Customer Reviews

A Line in the Sand : The Alamo Diary of Lucinda Lawrence : Gonzales, Texas, 1836 (Dear America Series)

5 star:		(32)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

For her thirteenth birthday in 1835, Lucinda Lawrence's grandmother sends her a diary. Lucinda lives in Gonzales, Texas, when the American settlers were fighting to break free of Mexico, and she writes of many historical events, including the Alamo (where she loses a brother and an uncle), Goliad (where another of her uncles is killed), the Battle of San Jacinto, and the "Runaway Scrape," when the women and children of Texas barely escaped a step ahead of the Mexicans. Lucinda's diary is another wonderful Dear America book and I highly reccomend it.

Living in the tiny, remote settlement of Gonzales, Texas, in 1835, pioneer farm girl Lucinda Lawrence has just celebrated her thirteenth birthday. Her father is against war with Mexico - he learned the horrors of war firsthand during the War of 1812. Lucinda's brothers find the idea of war glorious - her oldest brother, Willis, is eager to fight against the oppresive Mexicans. Lucinda's mother just doesn't want to lose anymore children - her youngest, a baby girl, died during the journey from Missouri to Texas years earlier. Lucinda's friend, Mittie Roe, wants her father to come home safely from his trading expedition. And Lucinda herself isn't sure what she wants - the Mexicans are treating the American settlers badly, but she fears the war will go poorly for the outnumbered, ragtag settler army. But like it or not, over the next few months, Lucinda and all her family and friends will be swept up in the war for Texas independence. Some of them will survive, and some of them will not. But through it all, Lucinda matures from a girl to a young woman who knows where she stands and what is worth fighting for. I highly reccomend this excellant book, particuarly to fans of the Dear America series.

Sherry Garland's forefathers settled in Texas when it was a Republic (1836-1845). Garland wrote this novel to tell what it would be like for a young girl living at the time of the Alamo. Garland has written twenty-five books and received numerous awards and honors. The novel is written as a diary covering the days from September 9, 1835 to April 24, 1836. The `Epilogue' tells of the later lives of the characters. The `Historical Notes' tells of the settlement of Texas. The Spanish built missions in Texas between 1670 and 1793.

In 1821 Mexico declared its independence from Spain. The new Republic of Mexico welcomed Americans to settle in areas of Texas where Indians predominated. These colonists had to pass tests to legally settle in the lands. The Mexican Constitution of 1824 was similar to the US Constitution. But the aristocracy and the rich objected to democratic rule. They convinced Santa Anna to overthrow the democratic government and set up a dictatorship that would tax and oppress the people. [There were many reoccurrences of this in South American history. America avoided these problems with its "well-regulated militia", a small standing army, and a law of division to break up aristocratic wealth.] The state of Zacatecas first fought Santa Anna but lost, and their militia was exterminated. The state of Texas also fought; they were far off from the Mexican government, and their Second Amendment experience and history gave them better odds. They lost the first battles, but under the leadership of Sam Houston won the Battle of San Jacinto. Houston wisely extracted a peace treaty that recognized Texas independence as the price for releasing Santa Anna to return to Mexico with his armed guards. The "Napoleon of the West" met his Waterloo. The Republic of Texas encouraged immigrants from Europe to settle there, much as the Mexicans had earlier encouraged immigrants from America. They fled the aristocratic despotism of Europe.

This novel is based on the known facts, and can entertain and educate the readers. It is not a substitute for a real history book, but official history seldom tells you about daily life for ordinary people. A historian may note some information that isn't accurate. James Michener wrote a much longer book about "Texas" that you may read; it covers much more in Texas history.

one of the reviews complained that the book was mislabeled, because it didn't take place in the alamo. while that is true, the alamo is a central point throughout the plot.

i definitely learned a lot from this book, because while everyone knows "remember the alamo," no one knows what the alamo actually was (at least in my experience). as a novel, however, the book was less than a masterpiece. it emphasized the bravery of those who fought for texas, which was a good thing to point out, and i also liked that the main character was just an ordinary girl caught up in what was happening. but lucinda was a pretty boring character - in fact, pretty much all of the characters were very two-dimensional. the plot was also boring at times. while it informed me, it did not move me. i especially disliked that the runaway scrape - when lucinda and the rest of her town had to leave their homes behind in a desperate retreat - was barely described, when it should have depicted the miserableness of the refugees and their conditions. at one point, lucinda tells us she has had an eye condition and now is blind in one eye. she says it matter-of-factly in just one sentence, and i think if someone lost half their eyesight they would be a little morre distraught. i didn't really enjoy reading the book, though i don't regret reading it either. it was just OK.

I got this book for my birthday last year and I absolutely LOVED it. A Line in the Sand stays true to facts, but it gives you a great viewpoint and is very interesting. I was very touched by this book and think that anyone who reads it will be. It is not boring, but it teaches you about the brave heroes of the Texas Revolution and of historical America.

Among the three Dear America books I have read, this is the best one so far. The author was able to keep me entertained through the whole book. The story was sad, but I won't say when or I'll ruin the story for those who haven't read it yet. Really great!

This book is really great. Its happy, then becomes sad right in the middle. The Texan war was very sad, and Lucinda was very brave.

This was an amazing book. I am 45 and have just started reading the Dear America Series and I love them. My Mom who is 77 loves them also. She can't wait until I finish one so she can read it. I have read about a dozen of the series so far and cannot wait to read more. This one especially was one of my favorites. It was so real and I felt as if I was there and I could feel their pain and I cried. It also inspired me to look up a lot of the historical figures mentioned in the book(Davy Crockett, Jim Bowie, and others)to read more info on their lives. It also inspired me to rent the Movie the Alamo (with Dennis Quaid,Billy Bob Thornton). I enjoyed seeing the places and people mentioned in the book there in the movie and how close the accounts were. I also watched another version (w/Brian Keith,James Arness,Alec Baldwin 1987). I want to see the John Wayne version(1960)of The Alamo too! I recommend this book to anyone, any age!It brings history to life!!!

My book, A Line in the Sand,The Alamo Diary of Lucinda Lawrence by Sherry Garland, is about a family that lives in Gonzales, Texas. The year of 1836. In San Anotonio there was a war that was about to start against the Mexicans. The Mexicans wanted Texas as theirs, other then having Texas as a free country.

Gonzales, Texas took a part in this war by sending their men to help fight against the Mexicans. They also were sending them food, bullets, and other goods that they would need to help them. Lucinda's brother and uncle went and fought against the Mexicans. During the battle against Santa Anna they die in action.

I think this was a great book. I would recommend this book to people who like a page turner and also likes to read books in a form of a journal or diary.

I was so hooked into this story about how the fighting at the Alamo came to be. The history books in school do not give much information about it and this book definitely filled in the holes. I truly enjoyed reading about this courageous girl who helped her family out when she was most needed and the family that kept it's head up during the war.