The Squatter and the Don (Annotated)
Enriched Edition. A Novel Descriptive of Contemporary Occurrences in CaliforniaBy María Amparo Ruiz de Burton
Length16h 19m
About this audiobook
The Squatter and the Don is a romance of manners, law, and dispossession set in post–Mexican-American War California, where the Alamars, an old Californio landholding family, confront Anglo squatters, corrupt courts, and the encroaching power of the railroad. Published in 1885, the novel adapts the conventions of sentimental fiction and domestic romance to a sharp political critique of Reconstruction-era capitalism, racial hierarchy, and the broken promises of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. María Amparo Ruiz de Burton, born into an elite Baja California family and later married to a U.S. Army officer, wrote from a rare bicultural vantage point. As a Spanish-speaking Catholic woman who moved within American military and political circles, she understood both Californio aristocratic society and the legal mechanisms by which Mexican landowners were dispossessed. Her experience informs the novel's unusual combination of social satire, historical testimony, and legal argument. This book is highly recommended to readers interested in nineteenth-century American literature, Chicana/o literary history, borderlands studies, and political fiction. It remains a vital work for understanding how conquest, property, race, and citizenship shaped modern California.
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.
Audiobook details
GenreHistorical Fiction, General Fiction
Length16 hrs 19 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateNov 29, 2023
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1Introduction
2Introduction
3Synopsis
4Historical Context
5CHAPTER I.— Squatter Darrell Reviews the Past.
Show all chaptersShow less
6CHAPTER II.— The Don's View of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo.
7CHAPTER III.— Pre-empting under the Law.
8CHAPTER IV.— Efforts to Right the Wrong.
9CHAPTER V.— The Don in his Broad Acres.
10CHAPTER VI.— Naughty Dog Milord an Important Factor.
11CHAPTER VII.— From Alameda to San Diego.
12CHAPTER VIII.— Victoriano and His Sister.
13CHAPTER IX.— Clarence is the Bearer of Joyful News.
14CHAPTER X.— But Clarence Must Not be Encouraged.
15CHAPTER XI.— George is a Christian Gentleman.
16CHAPTER XII.— Why the Appeal was Not Dismissed.
17CHAPTER XIII.— At San Francisco.
18CHAPTER XIV.— Of Miscellaneous Incidents.
19CHAPTER XV.— Journeying Overland.
20CHAPTER XVI.— Spanish Land Grants Viewed Retrospectively.
21CHAPTER XVII.— Doña Josefa at Home.
22CHAPTER XVIII.— At Newport.
23CHAPTER XIX.— In New York.
24CHAPTER XX.— At the Capitol.
25CHAPTER XXI.— Looking at the Receding Dome.
26CHAPTER XXII.— Perplexities at Alamar.
27CHAPTER XXIII.— Home Again.
28CHAPTER XXIV.— The Brewers of Mischief.
29CHAPTER XXV.— The Squatter and the Don.
30CHAPTER XXVI.— Mrs. Darrell's View of Our Land Laws.
31CHAPTER XXVII.— Darrell Astonishes Himself.
32“Don't say that, please. The place was for sale, Hubert telegraphed me, and I telegraphed back to buy it.”
33CHAPTER XXVIII.— Shall it be Forever?
34CHAPTER XXIX.— Hasty Decisions Repented Leisurely.
35CHAPTER XXX.— Effect of Bad Precept and Worse Example.
36CHAPTER XXXI.— A Snow Storm.
37CHAPTER XXXII.— A False Friend Sent to Deceive the Southerners.
38CHAPTER XXXIII.— San Diego's Sentence is Irrevocable.
39CHAPTER XXXIV.— The Sins of Our Legislators!
40CHAPTER XXXV.— The Fashion of Justice in San Diego.
41CHAPTER XXXVI.— Clarence and George with the Hod-carrier.
42CHAPTER XXXVII.— Reunited at Last.
43CONCLUSION.— Out with the Invader.
44Analysis
45Reflection
46Memorable Quotes
More from María Amparo Ruiz de Burton
War LordBernard Cornwell13h 21m$33 · $0.00
Ivanhoe (Annotated)Walter Scott22h 52m$2 · $0.00
The Complete Jaipur TrilogyAlka Joshi33h 44m$53 · $0.00
The Count of Monte Cristo (With Original Illustrations)Alexandre Dumas54h$1 · $0.00
Scaramouche (Annotated)Rafael Sabatini15h 24m$2 · $0.00
Northern ShadowsDaniel Greene12h 52m$23
The Ghost by the Billabong (The Matilda Saga, #5)Jackie French14h 58m$33 · $0.00
With Fire and Sword (Annotated)Henryk Sienkiewicz36h 6m$2 · $0.00
The Labyrinth of the SpiritsCarlos Ruiz Zafon27h 55m$53 · $0.00
MusashiEiji Yoshikawa53h 20m$30
The Eighth Life (for Brilka)Nino Haratischwili41h 10m$53 · $0.00
War and Peace - The Unabridged Maude Translation (Annotated)Leo Tolstoy64h 48m$2 · $0.00
The Things We Cannot SayKelly Rimmer13h 48m$33 · $0.00
Their Castilian OrphanAnna Belfrage14h 45m$27
Lieutenant Hornblower (Annotated)C. S. Forester11h 41m$2 · $0.00
The Complete 13 Novels & longer fiction: Treasure Island, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, The Black Arrow, Kidnapped, The Master of Ballantrae, The Wrong Box and more...Robert Louis Stevenson106h 29m$1 · $0.00
Eagles over BritainLee Jackson12h 26m$23
Rilla of InglesideLucy Maud Montgomery11h 44m$2 · $0.00
The Viennese DressmakerKathryn Gauci11h 46m$23 · $0.00
The Man in the Brown Suit & They Came to BaghdadAgatha Christie15h 43m$33 · $0.00
Heart of IronC. M. Alongi15h 24m$30
Ethic IIAshley Antoinette9h 1m$20
RiversnowTess Thompson8h 11m$20
Supreme ClienteleAshley & JaQuavis8h 58m$20
Body Refinement in a Beast Tamer’s World, Book 1Seth Ring14h 7m$27
EmberJeffrey Wilson, Brian Andrews13h 58m$23
The Complete Works of Jane Austen (Unabridged)Jane Austen88h 8m5.0 (1)$1 · $0.00
Desperate MeasuresBrenda Jackson8h 59m5.0 (1)$28 · $0.00
Searching For ThanksgivingS.E. Smith4h 24m$20
Naughty 4Brenda Hampton7h 30m$17
The Dance with Me TrilogyShelley Shepard Gray21h 44m$35
Anne Shirley (Complete 14 Book Collection)Lucy Maud Montgomery125h 28m$2 · $0.00
The DopemanJaQuavis Coleman5h 25m$20
Sherlock Holmes: The Ultimate CollectionArthur Conan Doyle59h 49m$5 · $0.00
WhistlerAnn Patchett10h 45m4.5 (22)$29 · $0.00
Grand Opening 2Carl Weber9h 16m$20
Sons of Valor II: Violence of ActionBrian Andrews, Jeffrey Wilson12h 34m$23
Malevolent MagicMildred Abbott7h 13m$17
Bikes, Toys, and Hot BoyzGenesis Woods, Shantaé13h 9m$23
This Side of Paradise - The Original 1920 Edition (Annotated)F. Scott Fitzgerald11h 30m$2 · $0.00
You may also like
The Squatter and the DonMaría Amparo Ruiz de Burton16h 12m$2 · $0.00
The Squatter and the DonMaría Amparo Ruiz de Burton15h 30m$1 · $0.00
Quintus Claudius (Vol. 1&2)Ernst Eckstein17h 31m$2 · $0.00
The Fire and the RoseRobyn Cadwallader14h 2m$33 · $0.00
A Sitting in St. JamesRita Williams-Garcia13h 21m$33 · $0.00
Hope Leslie (Annotated)Catharine Maria Sedgwick15h 58m$2 · $0.00
Old Mortality (Annotated)Walter Scott20h 59m$2 · $0.00
The Clansman (Annotated)Thomas Jr. Dixon10h 48m$2 · $0.00
Rhoda of the UndergroundFlorence Finch Kelly9h 31m$2.30
Old Mortality (Unabridged)Walter Scott20h 48m$2 · $0.00
The Merchant of BerlinL. Mühlbach14h 12m$2 · $0.00
The RakessScarlett Peckham10h 27m$29 · $0.00
The Cobbler of NîmesMary Imlay Taylor5h 32m$2.30
The Empresses of ConstantinopleJoseph McCabe12h 17m$2.30
The Politically Incorrect Guide to the SixtiesJonathan Leaf6h 6m$14
The Thread CollectorsShaunna J. Edwards, Alyson Richman10h 43m5.0 (1)$29 · $0.00
WynadottéJames Fenimore Cooper18h 3m$2 · $0.00
The Summer CountryLauren Willig16h 48m$40 · $0.00
London Pride, Or, When the World Was YoungerM. E. Braddon12h 3m$1 · $0.00
The Breaking of the Storm (Annotated)Friedrich Spielhagen27h 27m$2 · $0.00