Dear Am: Valley of the Moon, the Diary of Maria Rosalia de Milagros: Valley of the Moon: Diary of Maria Rosalia de Milagros

by Sherry Garland

Book Overview

This diary tells the story of Maria's life as a servant in a Spanish home in California, as she and her brother, orphaned years before, live on a ranch run by the stern Senor Medina. She also offers her account of the war that Alta California ultimately loses to the Americans.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0439088208
• ISBN13: 9780439088206
• Release Date: April 2001
• Publisher: Scholastic
• Length: 217 Pages
• Weight: 0.68 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.5" x 7.7"
• Age Range: 9 to 12 years
• Grade Range: Grades 4 to 7

Customer Reviews

Sad and Melancholy

I read this when I was the target audience's age. It was good enough to make me finish, but it was mainly sad and melancholy. Whatever else it was, I can't remember--apparently it wasn't that unique or interesting.

I'll keep it simple....

I'll keep it simple... this was an AMAZING book which I do recommend to add to your collection of 'Dear America' books!!

A really great story of a Mexican girl in California!

Valley of The Moon: The Diary of Maria Rosalia De Milagros is a wonderful book and very interesting. It is a Dear America Book written by Sherry Garland, who also wrote A Line in the Sand: The Alamo Diary of Lucinda Lawrence. Valley of the Moon is the 1840's diary of a half-Mexican, half-Indian girl who is a servant on a rich Mexican rancho in California. She writes about her daily life and the people in it in her diary. She doesn't worry about holding back her feelings when she writes about her chores, the people she knows, and the Americans taking over California during the Mexican-American War. It was very neat to get the perspective of a Mexican girl - something that is very hard to find. Rosy is 14 years old, growing up in northern California as a servant on the Medina's Rancho. In her diary she writes about the Medina daughters and what she thinks about them (especially the oldest), and about the cattle branding and bull fights which were interesting to watch. In addition, since all Mexicans were Catholic at that time, Rosy tells of how they celebrated the holidays, Christmas and Easter, in Mexican California. She writes about her new best friend, Nelly, and how her own mother died of smallpox in the woods when she was very young. After she died, Padre Ygnaco found Rosy and her younger brother and brought them to the mission, where she learned how to read and write. Later in this book, Rosy sets off to find out the past of her mother and father. This book has 222 pages and 185 of them are the actual diary. The other 37 pages consist of the epilogue, a glossary of Spanish words used in this book, and a historical note. The historical note gives a brief history on how Alta (upper) California became a home for Mexican rancheros and later American settlers. It describes how the Americans took over California during the Mexican-American War, and how the Mexican way of life changed after the gold rush, which started in 1848. In addition, there are pictures in the back of the book showing chores, a bullfight, words to a love song, and the recipe for pastelitos de boda- wedding cookies! Also, there is a green ribbon attached to the book to mark your place when you are finished reading.I would recommend this book for girls ages 12 and up, and for anyone who loves the Dear America Books. This one is very well written and interesting to read. I have read a lot of the Dear America and My America books and this one is one of my favorites!

One of my FAVORITE DEAR AMERICA BOOKS!!

I really love "Valley of the Moon". In the book, Maria and her brother Dominigo are orphans and are loved by a family they work for. Maria searches for her birth parents and finds out what happened. The book also tells about that she is a devoted Christian and when California becomes a republic. Also, here is how Maria found about her parents and how a little scar made the story tell.Maria's father met her mother. She was an idian and the father fell in love with her because of her charm and beauty. But, it was not allowed for an idian to marry a white man. But, they got maried in an idian wedding ceromony. the mother gives birth to maria, then her brother. That's when disaster strikes. Smallpox have hit, and while papa is gone, the mother rushes with her 2 children to a spanish mission to get vaccinated. There is only enough medicine for 2 people, so the mother makes the ulitmate sacrifice of love and her two children get the medicine. She dies near the mission and that's when maria and her brother are taken in by a family. what happened to maria's father was heartbreaking. he found his house empty and was told that the family died of smallpox. Later on he never married and died a heartbroken man. So, there is a taste of it. still, READ THE BOOK!!!

One of Sherry Garland's Best!

Maria Rosalia De Milagros is a servant for the Medina family on thier ranch in Alta California. She doesn't know who her father was and her mother died from smallpox. The only blood relation she knows is her brother, Dominigo. Maria (Rosa for short) wants to know who her parents were and what happened to them. While living with the Medinas she lives with Miguela (the lovely, yet very hard to get oldest daughter of the Medinas) Rafaela, the pale and sickly sister who gets sick by a simple bruise, Gabriela the sister who treats Rosa like a sister(but she is brought up learning that Rosa is lower than her and could have remarks as hard as stone at times) Senor Medina, the kind father of the Medina family, who treats Dominigo like the son he never knew, and Senorita Medina. Along comes Senor Henry Johnston (an americano) and desperately tries to get married to Miguela. While Senore Johnston is trying to get Miguela's hand in marriage, he has a friendship with Rosa and introduces her to his niece, Nelly. Nelly has faced many hardships. She came from Missouri to Alta, California, and right before she reached California her parents died. The only close relativity that she has now is her brother, Walter, whom Rosa has a secret feeling towards. Great addition to the Dear America books!

Wonderful!

Maria Rosalia (Rosa) lives on a rancho with the Medinos, her "family". She starts her diary when she finds it, thrown out of the window by Miguela, who had gotten it as a gift from Señor Johnston, who is in love with her. Rosa must not let anyone see that she can read and write, for it is something which was taught to her by a kind padre at the mission where she lived as a child, and she is afraid that she should not know how to do such things and would be punished, or worse. Señor Johnston's family is killed in a terrible accident, and only his neice Nelly survives. Nelly and Rosa become great friends, regardless of the fact that Nelly doesn't speak much Spanish and Rosa does not speak much English. However, they soon can communicate and the two of them are as thick as thieves. But then, things start happening. Things which may mean that Rosa's peaceful life could be at an end. Things which may mean that California will no longer belong to Mexico. Things which may mean that the Mexican way of life will soon be nothing more than memories in Alta California. Things which may mean war. I reccommend this book for all fans of Dear America, My Name is America, Royal Diaries, My America, historical books, and other things along those lines. I am in Spanish at school and I found that this book was helpful with learning new words and other things. If you are in Spanish class, or are interested in learning some Spanish, or just like the language, you'll find this book interesting and helpful.

A 13-year-old girl's diary of life in California in 1846.

The year is 1845, the place Sonoma Valley in Alta California. Raised as a Catholic at a Spanish mission in Northern California along with her younger brother before the two of them were taken in to be the servants of a wealthy Mexican family on their ranch, thirteen year old Maria Rosalia de Milagros barely remembers her Indian mother, who died of smallpox when she was six. She doesn't even know who her father was, only that he was a white man, or even what her real name was - Maria Rosalia was the name given to her by Padre Ygnacio, the priest who saved the lives of her and her little brother. Even though she is well treated by the family she works for, the Medinas, Maria Rosalia longs to know who her parents were. Her only hope would be to find Padre Yganico, and she doesn't have any idea where he is after all these years. Still, Maria Rosalia is able to find joy in holidays and celebrations, in writing in her diary, and in a new American friend, but there is a great deal of sorrow as well. This was an excellent addition to the Dear America series that revealed a great deal about a way of life that has vanished into the depths of time, and taught me about a period in American history that I knew little about.