Oklahoma Books

I found Beyond the Four Corners of the World to be an excellent piece of work on two levels. On the surface it's a biography; one woman's journey away from - then back to - her roots and her homeland. On a deeper level, it's a rare glimpse into the religion, culture and lifestyle on the Navajo reservation. Upon completion of this book, I felt that I had gained insight not only into the mind and heart of Ella Bedonie, but also into the beliefs and values of the Navajo People.

The story of Ella and her struggle with illness and how it intersects with her spiritual and cultural world is at once fascinating and very sad. To read Benedek's account is to travel by literary horseback deep in the rez, and meet the residents of a different world, one which is changing, one which is struggling to hold onto traditional ways at the same time. I recommend this book to anyone with interest in native people, anyone interested in cultural perspectives on illness. And anyone else! Benedek is academic and personal, she takes you there.

William L. Sublette was one of the most important of the Mountain Men during the ten-year period 1823-1833. He was present at many of the most memorable events in the Far West during that time period and had associations with a number of the leading figures in western exploration and the trans-Missouri fur trade. Born in Kentucky, he was a member of Ashley's second expedition up the Missouri and participated in the ill-fated Arikara War that took place in June 1823 at the Arikara villages in northern South Dakota. Later that year he accompanied Jedediah Smith and Thomas Fitzpatrick to the Wind River, and then trapped along the Green before going with Smith to the Snake country. In 1826, on the Bear River, Ashley sold out his interest in the fur trade to Sublette, Jackson, and Smith. In the fall Sublette trapped the Yellowstone country (Yellowstone Lake was then known as Sublette Lake), before wintering in Cache Valley.

On January 1, 1827, he and Black Harris set off for the States on snowshoes, reaching Lexington, MO, by early March after a difficult journey. For the next few years Sublette took provisions from Missouri to the mountain rendezvous, only to return in the winter with that year's furs. In 1830, he used ten wagons, the first wagons to go through South Pass. Smith, Jackson, & Sublette sold out to the Rocky Mountain Fur Company that same year, and in 1831 he set out with Smith to Santa Fe from St. Louis with trade goods; it was on this trip that the fabled Smith was killed by Cheyennes.

He returned to St. Louis and got together another outfit for the Rockies and was at the Pierre's Hole rendezvous in 1832, where he was wounded during the Battle of Pierre's Hole by Gros Ventres Indians. He returned to the mountains again the following year, reaching the Yellowstone, but was so ill he returned to St. Louis by November. He sold his fur business to the American Fur Company, and then with Robert Campbell in 1834 established Fort William on the Laramie River (later Fort Laramie). The next year Fort William was sold and Sublette retired from the fur trade. He set up a mercantile business in St. Louis and became interested in local politics. He went back to the mountains one last time, in 1843, when he accompanied William Drummond Stewart, a wealthy Scotsman, on a "tour" of the Rockies. He died in Pittsburgh in 1845 of consumption and was buried in St. Louis.

Dale Morgan once wrote that Sublette "was probably the most consistently fortunate man ever to enter the Western fur trade," and other than being wounded at Pierre's Hole in 1832, it appears to be true. He was one of the few mountain men who retired comfortably on the money he made in the fur trade. John Sunder's biography is magnificent and captures the man, his accomplishments, and his times, especially in the mountains, perfectly. It's among the best of the mountain man biographies available, and I recommend it highly to anyone interested in the subject.

Since I enjoy reading about the fur trade era, and since I live in Wyoming with a county named after Sublette, I decided to read the biography of this noteworthy man to gain a better understanding as to what part he played in the early American West. John Sunder has done a wonderful job of research and writing in this book. It was a pleasure to read. William Sublette was a man of remarkable stature, being so instrumental in all aspects of the fur trade from the early 1820's to the mid 1830's. After reading one adventure after another during these mountain years in Wyoming, the author then takes us past these formative years to when Sublette was later a prominent farmer, businessman and political affiliate in the St. Louis area. I can see why Wyoming named a county after him.

This is a phenomenal book written by a phenomenal author. Her writing is mesmerizing, especially for those who've lived in similar places and experienced the grandeur and the hardships that one experiences living in the Northwest.

I was offered an opportunity at a fellowship studying Western literature under Mary Clearman Blew's tutelage a couple of summers ago. I found her insight into Western literature as a whole, man's connection to the landscape, and living in the "Real West" fascinating. She is a true storyteller and a voice for those of us who see ourselves intrinsically linked to this place we call home.

On a side note: My favorite Blew short story is "The Sow in the River," which can be found in the book _A Circle of Women_. Excellent reading!

I read Mary Clearman Blew's collection of essays over the last weekend and found it to be wonderfully descriptive of the western experience both historically and in current times! It especially describes the experience of rural western women well: their strengths and the challenges they have faced. As a social worker I found her final essay about the experience of a single mother as foster parent balancing the demands of author, educator, mother, grandmother and foster parent to be beautifully written. Ms. Clearman Blew's sense of space and the elements is moving. The reader feels she is there with the author in each of the essays.

Five Stars for sure. A fantastic book on a little know person. I haven't really heard a lot about John Larn. If I did read something about him I don't remember because it was probably something small. I will remember him now. If you like the wild west at its best, cattle rustling, shooting, & just bad men, get this book.

Bravo Of The Brazos: John Larn Of Fort Griffin, Texas by independent scholar Robert K. DeArment is the true life story of John Larn, a colorful Texas lawman turned frontier outlaw. No stranger to shootouts, Larn led a vigilante committee with widespread support and killed at least a dozen men before he turned 29. At first his killing of horse or cattle thieves on sight garnered approval, but then he started to kill for profit or revenge, and when Larn threatened to reveal the names of the people on his vigilante committee, a mob of relatives, former friends, and various associates ruthlessly silenced his threat and ended his life. Bravo Of The Brazos is a fascinating tale of power and corruption, as well as a welcome and appreciated contribution to academic American Frontier History & Biography collections.

This was an absolutely thrilling account of the frontier Army and some of the bravest men to ever put on the uniform.

The revised edition of THE BUFFALO HUNTERS: A NARRATIVE OF THE BLACK CALVARY IN THE WEST updates a classic originally published in 1967, when it was the first book to recognize the importance of Afro-American units in the opening of the West. This revised edition expands the original research to explore the lives of these soldiers in the 9th and 10th Calvary Regiments, using recent scholarship to expand and enhance discoveries and creating an eye-opening title recommended for any college-level or in-depth collection of either military or Afro-American history.

The author did such a fantastic job describing the mountains, terrains, and the rivers, I felt as though I was there. There was also some comedy not only with the love-birds, but others which kept me laughing between tragidies as they ocurred. I have read about 25 books and they keep getting better. There is one co-author whom I did not care for. One of the books was "By The Horns". I don't remember The title of the other book. All in all, I think the books can't get any better, but I know that I will be on the edge of my chair as I read the next book.

After the civil war Texans did not have much to work with except 5000 plus long horns grazing free and wild in the breaks, a tight thorny hug bush. The cattle belong to those who are brave and tough enough to get them out and then drive them through Indian nations over mountains and across deserts. The California Trail is such an adventure. A great read.

Gold was found in Alaska, the rush to obtain it required a strong constitution and many dogs to do the work that horses usually did in the states. The environment bread harsh attitudes. Also in the testing of ones mettle one finds their true potential.

Buck (a dog that is half St Bernard and half Shepherd) goes through many lives, trials, and tribulations finally realizing his potential. On the way he learns many concepts from surprise, to deceit, and cunning; he also learns loyalty, devotion, and love. As he is growing he feels the call of the wild.

This book is well written. There is not a wasted word or thought and the story while building on its self has purpose and direction. The descriptions may be a tad graphic for the squeamish and a tad sentimental for the romantic. You see the world through Buck's eyes and understand it through his perspective until you also feel the call of the wild.

The Call of the Wild - Dog of the Yukon (1997)

If you just want a copy of _The Call of the Wild_, to give to a friend, say, this is the one to get.

The elegant Library of America edition of "London: Novels and Stories" has three complete novels _The Call of the Wild_, _White Fang_, _The Sea-Wolf_, and a very well chosen selection of stories. It's great. Viking's _The Portable Jack London_, is cheap and excellent; it's edited by Earle Labor, has _The Call of the Wild_, and an excellent selection of short stories, nonfiction, and letters. If you want copies of _The Call of the Wild_ to give to LOTS of friends, the Dover Thrift Edition is just a buck.

But if you want _just_ The Call of the Wild, this edition is nice enough to give as a gift, is clear and legible, and has just the right amount of pictures and annotations. Not a scholarly work, but every time you get to one of those places where you have a question--where was Dyea? What was the "Chinese lottery?" Could a dog really pull a thousand pound sled? there's Dyer with the answer.

If you're interested in Jack London, take a look at the alt.books.jack-london Internet discussion group--see "about me" for details.

As a Cherokee, I am glad that Duvall wrote this book. I hope more like it are going to come.

I am always looking for and reading American Indian history books and this is one of the best oral histories and collection of images that I have come across. Plus the price is affordable! One of my favorite aspects of this book is that you get to hear the voice of the Indians in regard to history from their perspective.

A well researched and beautifully written account of a time in history that usually finds its focus elsewhere. The devastating effects the Civil War had on our Native Nations is sadly overlooked in our study of American History. Ms. Confer does an outstanding job of bringing it to life for us in an interesting and readable work. I highly recommend this book and look forward to reading more from her.

The book is well written, and readable. The research is amazing ,scholarly and accurate. We don't offen see Native Americans portrayed that honestly, or thouroughly. Very different from the Hollywood
verison.

I found this book to be very interesting. I found references made to my 5th Great Grandfather Samuel Riley and his son Richard Riley. It was very interesting and fasinating reading history on your own ancestors and their ways of life. My cousin found this book fasinating after she read parts of mine, that she went and bought it for herself.

William McLoughlin (1922-1992) was for forty years a professor of history and religion at Brown, and this scholarly book is one of his best, carefully researched and written in a clear and logical style. Not only does McLoughlin treat the complex subject of how Cherokees and missionaries interacted, he also deals with how both dealt with the contemporary culture, especially the removal crisis that led to the "Trail of Tears." McLoughlin notes, for instance, that missionaries struggled with "rendering unto Caesar," especially when the identity of Caesar was in doubt.

McLoughlin delineates the strengths and weaknesses of the various denominational missionary efforts. The Congregationalist/Presbyterians overemphasized education and the formalities of religion to the detriment of evangelism. The Moravians were steady and apolitical, but their reliance on the lot and their determination to establish a farming community of converts retarded their work. The Methodists' emotionalism and protracted meetings attracted the Indians (who had counterparts in their own religion), but their anti-intellectualism, low standards for conversion, and "sheep stealing" were negative traits.

My only criticisms of this long book (with fairly small print) are that McLoughlin sometimes goes beyond evidence in trying to reconstruct the nature of the anti-missionary reaction among the Cherokees and that he asserts mundane reasons for decisions that the missionaries more likely made on spiritual grounds.