Los Angeles Area Missions

Children's Literature - Marilyn Courtot

This book in the seven book series (six regions plus an activity book) chronicles the story of the California Missions in the Los Angeles area (San Fernando Rey de Espana, San Gabriel Arcangel, and San Buenaventura). As with the other books, it starts with a discussion of Native American early life, before the coming of the Spanish priests and soldiers. The building of the missions and the introduction of the Catholic religion to the natives changed forever their way of life. Historians and others may debate the positive and negative impact of these changes, but it is important for young readers to understand as fully as possible what happened and why. The text is quite readable and does not sugar coat the treatment of the Native Americans or the life in and around the missions. A chronology, an afterword, index, and plenty of color and black-and-white illustrations enliven the text. In addition to their applicability to a classroom setting, the books would be extremely useful to those planning to visit any of the California missions. The newest book in the series is entitled Projects and Layouts, and it will help children with class projects or help any child who loves to build models. No mention is made of the earlier 1996 series by the same publisher, and this set is more attractive and appealing although it seems less text-dense. Reviewer: Marilyn Courtot