Wonderful detailed description of the colonization and revolution of Texas with new insights and interpretations.

H.W. Brands

This is a very nicely written history of how Texas became a state. There's a lot of research, and some things glossed over other places gets more attention here. It's a great recounting of some facts that most don't know.

The American Revolution, Civil War, and World War II seem to get most of the attention from historians and the reading public. This books is a good step in the direction of correcting that.

Strongly recommended to Texans, history buffs, and anyone willing to learn more about America's past.

H.W. Brands is a masterful writer and has a gift for putting pen to paper spellbinding historical retellings. This book is not just about the Alamo and the main characters we all remember: David Crockett, Jim Bowie; and William Travis. While it amply provides that important part of Texas history and details those three larger-than-life figures, there’s a lot more to it than that. Even before the reader gets to the Alamo, Brands starts at the beginning of what we know as Texas and how it was from geologically formed and the early history of it. It’s a fascinating foundation that patiently and carefully bring the story in full focus as the pages keep turning.

There are so many fascinating events and colorful characters that Brands explores and delves into which makes this book a very worthwhile read. The reader will learn about, not limited to, Moses and son Stephen Austin, Sam Houston, James Fannin, Andrew Jackson, and the charming but cunning dictator of Mexico, Santa Anna. The battles that lead up to the disastrous Alamo are key to understanding it better, and of course the aftermath: one cannot be sentient and not be flipping pages furiously wanting vengeance over the massacre. The book is well-written, educational, fascinating, and full of suspense and drama. I would highly recommend this book to readers as well as H.W. Brands’s other works as they also are unfailingly entertaining.

I really enjoyed this book. I have been very interested in Texas history since I was old enough to know what I had read. My hero has always been Sam Houston. I cannot explain how much he has inspired me over the years. Thanks Mr Brands for writing this book.

Surprisingly enjoyable read for someone who doesn't read a lot of nonfiction. Brands' writing mixes non-stuffy analysis with fascinating excerpts from the letters and diaries of Texas' founding fathers. He portrayed them in all their flawed, drunken, grandiose, family-abandoning glory and yet one still is awed by their bravery, vision and spirit of adventure. As a non-native Texas who has lived in the Lone Star State most of my adult life, I found it a fascinating read!

A great historical account of Texas in its formative years - I enjoyed the fine blend of historical facts and the insight into the people who were caught up in these times. I was reminded of another life I lived as 7th grade Texas History teacher.

Rarely does a title do justice to the story. This one does. You will finish this book with a deep understanding of how the Texas War for Independence totally re-shaped the development of the modern U.S. as we know it. You may find yourself wondering, "what would the western U.S. look like today if events had taken a different turn?" Oh, and for you non-Texans who still don't get our fiercely independent, self-reliant, this-country-would-be-a-total-mess-without-us attitude, GET THIS book and read it thoroughly!

Typical Brands, which is to say a thoroughly engaging tour de force deploying biographies to elucidate history. In this case the Anglo settlement/invasion of Texas, the move toward independence, annexation to the US, slavery, and secession. The Austin family, Sam Houston, Santa Anna are prominently highlighted but cameos from the like of Jim Bowie, Davey Crockett and Andrew Jackson help explain the emergence and evolution of this most complicated state.

Brands also presents a mostly sympathetic, albeit brief, view of the plight of Native Americans in the region (particularly the Comanche) but can be legitimately criticized for a Eurocentric emphasis. That is even more true with respect to slavery, which Brands perfunctorily laments, but presents in passing as a catalyst for friction between Mexico, the US and, ultimately, the Confederacy.

All that said, read this and understand a lot about how Texas came to be what it is.

A must read for every Texan! I learned more from this book than all the Texas history courses and units from school combined.

3.5 stars

Straightforward and streamlined history of Texas independence. Appreciated how Brands gave us more background information about the major figures like Austin, Houston, Bowie, Travis, and Fanin, as well as the political context of Mexico at the time.

My girlfriend thinks it's amusing that kids in Texas have to take at least one year of Texas History in junior high or high school. She's from Florida -- but I'm from Texas and it never struck me as that weird. Don't kids in Iowa have to take an Iowa History class? Maybe not.

Anyway. Regardless of the class, growing up in Austin, Texas a lot of Texas history works its way into your brain. Everyone knows the core elements of the revolution, for example: The Alamo. Goliad. San Jacinto. Houston. Crockett. Travis. Bowie. Santa Anna.

This book fleshed out that vague history very nicely. It provides a wide breadth of historical context, starting several decades in advance of the revolution with Moses Austin's arrival in the region and takes us up to Sam Houston's death during the US Civil War. Most of the book does, though, take place during the 1830s. And it does a great job of presenting these characters and situations in a realistic light, rather than as glowing-gold statues of perfection. The slavery issue, for example, is not shied away from and much discussion is given to how many in the US found the idea of annexing Texas repellent for this and a variety of other reasons.

It's also the first time I've really felt like I understood what the real situation in Texas was at that time. It was a fucking mess, for lack of a better term. Very little centralized control. Lots of crime and speculation. Continuing conflicts with the Native American populations. A mess.

Finally, one of the very interesting things about this book: It's the first time (I think) that I've really seen the Heroes of the Texas Revolution painted as real people. I knew kind of who belonged where. Travis, Bowie, Crockett = Alamo. Houston = General, later President. But I guess I hadn't been aware that Crockett had been a legitimate celebrity before he ever came to Texas. Or that William Travis was only 26 when he commanded the troops at the Alamo. I also hadn't been aware of the closeness of many of these guys to the power structure in the US Government. Both Crockett and Houston were at times considered viable candidates for the US Presidency. I guess when Texans present Texas History they keep it a bit artificially isolated from American History.

Anyway: Very good book. And continuing along my US history reading kick that started last year...