The Americana Series Monthly Challenge – August 2019: New Mexico

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The Americana Series Monthly Challenge – August 2019: New Mexico

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1bhabeck
Jul 29, 2019, 12:48 am

Each month, we will visit a different state in the United States of America for the Monthly Reading Challenge in the Mystery & Suspense Extra! Group. This month, we travel to the state of New Mexico.

The Americana Series Monthly Challenge – August 2019: New Mexico


History

New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern region of the United States of America; its capital and cultural center is Santa Fe, which was founded in 1610 as capital of Nuevo México (itself established as a province of New Spain in 1598), while its largest city is Albuquerque.

Inhabited by Native Americans for many thousands of years before European exploration, it was colonized by the Spanish in 1598 as part of the Imperial Spanish viceroyalty of New Spain. In 1563, it was named Nuevo México after the Aztec Valley of Mexico by Spanish settlers, more than 250 years before the establishment and naming of the present-day country of Mexico; thus, the present-day state of New Mexico was not named after the country today known as Mexico. After Mexican independence in 1824, New Mexico became a Mexican territory with considerable autonomy. This autonomy was threatened, however, by the centralizing tendencies of the Mexican government from the 1830s onward, with rising tensions eventually leading to the Revolt of 1837. At the same time, the region became more economically dependent on the United States. At the conclusion of the Mexican–American War, in 1848, the United States annexed New Mexico as the U.S. New Mexico Territory. It was admitted to the Union as the 47th state on January 6, 1912.

Its history has given New Mexico the highest percentage of Hispanic and Latino Americans, and the second-highest percentage of Native Americans as a population proportion (after Alaska). New Mexico is home to part of the Navajo Nation, 19 federally recognized Pueblo communities of Puebloan peoples, and three different federally recognized Apache tribes. In prehistoric times, the area was home to Ancestral Puebloans, Mogollon, and the modern extant Comanche and Utes inhabited the state. The largest Hispanic and Latino groups represented include the Hispanos of New Mexico, Chicanos, and Mexican Americans. The flag of New Mexico features the state's Spanish origins with the same scarlet and gold coloration as Spain's Cross of Burgundy, along with the ancient sun symbol of the Zia, a Puebloan tribe. These indigenous, Hispanic, Mexican, Latin, and American frontier roots are reflected in the eponymous New Mexican cuisineand the New Mexico music genre.


Geography

With a total area of 121,699 square miles (315,200 km2), the state is the fifth-largest state of the US, and slightly larger than British Isles. New Mexico's eastern border lies along 103W longitude with the state of Oklahoma, and (due to a 19th-century surveying error) 2.2 miles west of 103W longitude with Texas. On the southern border, Texas makes up the eastern two-thirds, while the Mexican states of Chihuahua and Sonora make up the western third, with Chihuahua making up about 90% of that. The southwestern corner of the state is known as the Bootheel. The 37N parallel forms the northern boundary with Colorado. The states of New Mexico, Colorado, Arizona, and Utah come together at the Four Corners in New Mexico's northwestern corner. New Mexico has almost no natural water sources. Its surface water area is about 250 square miles (650 km2) which is approximately .002% of the state’s total surface area.


The New Mexican landscape ranges from wide, rose-colored deserts to broken mesas to high, snow-capped peaks. Despite New Mexico's arid image, heavily forested mountain wildernesses cover a significant portion of the state, especially towards the north. The Sangre de Cristo Mountains, the southernmost part of the Rocky Mountains, run roughly north–south along the east side of the Rio Grande in the rugged, pastoral north. The most important of New Mexico's rivers are the Rio Grande, Pecos, Canadian, San Juan, and Gila. The Rio Grande is tied for the fourth-longest river in the United States.

Fun Facts

New Mexico is wine country. Franciscan Garcia De Zuniga and a monk named Antonia de Arteaga started growing wine grape along with Rio Grande in 1629. By the late 19th century, New Mexico was the wine growing region in the US, producing over a million gallons each year.

Taos Pueblo has been inhabited for over a thousand years.


New Mexico has more PhDs per capita than any other state. The reason? The Government. Albuquerque hosts Sandia National Laboratories and a number of other research facilities. Then there’s Los Alamos National Laboratory, Intel and several land management agencies including the Forest Service and National Park Service.

Santa Fe is the nation’s highest state capital at 7,199 feet above sea level.

New Mexico is home to one of the closest presidential votes in recent history, when during the Bush v Gore 2000 election it came down to 366 votes, even less than Florida.

You can see 5 different states from the top of Capulin Volcano, an extinct cinder cone volcano in the northeastern corner of the state. From the top, you can see Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Colorado in additional to New Mexico.

Tens of thousands of bats live in the Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico. The largest chamber is more than 10 football fields long (3,000 feet) and about 22 stories high.

Cimarron, New Mexico was once known as the “Cowboy capital of the world.” Some of the old west’s most famous names – Kit Carson, Buffalo Bill Cody and Billy the Kid – lived there. A quote from the Las Vegas Gazette illustrates how lawless Cimarron was – “Everything is quiet in Cimarron. Nobody has been killed in 3 days.”

Smokey Bear is from New Mexico. During World War II, Smokey was invented to help educate the American public about the dangers of wilderness blazes. The living symbol of Smokey was actually a black bear cub found by firefighters from Taos Pueblo in southeastern New Mexico during the massive Capitan Gap fire of 1950. Smokey lived at the National Zoo in Washington, DC until his death in 1976. And note, it’s Smokey Bear – not Smokey the Bear.


The first atomic bomb was exploded in New Mexico. On July 16, 1945, the very first atomic bomb was detonated in the desert sands of the Jornada del Muerto in south-central New Mexico. Known by its code name, Trinity, it was of the same design as the bomb dropped on Nagasaki, Japan, a few weeks later. The Trinity Site is located on the White Sands Missile Range and is now a National Historic Site.

New Mexico is home to the largest hot air balloon festival in the world. Every October, over 500 hot air balloons – and tens of thousands of balloon aficionados – gather for the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta.


Notable Residents

Well-known actors from New Mexico include: Val Kilmer, Neil Patrick Harris, Demi Moore, Adrian Grenier, Freddie Prinze, Jr. and Vivian Vance (Ethel from I Love Lucy). Singers Demi Lovato and John Denver are from New Mexico.


William Hanna, an animator and cartoon artist) known for the Saturday Morning cartoons such as Tom and Jerry, Yogi Bear, Scooby-Doo Where Are You?, and The Flintstones. William Hanna won seven Academy Awards and eight Emmys with his partner, Joseph Barbera.

Artist Georgia O’Keefe was born in New Mexico in November 1887.

Businessmen Jeff Bezos and Conrad Hilton are from New Mexico. And, don’t forget, Microsoft started in a garage located in New Mexico.

In honor of New Mexico, read a Mystery/Suspense book (any sub-genre will do!) that satisfies one or more of the following:

• A Mystery/Suspense book with “New,” “Bomb,” “Yellow,” or “Smoke” in the title or an animal (bonus for a bear!), a balloon or a bomb/explosion on the cover;

• A Mystery/Suspense book that has a Hispanic or Spanish or Native American character or takes place in the American Southwest, Spain, or a vineyard or

• A Mystery/Suspense book where the author's initials (BOTH the first AND last) can be found in NEWMEXICO


Happy Reading ❤

2bhabeck
Editado: Ago 25, 2019, 9:29 pm

Brenda's August 2019 Americana Challenge - New Mexico
3 of 3 Complete


• A Mystery/Suspense book with “New,” “Bomb,” “Yellow,” or “Smoke” in the title or an animal (bonus for a bear!), a balloon or a bomb/explosion on the cover;
The Mystery of the Yellow Room by Gaston Leroux; finished 8/25/19; 1.5 stars

• A Mystery/Suspense book that has a Hispanic or Spanish or Native American character or takes place in the American Southwest, Spain, or a vineyard or
Track of the Cat by Nevada Barr; takes place in the American Southwest; finished 8/12/19; 2 stars

• A Mystery/Suspense book where the author's initials (BOTH the first AND last) can be found in NEWMEXICO
Size 14 is Not Fat Either by Meg Cabot; MC; finished 8/21/19; 3.5 stars

3Carol420
Editado: Ago 15, 2019, 1:41 pm



Carol's Going To New Mexico To Get Herself A Cowboy!

📌 - ★
3/3

📌1. A Mystery/Suspense book with “New,” “Bomb,” “Yellow,” or “Smoke” in the title or an animal (bonus for a bear!), a balloon or a bomb/explosion on the cover;
Book of A Hundred Bears: A Tale of Yellowstone Park by F. Dumont Smith - published in 1909. 2 birds...I mean bears...with one stone:) - 5★



📌2. A Mystery/Suspense book that has a Hispanic or Spanish or Native American character or takes place in the American Southwest, Spain, or a vineyard or
Hearts of the Missing by Carol Potenza - 4★

📌3. A Mystery/Suspense book where the author's initials (BOTH the first AND last) can be found in NEW MEXICO
Eve of Destruction by Edward Martin- 3★

4Olivermagnus
Editado: Ago 26, 2019, 8:00 pm

.

Lynda and Oliver Head to The Land of Enchantment

📌 A Mystery/Suspense book with “New,” “Bomb,” “Yellow,” or “Smoke” in the title or an animal (bonus for a bear!), a balloon or a bomb/explosion on the cover
The Wild Inside - Christine Carbo - 4.5 Stars - 8/3/19


• A Mystery/Suspense book that has a Hispanic or Spanish or Native American character or takes place in the American Southwest, Spain, or a vineyard or

📌 • A Mystery/Suspense book where the author's initials (BOTH the first AND last) can be found in NEWMEXICO
Black Echo - Michael Connelly - MC

5Sergeirocks
Jul 29, 2019, 5:54 pm

>3 Carol420: "Carol's Going To New Mexico To Get Herself A Cowboy!"

I hope Mr. Carol doesn't object! Ha!

6Carol420
Editado: Jul 29, 2019, 9:08 pm

>5 Sergeirocks: SHHHH!!! He thinks I'm getting a "Boy-cow'! He'll probably just want steaks:( After 57 years I don't think he's too worried.

7Sergeirocks
Jul 30, 2019, 5:56 am

8Sergeirocks
Editado: Jul 30, 2019, 8:52 am

>3 Carol420: Here's the book page for your 'Hundred Bears', Carol. You'll have it all to yourself by the look of things.

https://www.librarything.com/work/23522685

(ps This only brings up the page I found if I keep it on my books list - if it doesn't load up you could try what I did originally - searching for "hundred bears tale Yellowstone Park" in the 'add books' section.)

9Carol420
Editado: Jul 30, 2019, 9:27 am

>8 Sergeirocks: It brings up the cover and I did add it to my books but touchstone never heard of it. I think I might be able to get it to recognize it with the ISBN number. Thanks for the page at least.

10Sergeirocks
Jul 30, 2019, 2:40 pm

>9 Carol420: I do like that cover - it has a feeling of age about it - you can tell it was printed over a hundred years ago just by looking at it.

11Sergeirocks
Jul 30, 2019, 4:43 pm

F. Dumont Smith - Book of a Hundred Bears: A Tale of Yellowstone Park

>9 Carol420: Does this mean the touchstone is working now? I've managed to find something by putting the author first.

12gaylebutz
Jul 30, 2019, 5:10 pm

I'm going to read Heartshot by Steven Havill. It takes place in New Mexico and has a Hispanic character.

>6 Carol420: Hilarious!

13bhabeck
Jul 30, 2019, 5:42 pm

>12 gaylebutz: that sounds like an interesting mystery series. Putting that on my list to check out...I love “curmudgeonly” characters

14Carol420
Editado: Jul 31, 2019, 6:19 am

>11 Sergeirocks: Yeah team!!! I got it to work. Thank you. Not that it really mattered...but I just hate giving up when things should work.

OH...Mr. Carol says to go ahead and bring home the cowboy...see if I can get two.... but they need to be YOUNG ones. He's hoping that they can mow grass and shovel snow:)

15Sergeirocks
Jul 31, 2019, 8:52 am

>14 Carol420: I like Mr. C's style! 😀

(I know where you're coming from, Carol, I must admit I hate giving up on stuff too, that's what made me keep going on the 'Bears' book page.)

16jguidry
Jul 31, 2019, 11:45 pm

Jaret's Nature Tour of New Mexico:
(0/3 completed)

• A Mystery/Suspense book with “New,” “Bomb,” “Yellow,” or “Smoke” in the title or an animal (bonus for a bear!), a balloon or a bomb/explosion on the cover;

• A Mystery/Suspense book that has a Hispanic or Spanish or Native American character or takes place in the American Southwest, Spain, or a vineyard or

• A Mystery/Suspense book where the author's initials (BOTH the first AND last) can be found in NEWMEXICO

17Sergeirocks
Ago 6, 2019, 1:22 pm

First one down:

6 August 2019 - Exocet - Jack Higgins 5★s (A bomb on the cover.)

18Sergeirocks
Ago 9, 2019, 12:53 pm

Book 2:

9 August - The Coffin Trail - Martin Edwards 4.25★s (Authors initials to be found in NEWMEXICO)

19Carol420
Editado: Ago 15, 2019, 1:44 pm



Thanks, Brenda. Ready for the next one!

20bhabeck
Ago 16, 2019, 12:32 am

Whoohoo! Well done, Carol!

21gaylebutz
Ago 17, 2019, 1:27 pm

A Mystery/Suspense book that has a Hispanic character and takes place in the American Southwest (New Mexico)

Heartshot by Steven F. Havill
3.5 ★

A small town in New Mexico has an earnest, elected Sheriff and his aging Undersheriff-William C. Gastner. Pushing sixty, widower Bill has no other life than in law enforcement-and doesn't want one, even if he's being nudged gently toward retirement. Then big time trouble strikes. A car full of teens, running from a stop by Deputy Torrez, goes airborne into a rocky outcrop, killing all five kids and revealing a package of cocaine under the seat. Has someone brought big-time crime to the county?

This is a steadily paced story about a small town where everyone knows everyone and drugs are not common. The characters are likeable and mostly believable especially Gastner. He’s gruff and curmudgeonly with a bit of humor but he really cares about protecting the people in his town. The story kept my interest until the end when Gastner takes a big unnecessary risk that wasn’t believable. Overall, I still enjoyed this and will try another in the series.

22bhabeck
Editado: Ago 25, 2019, 10:26 pm

>2 bhabeck: finally done.

The Mystery of the Yellow Room was really kicking my butt. The crime is interesting (an attempted murder in a locked room) but the characters are incredibly annoying and arrogant (not the charmingly, over-the-top arrogance of Poirot!) and the writing style kept taking me out of the story. I've found that books written around this period (late 1800s/early 1900s) have a way of doing dialogue that I really don't like. Everything seems to be written as an exclamation! Everything! Whether it needs it or not! And, it annoys me! :)

23Carol420
Ago 26, 2019, 7:28 am

24Olivermagnus
Ago 26, 2019, 8:01 pm

Lynda and Oliver Head to The Land of Enchantment

📌 A Mystery/Suspense book with “New,” “Bomb,” “Yellow,” or “Smoke” in the title or an animal (bonus for a bear!), a balloon or a bomb/explosion on the cover
The Wild Inside - Christine Carbo - 4.5 Stars - 8/3/19

25bhabeck
Ago 26, 2019, 8:11 pm

>24 Olivermagnus: NICE! and, even better - you did a gif! I still can't figure out how to get those things to work on this site....

I was looking at that series when we did Alaska - with your 4.5 stars, I'll have to make sure it's on my tbr.

26Sergeirocks
Editado: Ago 28, 2019, 6:35 pm

Final book:

28 August - The Black Echo (group read) - Michael Connelly 3.5★s (Takes place in American Southwest - LA, California)

27bhabeck
Ago 28, 2019, 8:14 pm

>26 Sergeirocks: WTG Sergei!

28Carol420
Editado: Ago 29, 2019, 6:48 am

29Olivermagnus
Editado: Ago 29, 2019, 9:28 pm

>25 bhabeck: - I really liked the first one and have the second on hold.

I do the gif just like the pictures but I never got the hang of putting them in the junk drawer. I just open the image in a new tab, then do the ..img src= " followed by the photo, then the sizing " width ="100" height="100" alt="description".. (adjusted for size)

30Sergeirocks
Ago 30, 2019, 9:55 am

>27 bhabeck: >28 Carol420: Thanks people! 😀 I do like this challenge.

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