A Time to Stand by Walter Lord

When William Barrett Travis wrote his most famous appeal for aid for his besieged troops in the Alamo, he did not address himself to specific military commanders or even to "all Texans." Instead, he addressed his message "To the People of Texas & all Americans in the world." And, indeed, his words did reach their intended audience, and have been remembered through the years. When he wrote, "I shall never surrender or retreat," and, "Victory or Death," he caught the imagination of America, so that today, more than 175 years later, most Americans understand the meaning of the phrase, "Remember the Alamo."

In this 1961 popular history, Walter Lord provides a readable account of the people involved and the progression of events which occurred through the course of this most mythic of battles. Basing his conclusions on primary sources rather than on previous accounts, Lord casts doubt on some aspects of the legend, while supporting others. Although this history reads almost as a novel, examining all of the primary sources consulted gives confidence that the author has a basis for his account of events.

I found it most interesting to learn more about the Alamo defenders. Aside from such obvious well-knowns as Travis, Jim Bowie, and Davy Crockett, they were rather ordinary-seeming people--farmers, clerks, doctors, lawyers, a blacksmith, a house painter, a jockey, a shoemaker, a Baptist preacher. Yet they all shared a fierce love of liberty and the vision that the time had come "to stand."

Recommended for Texans and all those who still believe that some things are worth dying for.