Pathfinder : John Charles Fremont and the Course of American Empire

Rating:
Summary: Good, but...
Review: A good book, rich in historical detail, but...wow, the copyediting is bad. It's enough that it's really hard to read the book. I hope they can fix the copyediting problems if they reprint the book or bring it out in paperback.

Rating:
Summary: Fremont's California
Review: For an old native Californian I never had a clear picture of the Americanos revolt against the Mexicans except for the Sonoma uprising at General Vallejo's headquarters where the Bear Republic flag was raised. This book gives a comprehensive picture of the tumult in California and how the various American and Mexican forces interacted. It gives an excelllent description as to what California was like with an estimated population of 15,000. This book now gives me a greater feeling of the Fremont history for the country roads and off-named places that I have traveled throughout California over many decades of my lifetime. I did not know that Fremont was French and we are not accenting his name properly. I wonder whether 150 years ago his name was pronounced properly. The city of Fremont perhaps should take note of the accent mark.

Rating:
Summary: A great book
Review: I loved this book--an inspiring story that conveys the excitment of the exploration of the west. Author includes historical background so Fremonts actions are placed in the context of the time. Very readable--almost like a novel. The one drawback are the maps of Fremonts explorations. They are merely sketch maps without any location detail--I would have liked to have seen more detailed cartography with, perhaps, landforms included. Many (most) place names in the book are not shown on the maps. I kept my atlas at hand while reading, but many place names have changed. I strongly recommend.