Missouri Books

Although I have owned this book for some time, I still find myself coming back to its cornucopia of sometimes-rare photographs of Springfield. In a city that preserves little of its history, CROSSROADS gives the reader glimpses into the past glories of Springfield. I would recommend this book to anyone who is trying to learn more about Springfield, or just treasures the historical lifeblood of the town.

I live in Missouri, and it was our Department of Conservation that had this book by Cy Littlebee (one of the conservationists) published. If you know a hunter or fisher, this is the cookbook to give.
The book has tons of recipes, some by Cy, many submitted by others from around the state, and very few without a bit of Cy's commentary. There are recipes for every kind of fish or game animal or bird you can immagine, every technique (from gourmet to tacking you fish to a bit of driftwood when down by the river), and every taste. The recipes are tried and true, passed down for generations, and while I'll skip some on principle (I'll agree with Cy and let someone else tell me how the book's one recipe for skunk turns outs), many are so delicious you have to try them again and again.
The only complaint I might have with this book is that there are no pictures with the recipes. But the down-home way they are all written, and the conversational way Cy describes them, you don't really miss it.
I recomend this book to anyone who hunts or fishes, lives with anyone or hunts or fishes, or even knows anyone who hunts or fishes. The recipes won't steer you wrong, and you will find so many more ways of preparing your game than you ever thought possible.

To describe Sklenicka's book, I am going to quote from a review of it by the late Mark Spilka, who was one of the finest critics of the novel in the late 20th century: "The whole unsettled question of Lawrence's relation to children, and of his literary uses of his own childhhod experiences, is taken up handsomely by Carol Sklenicka in her breakthrough study . . . .[She] has given us the first important study of the thematic value of those years for he fictional treatment of children, and for his lifelong fascination with childhood."

Anyone who thinks of Lawrence as a now-obsolete proponent of free sexual expression should take a look at this readable scholarly study. Sklenicka shows that Lawrence had real insight into the nature of children and parenthood. Especially interesting is her idea that Lawrence (in 1920!) was a proponent of greater involvement by fathers in the raising of their children.

For anyone interested in the background, impact, and future of the Pick-Sloan Plan, you need look no further than Lawson's aptly titled "Dammed Indians". The tribes from Gavins Point Dam near Yankton, SD to Ft. Peck Dam in Montana have all been adversely affected with the damming of the Missouri River, a truth which Lawson documents with precision and skill. Originally a Ph.D. dissertation written in the history department at the University of New Mexico, Lawson is a fine example of some of the many outstanding American West historians who have come out of that institution.

I purchased this book for my son for a book report and decided to read it myself. It's a wonderful book for all readers and we're looking forward to purchasing the set.

"Day Trips" is filled with enough historical material to keep a neophyte historian busy for a year. Many of the entries are tidbits of the past oft forgotten or never stored in the mental database. The book makes planning each trip an adventure and will help to fill up the weekends with local travel.

This book is great for the Missouri traveler on a budget, or for homeschooling parents looking to add adventure to the school day.
Some of these would make great two or thre day weekends. The best book I have found for Missouri.

Professor Lukacs might best be called a historic conservative rather than an ideological one. This collection of essays and articles reflects the mindset of a gentleman who wishes to conserve what is best from history. He has a few novel theories. Nationalism, not ideologies like Nazism, Communism and Fascism, has been the root cause for most of this century's struggles. One can disagree with Prof. Lukacs but one must respect his view. He hints in some fifteen year old essays that Europe would de-Americanize; as the age of the Euro nears, Prof. Lukacs was prescient. His theory on mountains and romanticism is fascinating. Before the English initiated Romanticism in the early 1800s, mountains were considered horrible. Today, Prof. Lukacs says we love mountains and their beauty; we are all romantics now. My favorite vignette was Prof. Lukacs's touring of Hitler's birthplace of Braunau on the 100th anniversary of Hitler's birth. The good professor made a side-trip from Braunau to a small Austrian village where a heroic peasant by the name, I believe, of Jagrstatter stood up to the Nazis and refused to be drafted. He was guillotined in 1943. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS BOOK.

Biographies of 700+ individuals who have contributed significantly to the development of the state of Missouri with many achieving national fame as well. The book draws from all fields of activities--politics, business, science, religion, art, etc. without regard to race, gender, etc. Although the book seems a little pricy at first glance, I wasn't disappointed--the thoroughness and quality makes it well worth the price.

I am extremely impressed with Taylor's book, which explores the real and imagined consequences of the Civil War on families in border states, where the question of secession was the most complicated and the most fraught. This book not only documents (in writing that rises to the level of great literary writing -- a rarity in young historians) the actual occurrence of split families and what they had to say for themselves, but also the psychological, moral, and political implications of families at odds with each other. That is, this book gets beyond the idea of "the brother's war" as merely a curiosity or a sentimental metaphor, and shows how the state of the society -- the relations between men and women, white and black -- itself is revealed in the experience of these families, observed in extremis.

The writing, again, is extraordinary. Fans of Doris Kearn Goodwin or David McCullough will love this book, and will be pleased to know that Taylor is of the new generation of historians and likely to be around and writing for a very long time.