Review: The Children of the Revolucion: How the Mexican Revolution Changed America by Lionel Sosa

Title: The Children of the Revolucion: How the Mexican Revolution Changed America
Author: Lionel Sosa
Format: Hardcover
Publisher: Sosa and Sosa Consultation and Design
Publish Date: February 1, 2013
Source: I received a copy from PR; however, this did not affect my review.

Why You're Reading this Book:

• You're a history fan.
• You're interested in the stories of everyday people.
• You're interested in Latin American history.

What's the Story?:

From Goodreads.com: "Between 1910 and 1929, the two decades that history defines as the Mexican Revolution, almost a million people left Mexico to escape the war's devastation. This exodus jump-started the growth of the U.S. Latino population, a group which now numbers well over 50 million. These political refugees established productive new lives in the United States. Countless numbers of their descendants, now American citizens, are highly accomplished individuals, including both community and national leaders.

To capture these never-before-told stories, Lionel and Kathy Sosa, together with KLRN public television in San Antonio and Jesus Ramirez and his My Story, Inc., wrote and produced a twenty-part documentary series titled Children of the Revolucion: How the Mexican Revolution Changed America's Destiny. In this companion volume, some of these descendants tell the stories of life in Mexico, the chaos that their families endured during the Revolution, their treacherous trek to America, and their settlement in a strange new country. In these stories, we discover the heart of the Latino soul, rich in spirit, patriotism, and a fierce commitment to the United States. Their many contributions cannot be ignored. With Professor Neftali Garcia providing the historic backdrop, editor Lionel Sosa offers new insights into how the Mexican Revolution changed America."

My Two Cents:

Fun fact about A Bookish Affair: In college, one of my minors was Latin American studies. I am still deeply fascinated about that part of the world so I was very excited to get my hands on this gorgeous book! I spent a good deal of time in Mexico in the past and that country really has a special place in my heart. The Mexican Revolution is a really fascinating historical event as so much was going on at the time and a lot of the outcomes of the war set the stage for what happened in Mexico during the 20th century. From all of the time that I've spent in Mexico, I know that many Mexicans continue to believe that the outcomes of the Mexican Revolution continue to affect the country to this very day.

"The Children of the Revolucion" is a fantastic history book! If you've never studied the Mexican Revolution, this is a great book to give you a good guide on the historical event. If you know a good deal about the revolution, you will still get a lot out of this book. The book tells both the story of some of the famous (or infamous as it were) people during the war (Zapata, Villa, Diaz, etc.)but it also tells the story of what the revolution was like for the everyday person. Drawing on historical references and personal stories, this book gives a well-rounded picture of what it must have been like to live through this war. I loved that the book didn't just focus on the big names. You do learn a lot from learning about the main players but I think you can also get a better sense of history and meaning from looking at some of the bit parts too.

This is a really beautiful book. It's a great coffee table reference filled with lots of gorgeous and interesting pictures that help to tell the stories of the people in this book. I know this is a book that I will continue to look at over and over again!

Bottom line: History lovers will eat up this account of the Mexican Revolution!