I really liked this book because it took place in the "old days" which was fascinating to read about. I could actually put myself in Rosemary's place. The ending leaves you dreaming so you can decide what you want the ending to be. It's a story of dreaming and believing in yourself. It taught me alot about growing up!

I thought this book provided insight into "the mysterious" and was very enjoyable. Despite its rating as young adult or children's literature, I feel it can easily be read and enjoyed by anyone with an open mind.

It's 1790, Rosemary is 12, and although on the surface her family fits perfectly into their North Carolina farming community, beneath that surface they're a little magical. This is a spellbinding novel about becoming who you are, featuring vivid characters and an enchanting heroine. A very satisfying read.

This is a part of California history they never taught us in school. Frances Wood takes her young readers to a time, a place and a culture they might otherwise have missed completely. Cesa is the spunky daughter in an aristocratic Mexican family in what will become California, USA. She's grown up in a world of wealth and privilege, fully expecting her life to remain that way. She learns otherwise when the rude, smelly Americans show up, with golden expectations of their own. Madrugada means dawn -- and that's what this is, the dawn of a new era in California, in Mexico, and in the life of this very appealing heroine. The story will tug your heart.

Thirteen-year-old Cesa de Haro lives and breathes the vast and beautiful Rancho del Valle de la Madrugada where she lives grandly with her father, brothers, grandmother and their many servants. Her mother has died eight years before and Cesa has since grown up as a proud, pampered and head-strong child who both chafes at the limitations imposed on women in her culture and experiences her budding sexuality for the first time.

Mexico has lost the war of 1846 to the United States and history soon overshadows Cesa's personal concerns. Her beloved California now belongs now to the crass Americanos who invade her once-secure Rancho. greedy for land, gold and contemptuous of Cesa, her people and the culture of all Californios. A strong and moving coming of age story with a defiant Californio heroine who discovers her interior power as her outer world changes forever.

What a compelling read this was! Cessa, the thirteen-year old protagonist, is a feisty, engaging character on the cusp of womanhood and resisting it mightily. The Gold Rush era and the Mexican-American War provide a thrilling backdrop to this story of change, both natural and forced. Buy this book today, and settle back for a rich, lyrical read that rewards readers of any age. And whatever you do, don't miss the scene with the Grizzly Bear!

Quentin Durward is good reading, right up (almost) to the very end. It's excellent historical fiction with very rich characterization, especially of Louis XI. Excellent, that is, except for the women. While two of the minor female characters are interesting, the female lead is as dull as dishwater. My real complaint is that the ending is bungled. After the tremendous buildup full of exciting action and convincing sets, you turn the page and...it's just over! Misses the crecendo and the denoument. Still, I enjoyed it, and recommend checking it out of the library, as I did.

I read this novel forty years ago in the Modern Library edition and I am amazed that it is out of print except in expensive library editions. It is one of Scott's finest novels, full of action and with a fine portrait of King Louis. It was the first novel to use a gypsy as a character. It was made into a movie in the 1950's. Scott of one of the most neglected geniuses in literature and the world is the poorer for it.