Arkansas Books

After a look at "the process" -- how the message gets to the listener -- Rogers devotes the bulk of his book to the content of the message: Hurtin' love, happy love, cheatin' love and "just livin'". He closes with a look at the audience. This is an eminently readable book and manages to avoid the fawning superficiality of others, including most so-called country star autobiographies (... written with ...) but also any kind of condescension. Rogers does not lose sight of the inherent humour in much of country poetry and he stresses the crucial connection between singer and audience. He really writes about country before Garth Brooks and Shanaia Twain, but some of his analysis can be applied even to pop country, for instance the three-minute story structure. This is a fun book for everyone who enjoys country music and may seriously wonder why...

Ole J. Thienhaus

I love Smouts ....and this book!

I never thought I'd give a 5-star rating to a book written by a Creationist, but I did.

This book is about a Federal case in 1981, testing the Constitutionality of a recent law requiring balanced instruction in Creation Science and Evolutionary Science in the Arkansas public schools.

In an issue as heated as the Creationism and Evolutionism, the author is probably as unbiased as anyone can get. The author is of the opinion that the judge was prejudiced against Creationism from the beginning, and even devotes a chapter to that position, but balances this by publishing the judge's decision.

The author says that the Creationist position was unjustly treated by the news media, and offers news clippings to prove it.

The author also contends that the Attorney General did an unsatisfactory job in handling the case, but balances his view with an essay written by the Attorney General in his own defense.

Testimony by the witnesses is recounted impartially, as far as I can see. Readers of either persuasion can learn something by reading this book.

Now if you will excuse me, I must get back to writing a manuscript on Creationism and Evolution. I can't wait to see if a Creationist gives ME a 5-star rating!

The younger generations today don't know about Daisy Bates and the "Little Rock Nine" and this is a great way to learn about them. The author wrote about Daisy Bates' early beginnings without her parents and being raised by her parents' friends the Smith family in Huttig, Arkansas. Book tells you about what Daisy and her husband L. C. Bates did in Little Rock, Arkansas. The author also wrote about all the other activities that Daisy Bates was involved in Arkansas and Washington, D.C. The struggles of the "Little Rock Nine" and Daisy Bates' story should be told and remembered for generations to come.

This book is full of history! The D&R railroad is the shortest of the shortlines at 5.1 miles in length and has been in constant operation since 1893. This book tells the story through financial reports, company memos,maintenance records, and traffic data. There are many pictures that show rural America railroading at it's best and through the heyday of railroading in the USA. This book is highly recommended as a research book. It does get a little dry if you are looking for a novel. Includes tables of locomotives, and freight traffic along the line.

Mr. Brownderville read from his book at our library and spoke about his collection of folktales and poems. This is a wonderful gathering of stories from our area and it was not without hard work and effort on his part that Mr. Brownderville compiled this book. His reading was from the depth of experience in some of these situations; he has a poet's voice. A multi-talented young man. I highly recommend this book.

Diamonds Are Waiting For You is a charming treasure of a book, which reads like an adventure. James Holland, former National Geographic photographer, tells a tale of a family trip to the world's eighth largest diamond reserve. Engaging and real, the story is interwoven with history, folklore and diamond hunting tips.

The photographs that accompany the journey are beautiful and radiate the excitement of a day in which a family has the time of their lives trying to "strike it rich". I was curious about how diamonds are dug out of the ground, and came away both enlightened and entertained. Highly recommended.

For those who found the simplistic, honest, raw portraits of the ordinary townsfolk of Heber Springs, Arkansas taken by Mike Disfarmer (aka Mike Meyer) from 1939 - 1946 as touching as did this viewer, then this book is a must. As recently as 2004 the many prints and negatives of Disfarmer's 'people pictures' that spanned his entire career as a quiet small town photographer were discovered and are here printed, many for the first time.

The result of the research and compassion for the gifts of Mike Disfarmer as an observer of the common man fill the pages of this fine book, produced with the highest quality on fine paper. The subjects are couples, individuals, soldiers from WW I and WW II home on leave or ready for departure to the frontlines - this is a captured moment in history of life in middle America that is reminiscent of the poetry of Walt Whitman or the dust bowl of Dorothea Lange. Turning the pages of The Vintage Prints is like meeting paused souls who are of the earth and of the time (WWI to the 1950s) and the effect is one of aesthetic pleasure as well as deep nostalgia for a more honest time. Highly Recommended. Grady Harp, November 05

Divided Power: The Presidency, Congress, And The Formation Of American Foreign Policy edited by Donald R. Kelly (Professor of Political Science at Fulbright Institute of International Relations at the University of Arkansas), is an informed and informative collection of scholarly essays written in strict pertinence to the everlasting debate of legislative and executive power in foreign policies, and which branch retains more power. As each of the eight contributors' individual essay delve deeper into the questionability of the issue, Divided Power leaves the reader with a personal question of understanding of pertinent political science issues and national debates. As a well-researched, deftly written study, Divided Power is a strongly recommended book for political science students and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject of American foreign policy.

I met some of the fellows starting this comprehensive project in Arkansas and wondered what had ever come of it. Taub takes a very balanced and deep look full of useful lessons, insights, and analyses that would help anyone in economic and community development...I learned quite a bit and have worked with many of the programs Taub looks at in my own state. Taub's genuinely trying to find what worked, what didn't, and why rather than either praise or blame and spends a lot of time interviewing recipients of the services and other parties rather than just program directors, making a much richer look.