The oldest discovered accounts are at the front of the book and the newest discovered accounts are at the back. As you might imagine "history" changes over time so that the older accounts tend to be believed while the newer ones are mostly fiction.

Unfortunately this makes the reading after about a hundred pages irrelevant as the author believes the latter accounts to be false, which makes me wonder why I would want to read those accounts at all.

The other aspect is there is no summary of all the accounts to give a clear picture of what really happened. I know that the author's intent was to be unbiased, but he could give the accounts then make a summary based on his investigations. This would wrap up many loose ends, which would make the book complete.

Gathering information is only one facet of a researcher's work. Finding what he seeks is one of the more time-consuming features of his job. What distinguishes this book from most others is its efficiency: it presents information which apparently can't be found elsewhere in a single book, thereby saving time and effort for both the historian and the knowledgeable reader.

By their immediacy, the accounts presented here - many first-person Alamo reports by those who were there - are as insightful as the very concept of offering them in one self-contained volume. Theoretically many could have compiled such a book, but no-one else did it. This collection of accounts can be a conspicuous blessing to those interested in Western history generally, in Texas history specifically, and in the Alamo in particular.

It seems no adobe brick was left unturned in the research for this work. It is, in a very real sense, a treasury of material taken wherever possible from primary sources. While the reports themselves sometimes contradict those of others - people witness events through their own eyes and relate them from viewpoints tinted by their own experience - we're offered accounts of Alamo events from those very people who endured them. Effectively there's no substitute for this.

This book also offers a balance many others don't: reports from both the American and Mexican sides. Some of the accounts were written down or told to others long after the siege, but those who were there were by definition closer to the scene than those who weren't. The collective discrepancies in their reports (people are in fact human) prevent us from knowing "precisely" what happened at the Alamo in 1836, but that these accounts were offered by those who literally lived through the events gives us not only a more immediate picture, but perhaps more importantly, bottom-line details. If the aggregate details don't resolve conjectures or provide explanations to unanswered (or unanswerable) questions, they are still details which shed more light on what transpired there more than a century and a half ago.

While other historians compile and try to present an amalgam of data, Groneman takes us into a courtroom and displays primary evidence unsullied by legendary gloss, the ghosts of myth, and the passage of 16 decades. He places before us, devoid of cosmetic veneer, the raw material from which we can form our own opinions and draw our own conclusions.

Walter Lord, author of A NIGHT TO REMEMBER and A TIME TO STAND, wrote about another Groneman book, ALAMO DEFENDERS, "...an indispensable tool for anyone working on the Alamo... I wish I had it when I was doing my research" - an ultimate compliment, and the same sentiment can be applied to EYEWITNESS TO THE ALAMO. Interested in the Alamo? Get this book. Have no interest in the Alamo? This book can get you interested.

JEFFREY DANE

For those who visit the Alamo and want to know more, for those who have seen the classic "Alamo" movie with John Wayne and are interested in the true story, or those who need to get a fast and basic knowledge for the classroom, this book is an excellent choice.

For reenactors, military miniature modelers, non-professional historians, etc. here are some concerns: The book was published in 1986. Recent excavations & documentary discoveries make the Mexican uniform depictions incorrect. For one example, shako plates and brestplates have been found which vary greatly from those shown & Piping was not white on coats. Sources of information are largely non-Mexican. Lt.Col. Enrique de la Pena's diary and J. Hefter's works are cited for Mexican forces, but there are many more which should have been used to give greater balance.

Since this book is not intended to be a deep scholarly explanation the short-comings can be overlooked.

Read and enjoy this book!

Problems involving current issues such as the Catholic Priest Sexual disaster can be understood through the in depth teaching of the main character Tarrence. Tarrence also teaches how the overmasculinization of the mythology has contributed to such a lack of balance in the world that may lead to disastrous consequences. Read the book!!!

Hector was killed, shot while he slept. Sean managed to kill Felipe and Tito before they escaped. Carmen, Marisa's aunt, began making arrangements to have Marisa married off. Marisa rebelled because she wanted to provide for Chico, the insane man-child Hector had taken care of and she had become close friends with. Carmen wanted Chico gone. So Marisa conned Sean into marriage.

Baldomar Gomez also knew of the silver mine. He wanted Marisa and the mine as his own. If that meant killing Sean, that was no problem.

**** The only thing I did not understand in the book was that when Sean took Marisa out of the river, she cursed him in Spanish and he knew exactly what words she said. Yet for the rest of the book, he did not understand Spanish. Other than that, the book was very excellent. Marisa's lies kept digging her in deeper and deeper trouble. Of course, Sean was not likeable to me at first, but as he changed I began to change my mind. I stayed up well past my bedtime to finish this one. Great story! ****

In accordance with the standard Osprey Campaign series format, the book begins with a section on the origins of the campaign and the chronology. While this section lays out the roots of the conflict clearly, the relationship between the fledgling Texan republic and the United States is left ambiguous, particularly in regard to military support and volunteers. The section on opposing commanders focuses almost exclusively on the Mexican General Santa Anna and the Texian General Sam Houston, both of whom are portrayed as very flawed commanders. Unfortunately, details on other significant commanders such as Travis, Bowie, Crockett and Fannin are inserted in the campaign narrative, which is disruptive. It was interesting however to see that attention given to the oft-neglected Mexican General Urrea's skillful operations. The section on opposing armies is weak, compounded by the fact that there is not even an order of battle provided for the Mexican army. Nevertheless, what the narrative lacks in military detail is often compensated for by an effective literary style is used to enhance the author's points. For example, the author notes both the rank discrimination and logistic difficulties in the Mexican army by asserting, "[Mexican] generals drank French wine from cut crystal, soldados drank stagnant water out of mud holes."

The text is supported by five 2-D maps (Mexico & Texas in 1836, the Texas Campaign in 1836, the Battle of Coleto Creek, the San Jacinto Campaign and the Mexican Retreat) and three 3-D Birds-eye-view maps (two depicting the assaults on the Alamo and one on the Battle of San Jacinto). There are also three very good battle scenes: the death of Travis at the Alamo, Crockett falling back into the Alamo Church and the execution of Colonel Fannin. Numerous illustrations and modern photographs of the Alamo complement the narrative. In addition, the author has provided a detailed section on visiting the battlefield today and includes relevant Internet websites. Taken together, this book represents an excellent short history of the campaign and a useful battlefield guide for visitors.

The campaign narrative itself is quite good, with about ten pages devoted to the siege of the Alamo, nine to Fannin's pathetic efforts and the Goliad massacre, and nine to the San Jacinto Campaign. The author is a bit vague on casualties and military details, but he does detail the effects of the harsh winter weather and desolate terrain on the Mexican offensive. Indeed, weather and terrain probably played a bigger role in the Mexican defeat than Texian heroics. Concerning the fall of the Alamo, the author believes that Santa Anna launched a costly frontal assault for political rather than military reasons, but this downplays the fact that Santa Anna was de facto Mexican head of state and commander in chief. Santa Anna could not afford to waste too much time in sieges of minor rebel fortifications. Also, Santa Anna's "no quarter" policy to the Texian rebels was not out of step with other similar 19th Century sieges like the Paris Commune in 1870 or even Dublin in 1916. Imagine if Santa Anna had accepted surrender at the Alamo and allowed the rebels to go home on parole; could men such as Travis ever be trusted to live meekly under centralista rule? Not likely. If Santa Anna wanted to hold onto the rebels, he had to either kill them or drive them out, since there was no room for compromise. If anything is reaffirmed by the 1836 campaign, it is that war is tough on the defeated, whether Texians at the Alamo or Mexicans at San Jacinto.

In the end, the author concludes that the Texians won in spite of the incompetence of Sam Houston, who refused to send a relief force to the Alamo, then avoided battle thereafter and retreated toward the US border. Houston was more politician than soldier and his troops were openly contemptuous of his leadership abilities. At San Jacinto, Santa Anna's own leadership flaws compensated for Houston's incompetence and Texian ferocity inspired by the Alamo and Goliad massacres was enough to tip the balance in their favor.

"The Better Part of Valor" is a crisp, fast-paced read that tells the Alamo story from William Barret Travis's perspective. Travis has been neglected by novelists, but Trish Bennett breathes fresh life into the character, imagining him as a young swashbuckler. (Walter Lord once commented that Travis's image may have suffered damage from Amelia Williams's dissertation and Lawrence Harvey's priggish portrayal of the Alamo commander in John Wayne's movie, "The Alamo.)

The novel spans the thirteen days of siege, deriving its suspense from the "ticking clock" of dramatic irony. The historical Travis must have wrestled with the weight of command, given the grave consequences of his leadership. Ms. Bennett focuses her narrative on a relationship with the novel's female protagonist, and the doomed relationship serves as an effective metaphor for Travis's ambivalence.

The novel's most enjoyable aspect is the female protagonist. The object of Travis's affection, Caroline Girard is a worthy heroine, full of spit (literally) and vinegar; a character that was both believable and dramatically satisfying.

Despite the author's reliance on myth over accuracy (Ms. Bennett ignores the historical Travis's attempts to arrange terms of surrender), I found "The Better Part of Valor" to be a thoroughly enjoyable read, one that I would not hesitate to recommend.

I had a difficult time putting the book down and while I had a sinking feeling about how things would end, I utterly enjoyed the story Bennett had to tell. I hope she publishes again soon.