Never too Late to Read Classics discussion

Susan Shelby Magoffin (30 July 1827 – 26 October 1855) was the wife of a trader from the United States who traveled on the Santa Fe Trail in the late 1840s. The diary in which she recorded her experiences has been used extensively as a source for histories of the time.

Susan Magoffin's journal covers the journey from its start until 8 September 1847. The Magoffins traveled along the Santa Fe trail and down into Mexico in the wake of the invading United States army during the Mexican–American War (1846–1848). It is an invaluable source of information on the conditions of the time, the people and the events, often providing a unique woman's perspective. (304 pages)

I'll be reading this. probably starting toward the end of March.

I would like to read this but it looks like it's going to be hard to find. I might have to do an interlibrary loan.

I actually have a copy of this and plan to start it by sometime next week.

I haven't been able to get a copy from the library.

I just did a quick search for this one in loan shark (interlibrary loan system) and did find some copies but not many. Try putting an ILL request in at your library and see what they can do. I found my copy at my local bookstore’s closing sale about 5 years ago. I had no idea it is such a hard to find book.

It can be borrowed for free here. Looks like they only let one person borrow at a time but I just returned it so unless someone is waiting it is available at the time of this post.

https://archive.org/details/downsanta...

Very unselfconscious and personal. And she manages to be surprised at the strange new Mexican culture she discovers without being prejudice (mostly). I enjoyed her descriptions of 19th Century Mexicans and their lifeways in particular since I am a student of modern Mexican culture. Her clumsy use of Spanish in the book is flavorful and endearing. Watching her meet famous generals and being in the thick of history while picking wildflowers was way weird and I loved it.

John, I’m glad you enjoyed this book. I just realized it’s a short one I could quickly knock out in my sudden 3 weeks off work.

Yeah, and actually the last 30 pages or so are appendix and bib and index. :)

Thanks for the link John. Will be helpful.

Still open for discussion through the end of April.

Message 7 John has shared a free e-link.

I plan to read this one later this week.

I've started this book and like it so far. I love reading journals from long ago. No one has interpreted the experience for you. You're right there back in the 1840s.

Wow. There a lot of long footnotes in this book. I definitely feel like I’m getting a solid history lesson reading Magoffin’s diary.

I’ve finished the book today. I know what you mean, Samantha, about getting a history lesson. This is the most I’ve ever read about the war between the U.S. and Mexico in 1846-1847. Susan Shelby Magoffin met so many important people of the time on this trip with her husband. She was only 18!

And she had no idea how important many of those people she encountered already were or would later become. I can tell it’ll be a fairly quick read, but the history lessons in the footnotes makes the book heavier than I expected.

I finished this last night and can hardly believe all the Mexican and American history I learned, especially surrounding the war between the two. I admire how detailed Magoffin was in her diary. Very impressive observation skills and cultural awareness.