University of Missouri Books

If you enjoy reading history then you'll enjoy this book. Especially, of course, if your from St. Louis or have a particular interest in the city itself and its surrounding area.

Though obviously well written and deeply researched, Lion of the Valley is so incredibly dense it's a challenge to read. Every page is so packed with tiny factoids about people, associations, political developments, bond issues, etc., that only a few topics rise above the clutter to stick with the reader. (I found myself frequently going back a page or two to reestablish the identity of a person, place or thing.) But then again, in covering 200+ years of history, how does one limit the subject matter?

Having read other city-specific histories (namely, Chicago and NYC), I view Lion as more of a textbook than an engaging narrative. Informative, enlightening, yes. But not an easy read.

This is simply one of the best books I have read on the history of a city. Not a simple tour of neighborhoods, architecture or ethnic groups that settled in various enclaves of the city, but rather a comprehensive and intelligent look at a city from its earliest days, placed against the backdrop of its development in the region and history. the only comparable book on a city that i have read which is better from an economic and regional development standpoint is nature's metropolis about chicago. one wonders why we do not have more gems like these about all american cities. perhaps we would take better care of our hometowns if we knew more about their past from a thoughtful perspective. anyway, lion of the valley is superb.

j. martignon

Modernity Without Restraint comprises three overlapping essays / lectures by Voegelin in which he explores the "pneumopathological" effects of Gnostic beliefs on the individual and the society they infect. Voegelin intended them to target gnostic elements in the ideologies of two of the totalitarian movements of his time, Fascism and Communism, though they bear a chilling relevance to the current intermingling of right wing politics and evangelical Christianism in contemporary American political culture. His style can be difficult, his vocabulary (translated from the German) can seem strange at times (e.g., "pneumopathology," "immanentization"), and his central theme of the importance of ordering the individual soul, and society at large, in harmony with a "transcendent order of being" could be initially off-putting to a "social scientist," but his thesis, well supported and argued through a synopsis of relevant thinkers and topics from the history of religion, philosophy and social science, provides an interesting and broadening counterpoint to "modern" positivist / realist / behaviorist influences in political science and social science generally. Though much of Voegelin's argument centers around the importance of spirituality for the individual and society, and connection to a transcendent order that is "given," "Modernity Without Restraint" provides a timeless warning against "immanentization of the (Christian) eschaton," the spiritual and practical consequences for any society that succumbs to it.

_Modernity Without Restraint_ presents three of Erik Voegelin's essays on the modern political religions, including Marxism, National Socialism, Hegelianism, Nietzschianism, and Heideggerianism. To Voegelin, these thinkers are all best described as "gnostics" and in their effort to create God's Kingdom on Earth seek to "immanentize the Christian eschaton". In "The Political Religions", Voegelin traces back the origin of political religion to the Egyptian worship of the Sun, the cult of Akhenaton. He traverses the history of the Middle Ages, and he shows how the archetype of the Christian apocalypse (a heresy to the orthodox Christian) came to occupy a central role in political religion. He includes a good discussion of the leviathanic state of Thomas Hobbes. Finally he ends with a compelling picture of the National Socialist state embodied in the Fuehrer. Although he was criticized in this essay for not outrightly condemning the National Socialists, Voegelin stated that this in fact just reveals the satanic allure that this political religion holds. To Voegelin, National Socialism is "satanic". In "The New Science of Politics", Voegelin examines various modes of representation from Plato and Aristotle through the Roman Empire. He then discusses the idea of gnosticism; he views the modern political religions as a restoration of the Gnostic heresy (condemned by early Christianity), an attempt to replace faith with certainty and bring about the Kingdom of God on Earth. This idea arose in the apocalyptic tradition, transmitted through the Middle Ages by the followers of Joachim de Fiore. He discusses in particular the case of the English Puritans. According to Voegelin, the modern political philosophies of liberalism, communism, and the philosophy of Thomas Hobbes are under the spell of gnosticism. In "Science, Politics, and Gnosticism", the most interesting of the essays presented, Voegelin delves into the thinkers Hegel, Marx ("an intellectual swindler"), Nietzsche ("the murder of God"), Heidegger, and psychoanalysis and National Socialism. To Voegelin, these thinkers are all "gnostics", and the movements spurred by their philosophies are "ersatz religions".

Voegelin represents an interesting alternative to modernity and liberalism. And this book among his collected works serves as an excellent introduction to the thought of this profound thinker, philosopher of gnosticism.

For those of you who are new to Voegelin perhaps a word generally about his work will be helpful. Voegelin was born in Cologne, Germany in 1901. In 1938, he and his wife fled from Germany to the United States. From this context alone it is not surprising that Voegelin is very critical of the Nazis in particular and totalitarian regimes in general. What is perhaps more surprising to those who first come across Voegelin is his claim that regimes such as the Nazis are derivatives of such generally loved intellectual movements as the Enlightenment and Progressivism.

Taken together, the three works published in this volume provide a good basis for understanding how Voegelin comes to this conclusion. In this regard, "The New Science of Politics" is probably the most comprehensive work of the three. However, I would make two suggestions to those who are considering tackling this volume. First, read the first and third (that is, "The Political Religions" and "Science, Politics, and Gnosticism") before reading "The New Science of Politics". I think that the first and third pieces are much easier to read, even though they are less encompassing overall. Second, read "The New Science of Politics" twice. I read that installment for the first time about a year ago and I feel that I understood a lot more the second time around.

Voegelin is a great thinker, and his works in this volume provide a different, and yet very profound way of looking at modern Western society. I think Voegelin's construction of Gnosticism is right on as a critique of the modern psyche. I would recommend this book to anyone looking to explore the work of Voegelin; this is a great place to start. The writing is fairly difficult, but you don't have to understand everything to take a lot from this book.

This an awsome collection snippets from the life & times in the Black Hills aroung the 1870's. Written is a way that you feel like you are reading the author's diary. Deadwood was a great HBO series and this book really fills in the blanks. It is a suprise how much pain the early pioneers endured heading west (and how the American Indians were take advantage of!).

This man gives a real account of the real Deadwood and the events of the gold rush. Nothing is made up nor did he embelish. How refreshing. While reading it in the Black Hills, I am in awe of some of the places he describes. Though the topography has changed a bit, its fun to go see where the events happened. Some happy, some sad. Stories about the Sioux and Lakota Indians adds interest.

I would highly recommend this book for true facts of Wild Bill, Calamity Jane and Deadwood gold rush days

After seeing the HBO special about Deadwood I was interested in getting some factual data. This book provided insight and drama to a part of history above and beyond what a HBO special could provide. The historical accounts of people, places and gold give the reader something to chew on while contemplating what it would be like in the American past. SASS members would love the book also.

Though not the only source of knowledge about the Quakers during the Nazi period, it is currently the best. It can also be a practical guide for those confronting how pacificism and apolitical compassion may be applied in the face of modern, often evil, totalitarianism. The books documents the mistakes, the triumphs, the ideals and tactics of the Friends during one of their most trying of times. It is not surprising that the Quakers were recognized via their Friends Service Committee the 1947 Nobel Peace Prize. Strongly recommended.

Schmitt repeatedly stresses in his book the title- Quakers *and* Nazis, not Quakers *verses* Nazis. And that is the beauty of this book. Schmitt writes of how the Quakers in WWII worked to protect people from the Nazis, to engage in feeding programs, clothing the hungry, serving those the Nazis were oppressing, working to release them from prison and concentration camps. All this they do before WWII, during the war, and afterward, throughout the world- Germany, Austria, Poland, Latvia, Holland, Denmark, and even Morocco.

But Schmitt also writes of how the Friends worked to free Nazis from prison, to feed the Nazis and German soldiers, and make sure they were clothed. They believed that no one should be imprisoned for the sake of their conscience, no one should be mistreated for what they believed- no matter how insiduous those beliefs.

There are times when the Quakers struggle with their missions, and times when they don't agree. Reflecting the standard Quaker doctrine that each individual should be guided by the internal Light of the Holy Spirit, some choose to fight for Germany, though most choose the ancient Quaker doctrine of pacifism. Some choose to work in England to try to appease Germany; others realize early on this will not happen. Some are willing to agree with Germany's Semitic separations in feeding the poor and oppressed, in order that they might at least help some; others refuse to be involved in anti-Semitism at all.

Schmitt writes with copious detail, which can lead to some boredom at times- there's a lot of research here, and sometimes you have to wade through it to get to the better parts. I was particularly impressed how, as one reads step by step in the history of the period, how easy it was to not realize the horrific nature of the Nazi regime, from the perspective of the time. Even the Quakers who disagree with the anti-Semitism, violence, and injustice of the Nazis, don't realize the full gamut of the evil of the Nazi regime until the stories come out at war's end. In the beginning, it is one's own country, which has taken a wrong turn, as every country does, in every age. And the wrong turn gets a little worse. And a little worse. And it is so easy to disagree with the actions of one's country, to fight them, but still not realize that that last turn was the one that went far, far too far.

The Friends respond to these wrong turns with love. They decided they would love the Jews, and their fellow Germans. And that they would love the Nazis, as brothers and friends. Just as they won slave-owners in the South to the cause of abolition by loving the slave-owners as brothers, they hoped to win over the Nazis. They succeeded in some small measure in gaining greater rights to care for the oppressed. But most of all, they remained a witness of love and peace, a light in a time of great darkness.

Mr Schmidt extensively researched this book to not only reveal the work of the Quakers in Nazi Germany, but also to allow the reader inside the minds of so many of the participants. Though the book can become tedious because of its depth of detail, it also finds its power in those personal stories. Imagine a member of the Gestapo allowing the Quakers to feed the oppressed because he himself had been fed by the Quakers in post WWI relief efforts. This is a piece of history few if any know about, and Mr. Schmidt makes it all interesting.

"The Rebirth of the Missouri Pacific, 1956-1983," by H. Craig Miner, Texas A&M University Press, College Station, 1983. This is the story of the Missouri Pacific Railroad during the final days before it was merged into the Union Pacific system in 1983. The MoPac originated as part of the Missouri state railroad system. That system created a network of railroads designed to bring traffic to St. Louis, Gateway to the West, and during the steamboat era, fourth largest city in the US. The Pacific and Missouri was envisioned as the premiere line of the system. Its route connected St. Louis with the state capitol in Jefferson City, taking the scenic route along the south bank of the Missouri River. The line then continued to Sedalia, head of the Texas Trail and on to what would become Kansas City, head of the Santa Fe, California, and Oregon Trails. It was envisioned that MoPac would be the first leg of the transcontinental railroad, then being promoted by Missouri's Sen. Thomas Hart Benton, a major booster for Western expansion.

Those big plans seem doomed almost from the beginning. In 1855, an inaugural excursion train carrying executives and dignitaries to Jefferson City crashed through a temporary bridge over the Gasconade River killing most of the railroad's most vigorous supporters. Ultimately, the Transcontinental Railroad was built from Omaha rather than Kansas City. After a stent as crown jewel of robber baron Jay Gould's empire, MoPac wound up with a system from St. Louis to Pueblo, CO, and with southern branches extending into Texas and Louisiana--serving especially chemical manufacturing in that area. Eventually the MoPac sank into bankruptcy during the Depression. It took years to resolve the bankruptcy, during which the railroad was operated by trustees. A complex structure resulted with Alleghany Corp controlling B shares and Mississippi River Fuel Corporation, the pipeline company that brought natural gas to St. Louis, as major players.

Miner picks up the story as MoPac leaves bankruptcy reorganization. How quickly we forget the days when railroads were highly competitive small empires, that had to exchange traffic with neighbors to send freight any distance. Those were the days when strict regulators made it difficult to merge any lines while balancing the competitive needs of other interests. Miner takes us through the era when MoPac decides to modernize, recapitalizes to eliminate the B shares, installs the first computers and uses them to build major operating efficiencies. MoPac also negotiates endless mergers. Eventually they are able to buy part of the C & EI granting them access to Chicago. This book covers the era when MoPac rebuilt itself from a tradition bound road to nowhere to a modern railroad, often ranked one of the best managed in the US.

Miner's story of installing the first computers, using them for materials control, streamlining supply operations, and later to control real time operations makes great reading. MoPac also took pride in establishing modern hiring practices beginning with interviewing on campus. A training program was established to help the best candidates learn the railroad business and move rapidly up the executive ranks. This was a major change from the days when rail executives began as brakemen, worked their way up, and usually were chosen based on seniority. MoPac developed a way to bring the brightest and best college graduates into the railroad business. Similarly, modernization included developing a standardized system for maintaining motive power, for repairing cars, innovating in unit trains and in piggyback/container cargo, and installing modern equipment in selected shops and yards.

Miner's tale is loaded with gory details in the early stages, but in the end it covers the subject of modernizing a railroad very well. Railroaders will enjoy it. IT types will enjoy the detailed account of successfully installing major systems in a traditional bound industry. Index. Footnotes.

I read this book years ago and find it quite interesting. Many of the concepts in this books were explained in my transportation class. Mopac was an very important rail line in the Southwest and many of the present day U.P. Managers (i.e. Dick Davidson) came from this railroad. I hope people can draw the history and basic concepts to understand present day railroad operations.

This book gives a good look at the forces that shaped the Missouri Pacific Railroad during its final era, from job forces, line acquisitions and locomotives to corporate doings and "pleasing the stockholders." It also includes excellent black-and-white photographs and informative maps. Despite the fact that I am primarily a Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad fan, I still found this book to be extremely interesting and thorough. It reads quickly, presenting the information in a concise, well-organized manner. I highly recommend this book to any railroad fan who is interested in the history of railroads, particularly that of the "MoPac" and its closest rail competitors.

Kirkus Reviews

A boy's-eye view of life during wartime-first the Soviet Union's vicious internal struggles under Stalin and then its horrific ordeal after the Germans invaded in 1941.

Konstantin begins his memoir in dramatic fashion, recalling the night of April 17, 1938, when his father was taken away by the Soviet secret police and never seen again in their little town in the Ukraine. The early passages of the book do a fine job of explaining the climate in which such an incident could occur; Konstantin describes an Orwellian regime full of furtive police activities, mysterious disappearances and a terrorized populace.

What makes Konstantin's recollections so captivating is his ability to effectively divide the text between small details vividly rendered, such as a trip to the movie theater, and the larger story of a global political and military struggle. Despite the upheavals that roiled his childhood, the author somehow managed to get a decent education; he refers frequently to inspirational teachers and to devouring books ranging from The Grapes of Wrath to Das Kapital. But these moments of enlightenment in Konstantin's young life were tempered by the unbearable wartime conditions; often, as he left school for the day, he saw corpses piled high on wagons to be carted away.

His mother married a Polish refugee in 1944, and they were able to return with him to Poland in 1945, happy to escape the "cursed" Soviet Union. But the Soviets soon consolidated their grip on Poland, and the family fled west, finally winding up in a UN refugee camp in Germany. As a displaced person, Konstantin qualified for free tuition at a local university, and after three more years of struggle was finally able to emigrateto "the land of my dreams"-America. Uneven, but full of engaging details about a tumultuous period in world history.

An incredible story of survival in the most horrific of times. This book is testimony to the human spirit - to a young man's determination to prevail. His commitment to books, to learning and his ability to recall and describe the details of his difficult life are admirable. Unfortunately - like so many books of this ilk - it lacks an index.

One of the most touching and riveting war memoirs I have ever read.
Anatole Konstantin's life is a triumph over incredible pain and suffering during the Stalin era. This is a must-read.

Dr. Raferty has done a wonderful job bringing together Henry Rowe Schoolcraft's journals of his adventure into the eastern and central Ozarks Region before major settlement. Schoolcraft's jouney begins at Potosi, Missouri on November 5, 1818 and proceeds southwest to the Arkansas border along the North Fork River. From there he travels northwest towards modern day Springfield and then back southeast into Arkansas along the White River to Batesville. From the Batesville area he proceeds northeast back towards Potosi arriving there on February 4, 1819.

Schoolcraft's descriptions of the unsettled land and its native plants and animals are wonderful. Prof. Raferty has added an appendix which provides a day by day account of Schoolcraft's journey and the modern reference points with amazing accuracy.

This is a great book for anyone with an interest in the history and geography of the Ozarks Region. Very well done!!

Schoolcraft's journal describing his expedition into the Missouri/Arkansas border area in the dead of an Ozarks winter is an entertaining read! He describes with great dignity how he fell into the icy cold river -not just once, but twice! He talks about the wildlife that roamed the area, many species of which are long gone from here now. He also talks about how clean and clear the rivers were then - a shame its not true today. Schoolcraft used an expansive vocabulary to describe his surroundings, which is almost more entertaining than the facts he's trying to relate. A common misconception is that Schoolcraft was exploring country that had never before been seen by white settlers. Not true! There were several hunters' families in small, isolated settlements in the area long before Schoolcraft arrived, and he stayed overnight with some of them. He saw himself as a bit of a lad, which is evidenced by his writings regarding the "greasy" women in the settlements. He once made some of his imported tea for a hunter's wife, who was used to drinking only sassafras tea. She told him his tea was the most bitter thing she'd ever tasted; a mark of how uncivilized she was, in Schoolcraft's opinion. He ends his journal abruptly, with no philosophical revelations about how 90 days of stomping through the brush and ice and greasy women has changed his life, etc., which is a bit of a let down, but all in all it's a fun read. In the back of the book Rafferty has inserted a table that relates the landmarks Schoolcraft described to the way the landscape looks/is used today. There are also several excellent maps marked with the dates and locations of Schoolcraft's movements. Rafferty's research, comments, and detailed maps, coupled with Schoolcraft's descriptive tales, earn this book a well-deserved Five Stars.

While not as famous as Lewis and Clark, Henry Schoolcraft conducted the first of his many expenditions with similar care and attention to detail. One needs to excuse some of the poetic descriptions. The book gives an excellent insight into the very early development of the region shortly after the Voyage of Discovery.

The author has considerable personal research with Schoolcraft's travels as a college professor leading field trips on portions of the expedition. The most helpful is the author's appendix which keys the days of travel to current day locations.

For anyone studying the Missouri and Arkansas Ozarks, this is a must-have. It provides the only contemporary vision of this part of the United States prior to the rapid development in the years prior to the Civil War.

Really it deserves a 2.5, but that's not possible so I rounded up. I have read a number of books on the military history of the Civil War, and I bought this book as a brush up to keep my finger in it, one could say. The authors greatest error, in my eyes, was his tendency to make sweeping observations which were not always true. He claims that the South just had to hold out and keep holding out to win, whereas it has been the general opinion of many historians, as well as Robert E Lee, that the South had to win quickly, or be doomed to a gradual loss.

Alright, so maybe Hattaway did say that - it's only one thing, right? Well, it is always "The North," "The South," like everyone in those two areas thought about the war the same. Ok, so he was trying to keep his history short. And yes, he did keep it short, at the expense of misrepresentation. Many people generally regard the Civil War as a battle of generals, and I don't see a reason to disagree with that, and neither does Hattaway. So he mentions the generals, and this general, and that other general, and soon even I, someone who has studied the Civil War before, don't even know whether he's talking about a Confederate or Union general, never a good thing to be confused about.

I could recommend this book only as the most elementary introduction to the military history of the Civil War, someone interested in learning a little more about it and not having any prior knowledge. Otherwise, I would go for one that was a little less pro-North (as Hattaway has a very Northern point of view. I know, it's the timeless problem about writing about the Civil War - it's hard to keep objective. He just tends to tell the point of view of the Northern generals a lot more than the Southern generals. Except mentionning their names, of course, see above comment).

Hattaway's Shades of Blue and Gray is an excellent introduction to the military history of the Civil War. While brief enough for the amateur historian to enjoy, this book is also suitable for scholars and features many valuable insights into the period. Hattaway adequately explains many of the complicated and technical aspects of the war in a way other works have failed to do. Shades of Blue and Gray gets to the heart of the military science involved in the war, and relates the Civil War to the world-wide development of modern warfare. This book is also excellent for anyone interested in Confederate General Stephen D. Lee, one of Hattaway's specialties. For anyone interested in the way the war was fought, this book is a must.

Prof. Hattaway, a student of T. Harry Williams of LSU, has the most eloquent and clear style of writing that the concepts that he communicates are very easily understood. Having had Prof. Hattaway for Am. Hist. in college, I must say that his writing technique is truly genuine--he acts and reacts precisely in the way that he presents himself in the work. The work itself gives a very broad overview of the Civil War with enough detail to surpass elementary study but in moderation enough to keep easily distracted readers from finding it laborious. I highly recommend Prof. Hattaway and his works.

Those familiar with this author's work will be pleased to find this addition adds to his balanced presentation of the facts as in previous volumes. In the final analysis, as he points out, the invasion of Italy was inevitable since leaving the troops scattered around the Mediterranean idle until Overlord was unthinkable in view of the deadly struggle in Russia as well as some sixteen German divisions in Italy would have been available in both France and Russia.
To understand Anzio, he begins with the invasion of Italy at the experience at Salerno. Under prodding from Churchill, the Anzio attack began with on shoestring with a too tight time schedule and lack of enthusiasm from the professional military leaders. Lucas, the commanding general, was pessimistic about the operation's chances. Mark Clark's direction was ambiguous. Adding to the pressure was frustration over the inability to crack the Gustav Line south of Anzio. The expectation was the Germans would bleed off some divisions from there to cope with this new development.
However, the Germans, with particular attention from Hitler, did the unexpected. They poured fresh divisions from northern Italy and other areas into the battle with the objective of driving the allies into the sea. Allied artillery and navel gunfire overwhelmed the German advantage in manpower. The infantry, despite heavy losses, endured.
The author concludes that the decision for the Anzio attack will probably remain controversial. What is clear to him is that the courage of the young people on both sides of the battle was outstanding. This book is a useful study of both the battle and the command issues, and represents a good addition to any military history library both for individuals and institutions. I recommend it.

John S.D. Eisenhower established himself as a historian of note decades ago when he penned "The Bitter Woods: The Battle of the Bulge" (1969). With "They Fought at Anzio" has added another solid effort to his cannon. As anyone who is familiar with Eisenhower's previous works would expect his research is thorough and fair (not nationalistically slanted). Eisenhower's writing style has changed little over the past four decades, and there's not really any reason for him to do so as his is a style of reader engagement that is not over cluttered with jargon or confusing language. The pacing of "They Fought at Anzio" extremely even, start to finish, and as such makes this a very enjoyable read.

Eisenhower focuses his prose less on details of combat action than on personalities of and relationships between commanders, and background events leading up to engagements. This approach lends much more humanity to the text than is often possible with detailed orders of battle and after-action reports. Eisenhower is also quite generous in his use of a multi-nationalistic approach to his subject, presented by Allied and German/Italian views of events. This latter component of "They Fought at Anzio" probably provides the most concrete connection, other than name, between John and his famous father, US President and Supreme Commander, Dwight D. Eisenhower. Most would agree that Gen. Eisenhower's greatest strength as a leader of men was as a great moderator and captain of allies who were comprised of many nations and military cultures.

The human side of the war in Italy is also brought to vivid life by Eisenhower's repeated use of memoirs of Lt. Avis Dagit (nurse w/ 56th Evacuation Hospital) [from Half An Acre of Hell] and Lt. Lloyd Wells (Co B, 2nd Bat, 6th Armd Inf, 1st Armd Div) [from Anzio to the Alps]. Such is Eisenhower's clear preference for these sources that readers will likely want to pick up copies of both of these books as well; strong tribute to an author's ability to capture his/her audience indeed.

All in all "They Fought at Anzio" is a solid book, expertly researched and presented, and fun to read. Should be of interest to serious and casual readers alike. 4 stars.

John S. D. Eisenhower is a historian with a number of books to his credit, and I was expecting something worthy of his past oeuvre.

This isn't it.

It's not a bad book, and if you haven't read anything on the Italian campaign it's a worthwhile introduction to Anzio, Cassino, and the surrounding war; if you have read anything, there's nothing new here. One glance at the footnotes tells the whole story: he quotes from a few memoirs (Allied Fifth Army commander Mark Clark's Calculated Risk, Truscott's Command Decisions, Audie Murphy's To Hell And Back, a few others), a couple of lower-level people he interviewed later on (good for the human interest story, I suppose).

There's almost no use of the detailed official histories, and very little of any scholarship on the Italian campaign later than the 1950's. (The single best book on the whole affair, Graham and Bidwell's Tug of War, doesn't even show up as far as I remember.)

That said, the book is well-written and the story is worth reading, but I don't think that this book adds anything to the literature on the Italian campaign.

This should win a Pulitzer this year. The content is tremendous, full of insightful garb about the most cantankerous coach to ever pace the hardwood sideline. Plus, one writer in particular really bolsters this literary masterpiece, James D. Horne. Buy this book while supplies last.

This is a very good view of the overall career of Norm Stewart at Mizzou. It is unique in it is a compilation of articles from the Columbia Tribune starting with a game in February, 1956 through his retirement this past April, 1999. For the avid Missouri basketball fan it will bring back alot of fond memories and things long forgotten. For the newer fan, it will point out just what kind of coach Norm Stewart was and bring out a side of him alot of people don't know about. For just the rabid basketball fan, it is an interesting look at some of the great upsets by Missouri basketball teams, such as over Notre Dame in 1980 in the NCAA and Louisville in 1982, along with the battles within the Big 8. It's an easy read with alot of good pictures.