Who Would Have Thought It? (Annotated)
Enriched Edition. My Story of the American Civil War (Autobiographical Novel)
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5.0 • 1 Rating
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- $1.99
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Publisher Description
Who Would Have Thought It? is a sharp, satirical novel that follows Lola Medina, a Mexican girl rescued from captivity and brought into a hypocritical New England household during the Civil War era. Through domestic intrigue, racial prejudice, religious posturing, and wartime profiteering, the novel exposes the moral contradictions of U.S. society. Its style blends sentimental fiction, political satire, and social comedy, placing it in dialogue with nineteenth-century reform novels while unsettling their assumptions about race, nation, and virtue. María Ruiz de Burton, born in Baja California to an elite Californio family, became one of the first Mexican American novelists writing in English. Her life after the U.S.-Mexican War, including marriage to an American military officer and experience with dispossession under U.S. rule, deeply informed her critique of Anglo-American power. She wrote from the perspective of a bilingual, bicultural woman attentive to how conquest reshaped law, property, and identity. This novel is highly recommended for readers interested in early Mexican American literature, Civil War fiction, feminist satire, and the hidden political complexity of nineteenth-century American writing.
This enriched edition has been carefully crafted to add value to your reading experience.
- A succinct Introduction situates the work's timeless appeal and themes.
- The Synopsis outlines the central plot, highlighting key developments without spoiling critical twists.
- A detailed Historical Context immerses you in the era's events and influences that shaped the writing.
- A thorough Analysis dissects symbols, motifs, and character arcs to unearth underlying meanings.
- Reflection questions prompt you to engage personally with the work's messages, connecting them to modern life.
- Hand‐picked Memorable Quotes shine a spotlight on moments of literary brilliance.
- Interactive footnotes clarify unusual references, historical allusions, and archaic phrases for an effortless, more informed read.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The insights into class and race in this clever satire set during and after the Civil War give it a thoroughly contemporary feel. It is even more astounding, then, to learn that it was first published in 1872, and that the author was not even a native English speaker. Burton (The Squatter and the Don) was a Baja California native who married a colonel in the Union Army, and here she combines to good effect both solid insider information and her perspective as an outsider. Dr. Norval returns to New England from a trip west carrying more than luggage. While in an Indian camp, Norval rescued a ten-year-old girl, whose mother was a kidnapped Mexican woman desperate to return Lola to the girl's father. Lola is scorned both by the local gentry, who believe she is either black or Indian, and by the doctor's wife--at least until Dr. Norval reveals that she was accompanied by a lot of gold. When word of her wealth gets out, Lola is treated like a lady as the townspeople begin complex plans to get close to her and her money. The details are exquisite. Burton excels at picking names for these supposedly good Christians, from Mrs. Cackle to the Reverends Hackwell and Hammerhard. In short chapters with titles like ``Potations, Plotting and Propriety,'' Burton details the intricate mess of love and proposals--both honest and contrived. A thorough introduction traces specific themes like the novel's precocious portrayal of women entering the public sphere, and footnotes lend helpful historical background. In the end it is the story that counts, though, and this is a fully entertaining read that stands on its own against much of today's fiction.
