Customer Reviews

The Alamo

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First of all, it should be clarified that the book being discussed here is Frank Thompson's THE ALAMO, Salamander Press, UK. It is NOT the novelization of the film ,nor is it the movie tie-in "Making Of..." book.

That being said, THE ALAMO is, in a word, the ultimate Alamo picture book. With over 150 FULL COLOR illustrations, accompanied by captions in Mr. Thompson's own inimitable style, the large, coffee table-sized book will keep you mesmerized as Frank digs into and then explains the minutiae behind that beloved old pile of limestone and mud.

The accompanying text is a straight-forward telling of the Alamo story utilizing the latest in Alamo research, while relying upon Mr. Thompson own keen insight on the subject matter.

From the Alamo's place in history, its changing perceptions throughout the years, through its interpretation in film, the printed word and collectibles, this book will have you returning for repeated 'look-sees' and for the sheer joy of it.

It do!

This book is an excellent source for information on the siege of the Alamo as well as its story through the last few centuries. Frank Thompson has put together a beautifully organized book together for Alamo fans everywhere. It is an easy read, but still very good. It deals with the people involved(both Texans and Mexicans), the siege of the Alamo, the massacre at Goliad, the battle of San Jacinto, and then the history of the Alamo up to now. There is an excellent collection of photos in the book with good captions under them rather than just having simple sentences. Thompson has an excellent writing style that makes his books that much easier to read. Also check out his books The Alamo: A Cultural History and if you can find it Alamo Movies. Excellent book for those trying to learn more about the famous mission and also for Alamo buffs everywhere.

one word...Alamo. This is definetly my favorite books ever. Not only does it have tie ins from the best movie but it also adds a little bit of magic by Mr. Frank Thompson. When reading this book, youll acually feel like your watching the movie and that your in the battle of the alamo. If u like the movie, who could not, then get this book right away.

From the perspective of the common man, I can say that I know more about the historical Alamo than ever.

This book offers a broad review of the Alamo and it's place in our history as well as it's impact on our culture. I was very impressed with this book. I picked it up only to paw through and look at the numerous pictures and movie stills and found it to be thoroughly informative and entertaining.

Mr. Thompson may offer some information that distorts or contradicts what you thought you knew about the Alamo, but it's worth the exposure to his insights and opinions.

This book is NOT RELATED AT ALL to the John Lee Hancock's movie, altough Frank Thompson was involved in that film and other books about the movie.

Thanks to Ned Huthmatcher for his review and comments.

This book is about the real history and also has some interesting facts about the Alamo in our culture. I like it, is concise and I recommend it for anyone looking for an good introduction to the Alamo. 128 pages and many color pictures, almost like the type DK books publish, but well formatted for adults.

Lavishly illustrated, this is a quality publication. An introduction to the story of the Alamo for the general reader who knows little or nothing about it already, it spreads its net wide to include the cinema; how commerce has used the story and the Alamo Museum. If you are looking for a Christmas or birthday gift then this could well be for you. Recommended.

The Alamo is an illustrated history of the fort that became a symbol of courage and sacrifice for freedom. Though the Alamo fell in battle to the Mexican army forces of General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, it ultimately bought time for the Texas Army under Sam Houston to consolidate forces, and two months later "Remember the Alamo!" was the rallying cry for Santa Anna's rout at the Battle of San Jacinto. The Alamo explores the site of Alamo itself, as well as what history has to say about the men and women who lived there, then reflects upon the Alamo as it is immortalized in popular culture to this day. Illustrated in full color throughout with photographs and artworks, and thoroughly researched with the latest known historical detail, The Alamo is a welcome contribution to both private and library American history shelves.

Frank Thompson has released another excellent Alamo book. The Alamo is the novelization of the script by Leslie Boneham and John Lee Hancock. If you enjoyed the movie or are just looking to find out more information about Texas in the 1830's, this is the book for you. The book tells the story of the months leading up to the Texas Revolution, the siege and battle of the Alamo, followed by the Runaway Scrape and the battle of San Jacinto. Thompson uses the script very well, and at the same time adds his own little pieces about the characters and background settings of the time. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend the movie as well as both books by Mr. Thompson and the soundtrack by Carter Burwell. For an excellent read that places you directly in the Alamo, check out this novel!

"One wife can be all things to a man," spoke Marcian, the Roman centurion-turned-Christian (played by Jeff Chandler) in the 1955 film, "Sign of the Pagan." Ironically, he said it to perhaps the foremost polygamous pagan of them all, Attila the Hun (portrayed by Jack Palance). Attila's calm but disarming response carried a paradoxical logic: "How can a man know which wife is best, unless he can choose from among many?"

The underlying concept corresponds to the content of this fascinating book by Frank Thompson: it places before us a powder-horn of plenty, from which pour details and keen observations that enable us to feast on a banquet of enlightening historical tidbids and informational delicacies.

The second part of Chapter 1 is very fittingly sub-titled, "The Shifting Face of the Alamo - a Visual Essay." A real value of this section is that it encapsulates the evolution of the visual depictions of the Alamo throughout the decades. Though relatively short, the section offers a chronological series of illustrations of the shrine. Among them is the historic 1849 daguerreotype, the first known photographic image made in Texas and the only known such photo of the Alamo without its now-defining campanulate roof, added by the U.S. Army not long after that daguerreotype was made. One of the book's more illuminating gems is that the author informs us of artist and Alamo historian Craig Covner's conjectural but very plausible theory, about which particular European structure might have influenced the design and prompted the shape of the Alamo's operatively now world-recognized façade.

The book would appeal to both the scholar and the general audience, for there's much in it that would interest both. It's infinitely more readable and enjoyable than the traditional dry academic dissertation, while offering us glimpses into the past and even insights into historical events and the people who took part in them. Without claiming clairvoyance, one could say that the most avid fan of a book like this would be the intelligent and astute reader who has any interest in the Alamo and its sub-categories. What's more, it could easily prompt and intensify a regard for the subject from others whose interest might be only peripheral to begin with.

By their own procedural history, the actions of some are entirely predictable. "The quintessential professor straightening out the errant student" is a perceptive remark, laden with insight, by historian Bill Groneman, which will exemplify the kind of reaction and objections from some academics to Thompson's volume. We can easily foresee academic hard-liners trying to trivialize this book because it doesn't suit their own scholastic purposes and follow the traditionally expected collegiate formulas for presenting historical source material. We should be mindful, however, that this isn't the aim and purpose of Thompson's book. Its very title is aptly descriptive but shouldn't be taken literally, for although the book does indeed present a cultural history, it also offers a sensible and well-reasoned historical account. After all, culture is part of our history as much as history is part of our culture. The account in this book is one with which some hard-of-reading academics might still take issue in some of its details - but from which many of Thompson's readers could learn, and of which many authors would be proud. The content and tone of negative criticism usually reveals far more about the critic - where he's coming from and where he's going - than about the work on which he's commenting. In academe, one's behavior in reporting on another's book can speak volumes.

Photos abound in this book. One is from the film "The Man From The Alamo" (1953), in which a young, pre-"Wyatt Earp" Hugh O'Brian (who portrays Lt. Tom Lamar in the film) is seen walking, in buckskins, hot on the heels of Glenn Ford. Also pictured are some of the "new" Alamos - structures built to resemble the Shrine of Texas Liberty, including a copy center in Cypress, Texas, and a ballroom & convention center in El Paso. Some might call these buildings as pretentious and prosaic as the "fooferai" worn by some of the characters in Alamo-related films; others would view these structures as being visually pleasing, entertaining curiosities and rather enjoyable and even fascinating to see. In context, a fine song can be just as gratifying as a fine symphony.

Among the book's wealth of illustrations are photos of four of the actors who over the years have portrayed on film the man who was operatively responsible for what became perhaps the greatest single traumatic event in southwestern American history during the first half of the nineteenth century, and whose revealing sense of modesty prompted him to call himself "The Napoleon of the West": His Excellency, El Presidente y Generalissimo Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna y Peréz de Lebrón. Debatably the most visually convincing cinematic Santa Anna might have been J. Carrol Naish, who portrayed the Mexican general in "The Last Command" (1955), and who brought a subdued but very real kind of palpable humanity to the role that's rare in such portrayals. Photographic images of the real subject indicate a remarkable visual likeness between the two men. In character, Naish bears an almost uncanny resemblance to the historical Santa Anna. While they're not actual "clones," the features and facial structures correspond, making Naish persuasively credible in the role. Parenthetically, the same can be said of actor David Keith's arrestingly believable portrayal of James Bowie in James Michener's "Texas."

One of this book's many advantages is that it offers particulars that would be unavailable elsewhere in a single volume. It would impress readers as a rather thorough compendium of both factual details and conceptual notions about the history and popular culture of the Alamo. Does this book by Frank Thompson contribute to our fascination with and our enjoyment and knowledge of the Alamo in virtually all its incarnations? "It do."

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Frank Thompson does a great job of depicting the sadness and triumph of the real battle in San Antonio. This is a marvelous movie tie-in. Thompson does an astounding job of creating the characters, especially Crockett, Bowie, and Travis. He also does a good job showing Sam Houston, a man trying to decide between his destiny as a general of war, or a life with his Cherokee Indian wife, Talihina. This is a great book, and I highly recommend reading it.