Customer Reviews

LORETO, BAJA CALIFORNIA: First Mission and Capital of Spanish California

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
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1 star:		(0)

 

 

Ms O'Neil has compiled an incredible amount of information, spanning several centuries, and has presented it with organizational and narrative finesse. Her love of the area shows on every page and is contageous. The pictures she paints of the different times long linger, making the reader richer for the reading. And while she keeps her focus quite carefully clear, much can be learned about the historical changes throughout all of MesoAmerica from this little neighborhood within it. A wonderful book.

This is a very well written account of the founding and subsequent history of Loreto, Baja California del Sur. The first half of the book has a very though history Loreto under the Jesuits through the 1860s, while the second half consists of oral histories of loreto inhabitants on the salt industry on Carmen Island and the development of Loreto in the Twentieth Century. These Oral histories are very interesting, well selected and very effectively edited.

Written by two Americans who have spent many years in Loreto, since 1973. This is amateur history at its very best. Highly recommended for those interested in a little more detail on this moderately obscure topic

We spent a lot of time in the Loreto area as we cruised the Sea of Cortez on a 37-foot sailboat, and wanted to know more of the history of the area.

This book does a good job of explaining the background of the area and is an entertaining read. Well-written and seems to have been well-researched.

I was looking for a book on one of my favorite spots in Baja California and this is what I came up with. I was a litle dissapointed because it is a little too much like a text book. There are parts of the book that resemble case studies of the indigenous population that you might encounter in a history course at a university. The historical information is worhtwhile but the writting style is a little on the dry side. The colorful past of Loreto does not really come to life but rather is presented in black and white(as are the pictures) for one's imagination to work extra hard. The details about some things bog down the flow of the book to the point where interest is lost which results in skipping around to find something a little more interesting. That is really the way to read this book. Find a section that interests you and read. Reading chapter by chapter, page by page is just too tedious. I found the section on the Franciscans and Jesuits to be good but one again there were too many meticulous details about life in early Loreto. Personally I needed a little more lively of a narrative but than again there is not much out there about Loreto. Only recommended for readers with a love of Loreto and a thirst of knowledge about this beautiful place in Baja California that has the honor of being the first Mission and Capital of Spanish California.