Reviews

 "Historian and attorney Art Martínez de Vara captures the essence of Tejano politics in the Texas borderlands with this powerful biography of José Francisco Ruiz."  

- Dr. Francis X. Galan, reviewing Tejano Patriot

"Well-written and readable, the book skillfully weaves and contextualizes Ruiz's life into a broader historical story, providing more than the title's promise." 

- Dr. Gerald Poyo, reviewing Tejano Patriot

"Martínez de Vara is an extraordinary researcher. ..and adept storyteller. The reader will go from knowing virtually nothing about this Tejano patriot to fervently wishing there had been more Texans like him.."

- Michael Barnes, reviewing Tejano Patriot

"This work passes the test. It is

everything it purports to be – a fresh

approach, factual, interesting, well

written, and more. "

- William D. "Bill" Buckner, reviewing Dios y Tejas: Essays on the History of Von Ormy, Texas

"Of the Jose Antonio Navarro, Juan Seguin, Lorenzo de Zavala, and Jose Francisco Ruiz pantheon of Tejano heroes, Ruiz has been the least written about. His account of Texas Indians in the 1820's is fascinating because he was - by almost all contemporary accounts - the foremost expert of the period, having lived with them for much of the previous decade. "

- Brandon Seale, reviewing The Jose Francisco Ruiz Papers: Report on the Indian Tribes of Texas in 1828

"Preservation and publishing go together.

 ...the work of the compiler, translator, author, indexer, and publisher are needed to truly preserve the content of the records of our ancestors and make them usable. We are indebted to Art Martinez de Vara for preserving the content of these records by translating (from the ecclesiastical Latin, some French, and the bulk in Spanish), transcribing, and publishing these early records."

- William D. "Bill" Buckner, reviewing Bexar: the History and Records of a South Texas Ghost Town