Joe Kitchen’s Reviews > Forget the Alamo: The Rise and Fall of an American Myth > Status Update

The battle over the history of the Alamo is actually as interesting as the battle!

All the key players are in place. Battle is inevitable. The Alamo defenders should have retreated. Was it bravado or just sheer stupidity that caused them to stay in SA?

"Bitching about the Mexican government..."? Language not often seen in a professionally written book.

Interesting chapter about Santa Anna. Are the authors trying to cast him as a good guy? As President, he goes on vacation, allows his VP to create chaos, then comes back, dissolves Congress, and enacts reforms that cause many states to seek independence.

While reading this book, I am also reading about some of the people and conflicts mentioned. There is rich history and nuances that the authors seem to be glossing over to support their thesis. They also can't resist their urge to provide their opinions of some people.

Slavery was definitely the issue in settling Texas after its independence. SAF is introduced.

Over-simplification of the Gutiérrez-Magee raid. While Monroe's agent (Shaler) gave some support to the rebels, it was mostly food and supplies. Shaler was under direction to go to Mexico City to negotiate and felt this was in-road. Gutiérrez set up a constitution that gave him absolute power, so he was replaced with Toledo, who immediately fell to loyalists.