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4.0 out of 5 stars
A highly informative narrative, August 14, 2011
This review is from: No Settlement, No Conquest: A History of the Coronado Entrada (Hardcover)
One could almost be a member of Coronado's Entrada. Absent only are two vital elements, the first being the emotional mystery and passion of this adventure into the vast unknown reaches of the Southwest, and the second being a deeper level description of their equipage that allowed them to proceed across the uncharted leagues.
And yet its author succeeds in a manner that others writing of the early Borderlands have not, portraying this expedition's organization, how they traveled in groups, the role of their Indian allies, the multiple and cumulative errors of their Conquistador's perception as contrasted with that of the Pueblos they encountered, and placing this Entrada in light of the many others occurring during this grand period of exploration, and how the memory of its participants influenced the future.
One spectacular addition to our understanding of the multiple mistakes that drove Coronado is Mr. Flint's hypothesis entitled "A Collapse of Time", whereby he posits that the Pueblo did not attempt to deceive to rid themselves of these invaders, but rather described to these Conquistadors civilizations and riches which had existed in the past, but in present tense terms without time-perspective, the Chaco phenomenon, and the Mound Builders far to the east, which were the living memories and of these peoples who've a circular and not a lineal history, which were relayed by them in a manner whereby Coronado failed discern that they were but descriptions times and places hundreds of years past.
I do not recommend this as an introduction to Coronado's Entrada. For that, please consider the Narrative of the Coronado Expedition (Relacion De La Jornada De Cibola , written by its participant, Pedro de Castaneda de Najera). Rather, this is an outstanding supplement, to be used to obtain a much broader understanding and historical perspective.
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