Happy Days in Southern California

by Frederick Hastings Rindge

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Genres: History

222 pages, Paperback

First published February 21, 2009

Reviews

[Telyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Frederick Hastings Rindge's "Happy Days in Southern California" is part poetic love letter and part real estate advertisement, but it provides the only detailed published account of life in Malibu in the 19th century and paints a vivid portrait of a largely vanished landscape. Rindge was the fourth owner of the entire 17,000-acre Rancho Topanga Malibu Sequit. Rindge's deliberately archaic and florid language and occasional historic and philosophical digressions are distracting, but his descriptions of the mountains, seashore, flora and fauna are beautiful and sensitive. He was a keen observer and his love of the land is almost tangible. While much of the book paints a romanticized picture for the benefit of prospective real estate investors, Rindge provides accurate and terrifying accounts of drought and wildfire. A fascinating read for anyone with an interest in California history.

[Jaak Treiman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written in 1898 by the last owner of the entire Malibu district of Los Angeles, this is a rhapsody to the area's natural wonders, some of which may still be seen if the commercial areas of today's Malibu are bypassed A good companion read is Penelope Grenoble "O'Malley's Malibu Diary: Notes from an Urban Refugee," published in 2004.