, germs and germs. Syphilis, measles, typhus and other diseases killed them; gonorrhea sterilized women without killing them; neither the padres nor the native shamans knew how to treat these diseases. From 1783 to 1831, the death rate at Mission San Carlos Borromeo was 79 deaths per thousand people. The Coast Miwok went from 1500 to 2000 people in 1770 to 300 in 1848 to 60 in 1880 (this book gives an unbelievably high number for the precontact population of the tribe); in 2007, Bishop Francis Quinn of Sacramento apologized to the Miwoks on behalf of the Roman Catholic Church for mistreating their ancestors and eradicating their culture.
As I was reading the book, I had the feeling that I was reading about Bishop Diego de Landa of Yucatan, who lived almost 200 years before Junipero Serra, though Serra was more tolerant of native religious practices than de Landa, and not about an older contemporary of Thomas Jefferson and Thomas Paine. During a sermon Serra could illustrate the suffering of Jesus by beating himself with a chain or thumping his chest with a stone; a parishioner of his imitated him and beat himself to death, probably of a heart attack. No wonder Serra approved of Indian malfeasants being whipped for their own spiritual good. This kind of sadomasochistic spirituality was as utterly alien to the Indians as it is to the modern age.
March 6, 2017
There have been numerous (hundreds!) books written of Junipero Serra and the founding of California. Nonetheless, Gregory Orfalea, takes familiar material and weaves a compelling, even magisterial, story. History professionals and novices alike will enjoy this well-told story.
June 4, 2020
Loved this wonderful tale of Juniporo Serra, as he was an incredible man who lived by faith, and had a gift to spread it to the souls of the new world. But, there was a few things thatbecame very ignoring to me while I read. I loathed when the author would write things like - I suppose this is how they did it back then, and all th extra details like how they farmed and how they went to church back then. Sure, it was great reseach done my the author, but I just wanted to focus on Juniporo and his life, hence I felt this story could have been halved. Sure, I love history, got a history degree. But, we don’t need to know every single little detail about the time Serra lived in. Just focus on what inspired him to become the great franciscan missionary he became.
August 2, 2017
I admit I didn't finish. I was compelled to stop when it was clear that the author holds a rather strong anti-Catholic bias as evidenced in his lack of charity in descriptions of events and people; the clergy specifically. Too bad, really, because I was enjoying the history of Serra's background and formation.
June 24, 2021
An exciting, educational read about American territories were settled by religious leaders and their congregations. They shaped a state that is now larger than the economies of individual countries and is a bellwether for our nation. The author bases his book on solid research. He brings it to life in presentations and discussions about his terrific book.
April 2, 2014
Journey to the Sun is a comprehensive and personal look at the life of Junipero Serra, the founder of California's first Spanish missions, starting from his boyhood in Mallorca where he eventually became a priest and university professor through his decision to leave behind his entire family and become a missionary in New Spain. Orfalea provides a highly detailed and compelling account of Serra's life, and that of those closest to him, and is clearly extremely knowledgeable about the character and history of the man. I was especially impressed at the breadth of resources that he brought to bear on the subject, whether the biographies of Serra's fellow Franciscan missionaries or more contemporary historians.
Orfalea obviously has great affection for Serra and those who came with him to found the missions of Alta California and convert the indigenous Indian population to their brand of Catholicism, and while he does not overlook the cruelty these "gentiles" experienced, he does lay the lion's share of the blame at the feet of the Spanish soldiers and military leaders who accompanied the friars, and tries to explain away the priests' own harsh treatment of Indians as relics of their cultural baggage. This may or may not be the case, and I wish that Orfalea had dealt with it more directly and earlier in the book (much of the discussion doesn't come until deep into the telling of the missions' founding, which itself is deep into the book, as Serra was 56 years old before ever setting foot in present day California).
My other major criticism of Orfalea is one of style - he often imagines for readers the actions Serra may have done or thoughts or emotions he may have experienced at certain times without much (or any) evidence to support his speculation. I believe that these were not simply figments of his imagination, but rather educated guesses given the author's deep understanding of Serra, the purpose to which he'd dedicated his life's work, and the time in which he lived. However, it added a fictional touch to the book that seemed out of tune with its other parts that were thoroughly researched and well sourced. While some supposition into Serra's psychology and actions are likely inevitable, there was too much of it for my taste.
These criticism, however, are not meant to devalue the great achievement I believe this book to be. It is a modern telling of Serra's story, warts and all, that does much to contextualize the history both in terms of what events were happening contemporaneously, or in the immediate aftermath, or on the imprint left by Serra on California up to the present day.
One final comment: the book is quite dense and it took me an especially long time to finish it. I am not a fast reader, I like to take my time with a book, and nonfiction is always slower than fiction to read, but this one was an extreme example for me. Part of it was that I kept falling asleep while reading it - again, not a criticism and not an uncommon occurrence for me at all. But this book seemed to take my normal tendencies to a higher level. I enjoyed the book very much, but it was more of a labor to read it than normal.
Orfalea obviously has great affection for Serra and those who came with him to found the missions of Alta California and convert the indigenous Indian population to their brand of Catholicism, and while he does not overlook the cruelty these "gentiles" experienced, he does lay the lion's share of the blame at the feet of the Spanish soldiers and military leaders who accompanied the friars, and tries to explain away the priests' own harsh treatment of Indians as relics of their cultural baggage. This may or may not be the case, and I wish that Orfalea had dealt with it more directly and earlier in the book (much of the discussion doesn't come until deep into the telling of the missions' founding, which itself is deep into the book, as Serra was 56 years old before ever setting foot in present day California).
My other major criticism of Orfalea is one of style - he often imagines for readers the actions Serra may have done or thoughts or emotions he may have experienced at certain times without much (or any) evidence to support his speculation. I believe that these were not simply figments of his imagination, but rather educated guesses given the author's deep understanding of Serra, the purpose to which he'd dedicated his life's work, and the time in which he lived. However, it added a fictional touch to the book that seemed out of tune with its other parts that were thoroughly researched and well sourced. While some supposition into Serra's psychology and actions are likely inevitable, there was too much of it for my taste.
These criticism, however, are not meant to devalue the great achievement I believe this book to be. It is a modern telling of Serra's story, warts and all, that does much to contextualize the history both in terms of what events were happening contemporaneously, or in the immediate aftermath, or on the imprint left by Serra on California up to the present day.
One final comment: the book is quite dense and it took me an especially long time to finish it. I am not a fast reader, I like to take my time with a book, and nonfiction is always slower than fiction to read, but this one was an extreme example for me. Part of it was that I kept falling asleep while reading it - again, not a criticism and not an uncommon occurrence for me at all. But this book seemed to take my normal tendencies to a higher level. I enjoyed the book very much, but it was more of a labor to read it than normal.
October 31, 2015
As my pile of "to read" books keeps every growing, I decided I really needed to tackle some of these tomes with the holiday season approaching (and therefore more sales and more book buying binges). With my great ability to collect books, I needed to find a way to clear out some of the piles and I decided to try out one of the Goodreads Seasonal Challenges.
As I'm not really interested in "winning" but more "trying to weed out my ever growing piles" I'm not being super hardcore about it, but trying to use the challenge as a guide. One of the challenges was to read a book with the sun or the moon on the cover. This book doesn't quite have that (it's more of a metaphor), but good enough for me!
ANYWAY. With the canonization of Serra in September of 2015, I thought this would also be a fairly topical read. It's a story of his life, from his humble origins as the son of farmers who never went to school, his entrance into the church, plus his early years. The largest chunk of the book looks at his journey to what would become the United States, although he first landed in Mexico. Chapters are given to the various missions he founded (many of which today exist in the names of the cities people know: San Diego, San Francisco, etc.).
The book looks at his legacy: the Native Americans he baptized, the legacy of the missions (many of which became the cities we know today), etc. Some of it was quite interesting: the history of California pre-European contact, his relationship with the Native Californians, etc.
However, I didn't find the book at all readable like others did. I am not extremely familiar with the Catholic Church, so I couldn't say if it's very anti-Catholic or not. But I somewhat agree with some other reviews: it's really a history of California but with Serra shoe-horned into it. I personally would have preferred to read that story as Serra himself is either not particularly interesting, impossible to know based on the source material available or the author just didn't do a very good job with his subject.
Still, I found it to be an interesting read and I'm using it for my own list for the Goodreads Challenge. :P Californians, people interested in Serra, California's history, etc. might find it interesting but I'd borrow from the library.
As I'm not really interested in "winning" but more "trying to weed out my ever growing piles" I'm not being super hardcore about it, but trying to use the challenge as a guide. One of the challenges was to read a book with the sun or the moon on the cover. This book doesn't quite have that (it's more of a metaphor), but good enough for me!
ANYWAY. With the canonization of Serra in September of 2015, I thought this would also be a fairly topical read. It's a story of his life, from his humble origins as the son of farmers who never went to school, his entrance into the church, plus his early years. The largest chunk of the book looks at his journey to what would become the United States, although he first landed in Mexico. Chapters are given to the various missions he founded (many of which today exist in the names of the cities people know: San Diego, San Francisco, etc.).
The book looks at his legacy: the Native Americans he baptized, the legacy of the missions (many of which became the cities we know today), etc. Some of it was quite interesting: the history of California pre-European contact, his relationship with the Native Californians, etc.
However, I didn't find the book at all readable like others did. I am not extremely familiar with the Catholic Church, so I couldn't say if it's very anti-Catholic or not. But I somewhat agree with some other reviews: it's really a history of California but with Serra shoe-horned into it. I personally would have preferred to read that story as Serra himself is either not particularly interesting, impossible to know based on the source material available or the author just didn't do a very good job with his subject.
Still, I found it to be an interesting read and I'm using it for my own list for the Goodreads Challenge. :P Californians, people interested in Serra, California's history, etc. might find it interesting but I'd borrow from the library.
March 4, 2017
I appreciate how the author tried to fill in some blanks by speculating on Serra's thoughts and feelings at certain times in the story. It took a little getting used to, but it was helpful to better understand Serra from the perspective of his contemporaries. It's so easy to bring our knowledge of the past 250 years into this kind of story, but the author did a good job putting me in the situation in New Spain many years ago. The relationship between the Church, the state and missionaries seems to be driven as much by individual personalities as any policies. Definitely enlightening and thought-provoking.
Favorite nugget is that the natives in Mexico incorporated lots of music into the mass. It's even called the "nahuaization of Christianity."
Favorite nugget is that the natives in Mexico incorporated lots of music into the mass. It's even called the "nahuaization of Christianity."
April 28, 2016
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. I appreciated the author's use of letters and journals along with recorded history to create an interesting story about Serra's life. It was apparent when author made conjectures or the few times he gave an opinion. Author also included relevant information such as how the rest of our continent was being "evangelized" and broader information about how the native peoples lived and interacted. I did read a few books while still completing this one because it is so much information to assimilate. If interested in California history, and Baja, it's with the time.
July 4, 2014
4 stars for exhaustive research. Serra, his world, passion, the politics & cultures come alive. This may be too detailed for some readers, it is an academic work. In bringing Serra to life, the author uses a lot of "was Serra [thinking this] as he was [doing that]?" Too much speculation. Yet the detail of Serra's many miles, from Mallorca to Mexico, then up & down (& up & down...) the California coast is described in amazing detail. Each tribe or band of natives is given their due in their unique responses to the invaders; each mission's creation is an event. A fascinating read.
July 28, 2014
Junipero Serra has always been a favorite person of mine since we visited the California missions when I was a young girl.
This book was fascinating.
I had already read about a lot of the early Mexican history so this book added the personalities.
I loved reading about Junipero's early life in Spain, and how he ultimately came to California.
I would have loved to hear the music coming from the missions.
This book was fascinating.
I had already read about a lot of the early Mexican history so this book added the personalities.
I loved reading about Junipero's early life in Spain, and how he ultimately came to California.
I would have loved to hear the music coming from the missions.
May 30, 2015
This book was decent. The topic is fascinating, but I was often confused by the author's writing style, which could be dizzying at times. I appreciate a straightforward, less florid approach to history writing. I also can't decide if he is objective enough about some of the controversy surrounding Serra and the Franciscan mission movement. Mostly, yes, I feel he is, but I would have appreciated a little more scrutiny.
December 9, 2015
A very readable biography that draws on a solid foundation of primary sources. A little too touchy-feely for my taste, though. Too many flights of fancy imagining conversations or Serra's internal dialogue that tried to make him fit modern sensibilities.
November 17, 2023
"Though it has been a subject of much controversy over the past century, it is now a prevailing thery that Columbus and the early conquistadors actually brought syphilis to Europe from the Caribbean, after which it broke out in microbial riots all over the continent around 1560." (298)
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews