Customer Reviews

A Line In The Sand: The Alamo in Blood and Memory

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This is a very enjoyable book that both tells the story of the siege and battle of the Alamo and the development of the myth and symbol of the Alamo in Texan and American memory. The account of the Texas revolution and siege are balanced and scrupulous, carefully distinguishing between what we know and we infer. That account makes up the first half of the book. The second half relates the cultural history of Alamo preservation and its place in the current "culture wars" and revisionist history. An interesting account of the making of both the Disney "Davy Crockett" series and John Wayne's "The Alamo" feature in this latter half. I recommend the book highly. The history of the siege and battle is fairer and more balanced here than in Jeff Long's "Duel of Eagles."

This book is like a recipe for goulash; you just throw everything in it and see how it turns out. Actually, it's a very good book, although it tends to be overwritten in places and there are one or two incorrect dates. It gives a concise history of Mexico in the early part of the 19th century leading up to the Texas War for Independence, and what followed. Everything is presented quite clearly, and you can understand how things happened, and why they happened. The actual Alamo seige and battle pass fairly quickly, because that's how it was in reality. I found the later history extremely interesting, and combining LBJ's father, Walt Disney, John Wayne, and numerous others in the story was an excellent decision on the part of the authors. I'm of the generation raised on Davy Crockett, and my friends and I recreated the Alamo battle countless times on the cinderblock wall in my back yard, each of us taking turns as Davy. If nothing else, Disney's film of Crockett's life awakened in me the idea of history as something interesting, and worth studying. I've done that ever since, and the authors show that the Alamo is ingrained in our national consciousness because of Uncle Walt primarily, and also John Wayne's movie, which I vividly remember seeing as a young teenager. To those of a new generation, who don't have those memories of the Alamo films, this book is well worth reading, and I highly recommend it.

This book is a rather complete overview of all or most of the legends and myths about the Alamo, as well as a pretty good coverage of the things that are accepted as historical facts. It also goes into the legends, and historical records about the major characters involved in the battle and the politics of the time. It shows the Mexican side of things as well as the Texan side. There is an in-depth discussion of the impact of the Alamo on Texas and the United States, also Mexico. There is a lot about the specific way the most famous Alamo defenders died, especially "Davy" Crockett. It is said that Crockett was not killed in the battle, but surrendered and was executed by Santa Anna. It discusses the issues that came up about preserving the Alamo and the fights made by two ladies in the effort to preserve it. There was also a political fight between the two ladies for control of the destiny of the buildings. That was called the "Second Battle of the Alamo". The book discusses the movies about the subject and goes into depth about John Wayne's efforts in making the movie, "The Alamo", the work, politics, etc. involved and the reception of the movie. "Line in the Sand" then discusses the modern idea of scorn about the Alamo and the resentment of some people who consider it a shrine to imperial land grabbing and racial prejudice. It finishes with a discussion of the Alamos effect on Presidents and other politicians. This is a pretty unbiased look at all sides of the atmosphere leading to the battle, the battle itself and a lot of the effects since the battle. It seems to cover all sides of every issue concerning the Alamo.

I was assigned to read this in a Texas history class at UT Arlington. So I expected it to be the typical politically correct, leftist, white-bashing I'd grown so accustomed to. I was pleasantly surprised. This book is honest and fair with all sides. It's what historians should strive for because it doesn't take sides. Roberts goes after truth, no matter who gets offended. And yes, sometimes that's the Mexicans. I was shocked to learn all about how Col. Travis abandoned his family, but I was impressed by his courage to the end. Now I feel certain that Santa Ana is the worst thing that ever happened to Mexico. And some of his generals were skilful enough to have won the war and honorable enough to have not executed Texas POWs. I highly recommend the book for anyone who wants to understand this major piece of American history.

Just because this book does not agree 100% with Jeff Long is no reason to condemn it. A topic like the Alamo is supposed to include room for debate and disagreement. Although the book may have been written partly in response to Long's version of the Alamo, I feel it also serves as a viable alternative to the current dominant historiography on the Alamo (Hardin and Huffines are good, but they would agree, I think, that theirs is not the "last word"). This is a balanced account which, as other reviewers have noted, includes a complete post-1836 history of the Alamo. A good example of the common-sense historical honesty in this book comes in part of the authors' treatment of the Crockett debate: "...what had been the end of Davy Crockett?...Scores of people had an answer to the question, but their answers banged against one another, knocking silly any hope of discovering the truth."(p.196) There will never be a "last word" on the Alamo, but I do recommend this book to those interested in the topic.

It was a pleasure to read this book, very informative, well researched and finely written. Whatever your views are of the Alamo and its place in the history of Texas; this book was written by two astute historians with a careful attention to detail with reasoned views and opinions.

Brief but informative and concise histories are given of Travis, Crockett, Bowie, Santa Anna and the events that lead them to a common junction at the Alamo in 1836. My only exposure to the Alamo before this book was the John Wayne movie, so it was great to be able to read this professional account of the history of the Alamo and also its post history into the 21st century.

The authors also make the valid point that native Indians occupied Texas for hundreds of years before any Spanish, Mexican or Anglo claims on it. The history of Texas comes alive in this book and the authors have done a great job as this book is flows smoothly and logically and is accessible to the general history buff.

The first half of "A Line in the Sand" gives a good overview of the history that led up to the famous siege of the Alamo from both the Mexican and Texas settler perspectives. The battle itself and its aftermath (the Texan victory at San Jacinto) are given a good overview as well. Along the way, the authors attempt to portray the battle for what it was, free of either liberal condemnations of the defenders as imperialisist or reactionary attempts to elevate the defenders to God-like status. The truth lies somewhere in the middle of the elevated rhetoric. The defenders made a galliant stand against an authoritarian despot, but they did so in defense of slavery among other things. Whatever else they may have been, the stand of Davy Crockett, Jim Bowie, Colenol Travis and the others remains unassailable as an act of bravery.

The second half of the book focusses on the history of the shrine since the battle. It covers preservation attempts and the lionization of the battle by such 20th Century luminaries as Walt Disney and John Wayne. The Alamo has become a powerful political symbol, a fact that was emphasized particularly during the Vietnam war.

All of this adds up to a fascinating and very well written book. The only flaw is that covers the first part too quickly, giving more of an overview than an in-depth history. Nevertheless it is still an informative and enjoyable read.

As a student of the history of Texas, I actually enjoyed the first half of this book more than the second, in contrast to some other reviewers. The narrative is presented with enough color and explanation to avoid being just another dryly presented history lesson and places actions in the proper context. I was impressed by the separation of myth from history and the noting of what probably happened versus what might have happened.

The second half, while interesting, presents many areas related to the Alamo - such as JFK's speech, LBJ's feelings, John Wayne's movie crusade, and de la Pena's supposed memoirs - but does so in a brief fashion that could have been expanded as a companion volume, one would suspect. Also, this second half seems to editorialize more than the first, particularly in relation to the personalities of people like Walt Disney and John Wayne. There is a distinct impression that the deisre is to paint these characters in a certain light to put a gentle spin on the story. It is good storytelling, if not a bit less unbiased than the historical record.

In any true history of the events of the Texas Revolution and the Battle of the Alamo, certain popular myths and legends are debunked. However, in reading this book the debunkings seem trivial. I come away as proud as ever of my state and of the men who died on that March morning in 1836.

Roberts' and Olson's "A Line in the Sand: The Alamo in Blood and Memory" (2001 356-page paperback) is three books in one for the history of the Alamo. It is comfortably researched with 23 pages of endnotes and 16 pages of period and contemporary black-n-white photographs.

Book one (chapters 1-6) tells the Alamo's history from the beginning to Santa Anna's victory there against Travis, Crockett, and Bowie in 1836. The authors trace the March 6th battle adroitly with intricacy and accuracy. The heroes of the Alamo, Goliad, and San Jacinto are carefully reviewed. (Curiously, Sam Houston's biography is missing from the author's analysis.) This presentation of the book inspires the reader to "Remember the Alamo!"

Book two (chapters 7-10) of this informative text related the post battle history of the Alamo from 1836 into the post World Wars period. Notables from this time include Adina De Zavala, Clara Driscoll, Walt Disney, Fess Parker, John Wayne, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, and many more. For these the Alamo is purposed as sacred shrine for Texans and Hollywood alike. They offer an Alamo that becomes America's third most visited tourist attraction (after the Grand Canyon and the Statue of Liberty) suggesting to the reader "Visit the Alamo!"

Book three (chapter 11) describes the contemporary fight for control of the Alamo. By the early 1980s various minorities wanted to seize control of the Alamo for their own agendas. LULAC, NAACP, Native Americans, KKK, assorted state legislators, and others have attempted to grab its cultural symbolism for their own purposes. In the end, the Alamo has remained with the Daughters of the Republic of Texas (since 1905), by state legislative decision, suggesting to the reader "Protect the Alamo!"

This book invites consideration of Texas myths, America's heroes and historical shrines. They are important and certainly worth preserving. This important work is recommended to everyone interested in Texas history, 19th century America, and the Alamo.

This book serves as an excellent overview of the events leading up to the Alamo, and it provides an equally good history of the controversies that have arisen since then. As other reviewers have noted, this won't answer all the questions; it's not a minute-by-minute account, and it doesn't end with the events of March 6, 1836. On the other hand, that's not the purpose of the book. Roberts and Olson provide a balanced look at some of the most emotionally charged controversies, giving several accounts of Crockett's death (they seem to side with de la Pena's) and helping the reader to weigh the evidence. The only thing that's missing is a map or two. Alamo buffs may know the exact distances and locations from Goliad to San Antonio to San Jacinto, the layout of the Alamo in 1836, and so forth, but maps of both would be helpful.