William Barrett Travis: A Biography

Rating:
Summary: "My friend,William Barrett Travis"-and now,mine too
Review: This book is small and light and quite an easy read,too,but its value is indescribable.There seem to be a distinct lack of new biographies about the great Travis,although his eventful and exciting life ought to interest any biographer who takes pride in his work.
McDonald stresses the fact that he does not want Travis to appear as a godlike hero,he wants to show us that Travis was an actual human being.He succeeds in doing this,and what is even better is that he maintains his respect for Travis and treat him with dignity,even though he becomes more human than most people could accept.(In South Carolina,according to McDonald,some people shake their heads and wonder why Travis didn`t end up in hung instead of a hero.)He also weighs both sides of the matter very carefully.Travis might have been a man who took the law in his own hands and because of that,became guilty of a severe crime(he is said to have murdered a man he thought guilty of having an affair with his wife),but at the same time,he was a man who fathered and befriended all children who came to need him,a man who loved fun and games,a man who was worried about having to do legal work in a foreign language when he arrived in Texas,but who rose to the occasion and taught himself Spanish(he even spoke Spanish to his men during the battle of the Alamo),a man with Mexican friends as well as Anglo-American friends-in short,a man who would never say no to a challenge and who always did his utmost,though his means were small. It`s a terrible thing that he should perish so young,but he was where he was needed when we needed him there.He was a great man, great not meaning perfect,something which McDonald shows in this fine book.
My only complaint is that the book appears to be an introduction to Travis,something which it isn`t-you ought to have read a little bit about him on beforehand.In addition,I sorely miss information on Travis`choice of weapons,both as commander of the Alamo and in his younger years.These are merely trifles,though,and I assure you that you are going to love this book,just like I do.