Oklahoma Books

Prior to reading Plains Folk I & II, I had only driven through the Kansas plains region. However, after reading both books, I feel as though I pulled over and spent years there. The authors lack pretentiousness or the annoying desire of most to over "scholar-ize" the content. True to the context from which they write, Hoy and Isern remain down-to-earth and accessible in their approach. They manage to entertain as they present tons of information.
Most importantly, both authors are candid and authentic as they share not only folklore, but their own experiences as well. Both Plains Folk I & II are fun and informative.

PLAINS INDIAN HISTORY AND CULTURE by John C. Ewers is a collection of essays and articles from the author from 1967 to 1994. Ewers lacks no qualification here. He has served as the first curator of Museum of the Plains Indian on the Montana Blackfeet Reservation and has written and edited several other books related to Plains Indians.

Ewers is quick in his essays to set the record straight regarding the 20th century trend toward revisionist history. In his opening salvo, he points out that there are more American Indians alive today than there were in the mid-1800's and possibly at any time in their history. Though he readily agrees that the American Indian was dealt a lousy hand in the annals of American history, he equally points out that the "Indian - good, white settler - bad" mantra that has overwhelmed the teachings of white/Indian relations is also far from the truth. As he explains at the conclusion of his first essay, "I do not believe that Custer died for my sins. Nor do I believe that historians or anthropologists should try to expiate their sense of guilt by rewriting history of the American West so as to portray all Indians as red knights in breechclouts, or all white as pantalooned devils."

Throughout this series of splendid essays, you can almost feel yourself sitting in a lecture hall, hearing Ewers as he delivers his findings. Because the lectures were given at various times, there is to some degree, a certain amount of repetitiveness, but it hardly detracts from this fine collection of work. The essays themselves have some extent of similarity. For instance, Chapter 1, "When Red and White Men Met" covers some of the same ground as found in Chapter 3, "The Influence of the Fur Trade upon the Indians of the Northern Plains". But then, you find essays on totally unrelated matter, such as Chapter 6, "Symbols of Chiefly Authority in Spanish Louisiana".

Ewers deftly debunks countless revisionists myths throughout the book. Not the least of which is the notion that the white man disrupted some sort of harmonious utopian coexistence among the red tribes. The reader finds in elaborate detail, factual evidence to the contrary. That's not to say that Ewers holds the Indians solely accountable for their demise, but he does point out, for example, that very few Indians took advantage of the opportunity to adapt to changing times and meld into a sedentary existence of farming or ranching when that opportunity was clearly available.

This is an outstanding collection of essays and Ewers expertise on the subject matter is clearly evident from start to finish. The book concludes with 40 pages of notes and detailed bibliography providing ready resources for further study. Of the many books I have read pertaining to the American Indians, this is certainly one of the most objectively presented works I've found. A great addition to your bookshelf.

Monty Rainey
www.juntosociety.com

Karl Schlesier's book is a vital work of scholarship that draws together many views of people in the Plains for many centuries. Plains Indians is a must have for anyone's private collection on human habitation of the Great Plains in the last 2000 years. Students should have access to this scholarly documentation in every library on every campus.

Rarely do archeologists recognize an ethnic identity associated with dig sites that pre-date European occupancy of the Plains. The language links charted in the book are strong indications of the ethnicities present in the Great Plains for millennia.

I use this book every semester to lay the foundation for understanding the diversity of people present in the Plains for hundreds of generations. Plains Indians as edited by Dr. Karl Schlesier is outstanding and indispensable to ethnohistorical studies that recognize the ancestral lands of people living presently in the Great Plains.

In order to read Plato with some facility it is almost imperative to read a commentary a long with the Dialogues. A.E. Taylor is a true guide to what Plato actually says and provides useful classical context that will keep out the most egregious error. This is an essential volume in any philosopher's library.
One of the greatest thinkers of the ancient world, Plato instigated groundbreaking inquiries into morality, ethics, and the quest for happiness that continue to inform and influence philosophical discussion today. In this outstanding work of scholarship, a renowned expert on Plato presents a scrupulously accurate historical view of the great philosopher's life and works. Distinguished by its dispassionate scholarly analysis, Professor Taylor's discourse is refreshingly free of the biases that have frequently tainted other studies.
A brief introductory chapter acquaints readers with the known events of Plato's life. The author then proceeds to an illuminating examination of the philosopher's voluminous writings, including the minor Socratic dialogues, as well as such major works as Phaedo, Symposium, Protagoras, Republic, Phaedrus, Timaeus, Laws, and other influential dialogues. The final chapter, "Plato in the Academy," attempts to pin down?with the help of some of Plato's former students, such as Aristotle the philosopher's beliefs about numbers. In a substantial appendix, "The Platonic Apocrypha," Professor Taylor examines writings that have sometimes been attributed to Plato, including several letters, and offers cogent reasons for accepting or rejecting them as Plato's work.
Praised by Dean William R. Inge of Theology as "a great book, an honour to . . . British scholarship," this volume is an invaluable guide for students, teachers, and other readers interested in philosophy.

'Way back in the day when there was still magic in Radio and Asbestos was GOOD for you, agriculturalist E.H. Faulkner examined standard American agricultural methods (which have changed little since then) with a critical eye. Surprisingly or not (as the case may be), Faulkner found these prevailing methods lacking in efficiency, productivity, long-term viability, and just plain old common sense.

"Hey look!", he said (in effect). "Let's examine the NATURAL environment into which plant seeds have fallen and flourished ever since Life came to Earth! Who ripped up the soil with plows back then? If all this ripping up of the soil were really necessary, and was not done, why does plant life survive on Earth to this day? What or who fed the seeds before Humans started meddling with their life cycle? Tractors? Gasoline? Chemical fertilizers and pesticides? Where are the bees, and the earthworms? Then we EAT this abused, blighted, poisoned produce and expect healthy children? HAH! WHAT'S WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE?"

Being a practicing farmer (and no mere theorist), Faulkner then set about devising a sound, sane, Earth-sustaining agricultural cycle and methods to suit. The results of his development work are recorded in his classic account, "Plowmen's Folly".

This reviewer, nearly thirty years ago, discovered a rare hardcover First Edition of Plowman's Folly in a health-food store in Fort Wayne, IN. Having access to some land at the time and desiring excellent veggies, but being impoverished and able to afford neither tractor nor chemicals, she set to implementing the Faulkner method. The results after three years of remarkebly light labor were not only spectacu;ar, but involved far less physical effort and expense than she was accustomed to exerting in the garden plot. SO:

If you have ever, while sweating behind your roto-tiller or spreading toxic, expensive "Agricultural Chemicals" on your land, thought to yourself, "There MUST be a better way than this!", I am pleased to confirm that you are correct. There IS a better way, (one that Monsanto and ADM Corp, among many others today, would rather you did NOT learn), and "Plowman's Folly" shows just how it is done. Buy it! Share it! USE it! Your Mother the Earth shall surely bless you abundantly for it!

May 14, 2001 CE. (Your calendar may vary; we've been on Earth a long time now.)

This is the pionner book that had set grounds to new agricultural methods of soil management. Decades before direct planting and soil conservation became fashionable, Faulkner challenged the multisecular tradition which stated that plowing the soil was mandatory to any farmer. This book was praised by Louis Bromfield (Out of the Earth), when he launched his agricultural revolution at Malabar Farm.

This is a captivating tale of the Powhatans and their Pocahontas, or Matoaka as she was known. Born the daughter of the powerful Powhatan, it's almost as though she were placed by providence at the juncture of the English and the eastern woodlands Indians.

Just ten when the Jamestown settlers arrived in 1607, she became early known for her cheer and joy in seeking friends amongst the colonists. But clashes came, and her aging father sought to expel the settlers, and almost succeeded, with the help the colonists' starvation and disease. Three years after their arrival, the colony was abandoned, the departing ships at the mouth of the James waiting for the morning tide to carry them to England.

The relief ships pulled into view at that instant, a miraculous event, and Jamestown survived, and in time established a firm foothold in Virginia. Clashes with the Powhatans continued, however, and the colonists captured Pocahontas as a hostage against the relief of the Indian-held English captives. In her captivity, which seems to have been a friendly one, she was converted to Christianity-- the stories of her memorizing the various church liturgies are dear-- and married the young colonist John Rolfe. Her father agreed to abandon his war against the settlers, and indeed touchingly sent a string of fresh water pearls for her wedding and deeded land to Rolfe. There were to be eight years of peace following their union.

The Virginia Company saw advantage to her traveling to London with her new husband, and by then young Thomas Rolfe, their child. They arrived in England in 1616, and she was received as royalty by King James and Queen Ann, and met many of the English notables of the day. But the climate took its toll, and she succumbed to tuberculosis or smallpox on the very eve of their departure for Virginia. She died in Gravesend in Kent County, and lies today in the little St. George's Churchyard there.

Her monument is the peace which allowed the English the final foothold in Virginia, in spite of its eventual price on the Indians. Barely twenty when she died, she is recalled as a sprightly girl, an evocation of an America long gone.

Woodward's book is filled with details and documentation, and well worth a five-star read! What she omits, however, is that Pocahontas is survived by thousands of American descendants today, each carrying her memory in their blood as the 400th anniversary of that first north American colony nears.

The Poetry of Place: Works on Paper by Thomas Moran was published in conjunction wth the exhibit from the Gilcrease Museum. This book holds a select, exquisite collection of watercolor and various mixed-media works on paper by notable American landscape painter Thomas Moran. Within the book's 71 pages, the reader is treated to seldom seen Moran works, and virtually all in color. While the book shows work done throughout Moran's life, the bulk of the images show his exploratory sketches from his travels throughout the American West. Anne Morand's Introduction is concise and informative, while Donna Gustafson's text gets wordy in places. All in all, the book is a quick and excellent read, profusely illustrated and priced exceedingly well below its real instructional value.

"Portrait of America" was a popular video documentary series in the mid-eighties, a product of collaboration between Superstation/Turner Broadcasting Corporation and Ambrose Home Video. Well-researched, each video is divided into 5 segments covering most unique historical, social, and cultural aspects of each state. Watching such an interesting documentary, each being roughly about 50 minutes long, without advertisements and other interruptions seems to be a privilege in these days!

David Fitzgerald is one of Oklahoma's top photographers and this book just makes you want to travel to all the wonderful spots he's captured on film!