Ramona: Heart and Conscience of Early California [Audio Cassette]

Helen Hunt Jackson (Author), Boots Martin (Narrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1995

Now in its 112th year of continuous publication, this extraordinarily popular novel weaves together romance, history, and a passionate protest against the oppression of Native Americans in the 1800s. Termed the Uncle Tom's Cabin of the southwestern Indians and the first protest novel of California, the story vividly portrays three cultures-Indian, Mexican, and Anglo-locked in combat. The reading by Boots Martin is fascinating listening both for its dramatic story and for its importance in history. The Ramona Pageant in Hemet, California, based on this romance, has played each year since 1923, reenacting the transition period between Mexican traditions and the new U.S. and state governments. 4 cassettes.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"High marks to narrator Martin, whose resonant, mature voice suits the story and the characters perfectly." -- AudioFile, November 1995

"The defiant spirit that produced Ramona is the answer to complacency, to defeat, to injustice." -- Michael Dorris, from the Signet Classics edition of Ramona

Ramona vividly portrays three cultures (Indian, Mexican, and Anglo) locked in combat. The upheaval and injustice are humanized through the romance of a beautiful half-Indian orphan, Ramona, who grows up in privileged surroundings, then falls in love with an Indian and joins him in a life marked by poverty and tragedy. In continuous print for 112 years, Ramona weaves together romance, history, and a passionate protest against the oppression of Native Americans in 1800s California. -- Midwest Book Review

From the Back Cover

Ramona has often been compared to Uncle Tom's Cabin for its influence on American social policy, and this is the only edition available that presents this important novel in its full historical context. A huge popular and critical success when it was first published in 1884, Ramona is set among the California Spanish missions and tells the story of the young mixed-blood heroine, Ramona, and her Native American lover Alessandro, as they flee from the brutal violence of white settlers. This Broadview edition re-examines the novel's legacy by placing it alongside public speeches, letters, and newspaper articles that promoted what was ultimately a damaging campaign by reformers to "assimilate" Native American peoples. Selections from Jackson's non-fiction writings call into question the link between assimilationist policies and the story told in Ramona; also included are the writings and testimonies of some of Jackson's Native American contemporaries, as well as a selection of travel essays and images that helped to create "the Ramona myth." --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Audio Cassette
• Publisher: Audio Partners; Abridged edition (September 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1572700076
• ISBN-13: 978-1572700079
• Product Dimensions: 7.1 x 4.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,469,910 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Haunting story of love and prejudice, December 17, 2000

By 

Marge Sexton (Hollywood, PA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Ramona (Mass Market Paperback)

Just when I had begun to despair that I might never truly fall in love with a book again, along came Ramona. From the first page, I was captured by the poetic nature of the writing. Some books can be read quickly, not so Ramona. Every sentence is crafted so carefully, every description so complete, some passages must be read over and over again just for the sheer pleasure of the prose. The plot combination of social justice and romance makes the book amazingly contemporary. The racism of this book is directed toward the Native American population and their story is a heart wrenching one indeed. The description of the startling beauty of the landscape and the lives of the characters stands in stark contrast to the breathtaking cruelty with which this nation took land from its native population. Ramona thrilled me and broke my heart. I highly recommend it.

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Love Story--Tragic, Tender, And Redeeming!, July 27, 2001

By 

Kathleen (Ohio) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ramona (Library Binding)

I have Heard Ramona by Helen Hunt Jackson described as a "propaganda novel." That it well may have been in its day. But "Ramona" has not endured all these years because of a propaganda message. This novel has endured because of the trueness of the characters--The noble Alessandro, the patient, tender Ramona, the faithful Felipe, the just, stern, sad Senora Moreno.

Even the minor characters are true to form especially the jealous, vindictive Margarita, the loyal Marta, and the strutting but endearing Juan Can.

I rediscovered this book in a dusty corner of our public library and devoured in in two days.

A book becomes a classic when it becomes part of your soul. The love story of Ramona and Alessandro has burned itself into my heart where it will remain forever.

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars an expressive romance, set against tragic real-life events, September 13, 2004

By 

LifeboatB (Berkeley, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ramona (Signet Classics) (Paperback)

I just recently heard of this book, although it was a bestseller around the turn of the century, and was popular through the 20's. Modern readers may find the language and parts of the plot melodramatic and overly sentimental, but the characters are strong and memorable, the story is full of exciting incident, and the portrayal of the United States government still shocks. I grew up in California, but I had never really seen how "white Americans" appeared to the Native Americans and Mexicans who first lived here. "Ramona" gives the earlier settlers a voice. Erica Baumeister's review, quoted on the Amazon page for this book, states that "the book has the flaws of being created by an author who, although deeply engaged and sympathetic, had not experienced the life she was describing." I don't agree--perhaps if I had grown up as an "Indian" or Mexican in those times I wouldn't find the book convincing, but as it is, it worked for me. The main characters, Ramona and Alessandro, are "fairy-tale-ized", but their story still touches, and the book still has power. Helen Hunt Jackson purposely wrote "Ramona" to call attention to the U.S.'s unfair treatment of Native Americans, but the two essays included in the Signet edition claim that, for all the popularity of the novel, it didn't bring results. For that, we have only our own injustice to blame, because this poetic messenger did her best to right some wrongs.