Kansas Books

From the death of Ivan IV (the terrible) in 1584 until the election of Mikhail Romanov as Tsar in 1613, the Russian nation was in a state of continuous war and chaos. At times, there was no authority beyond what local control could be asserted. Bands of brigands roamed the countryside, contingents of foreign troops followed their own agendas and large numbers of people died from all conceivable causes. This period of time is known as "The Time of Troubles." Historians are in general agreement that it is not possible to understand the current Russian mentality and desire for a strong leader without knowing about this period of Russian history.
Sergei Platonov was a Russian historian born in 1860 and he lived long enough to experience the growing regimentation and brutality of Joseph Stalin. Therefore, he was familiar with the problems of the Russian Empire under Tsar Nicolas II, the tragedy of the First World War, the rise of Bolshevik power and the chaos of the Russian Civil war.
Platonov puts the history of the country in the years 1584 - 1613 in the proper perspective. National disasters of the political and economic nature do not simply arise from nothing; there is always a lengthy preparation of the conditions that allow the disasters to arise and linger for extended periods. If you want to understand the broad spectrum of social, political and economic forces that led to "The Time of Troubles", then this is one of the best sources available.

This book is written by Russia's late expert in the country's history, which is one of the reasons why this book is important to every medieval history student.
It's quite easy to read- cause the author divides the book into many small chapters, which cover only one subject at a time. This is a huge asset, since many history book tend to rush from one subject to another- leaving the reader confused and irritated. So for those who don't like the thought of a dry treatise- don't worry it's very accesible!!!!
The author's knowledge is evident, it's written with security and straight-forwardness without unneccesary complications. There's no specific point of view, from which the book is written, so it gives a good, thorough review of this remarkable era in Russian history. Good for non-experts in medieval history- but also nice for historylovers!!

John Rohr has put together a short yet insightful book about the origins and evolution of the administrative regulatory state in the United States. Beginning with the Federalist Papers and other writings of the Framers, working his way through the writings of Woodrow Wilson, Frank Goodnow, and Judge Cooley, and finally looking at works of New Dealers such as Kenneth Culp Davis, Rohr superbly traces the intellectual history of administration. Every senior and mid-level government employee ought to read it.

The key theme of this book is legitimacy. Rohr believes (with reason) that while administrative agencies have been found "lega1" by the courts, they are not in fact "legitimate" parts of the American constitutional tradition in the eyes of many citizens. This he blames for the most part on Wilson, Goodnow and other Progressive-Era founders of public administration as an academic discipline because of their preference for British Parliamentary rule over the Constitution. Rohr tries to come up with an alternative history of public administration, one that derives from the Framers themselves.

I subtract 1 star because of an analytical flaw in the argument. In warming to his argument, Rohr characterizes Federal bureaucracy as fulfilling the promise of the Constitution because (1) it acts like the Senate in that it deliberates and develops expertise and (2) it acts like the House of Representatives in that, through its sheer size it is more broadly representative of the people than the House could ever be. I have been a federal employee for seven-odd years and I can tell you that the civil service is not a knightly caste or a senatorial order or a broadly representative swathe of "the People." Rohr does not take into account the possibility that federal employees, however benevolent, can become a self-aware interest group that tries to attain advantages for itself, or that federal employees really do move within a relatively circumscribed sphere of action relative to their political and judicial masters.

All the same, it is a very useful and well-done book concluded by a timely plea for a greater sense of the constitution as a well-spring for action by civil servants in their every day work. I recommend it highly.

John Rohr sets out to demonstrate the legitimacy of the American Administrative State. At the time of the writing, 1986, (and all too often today) both academics and politicans loved to portray Public Administrators as illegitimate actors in our politics. John corrects this error, seeing the roots for an active Public Administration in our Founding in both the Federalists and Anti-Federalists camps. He then develops the notion of legitimacy by examining different stages in the evolution of the Administrative State and how the Administrative State even heals defects in our Constitutional design. The book is well written and not only supports the Administrative State convincingly, but also teaches Administrators how to construct normative arguments about the role of professional Public Administrators. A must read for those who practice Public Service as well as those who want a fuller understanding of our Constitutional system.

Tobias of the Amish We are linked to our parents in ways we hardly recognize. For the child who grows up under a fractured roof there will always be something unfathomable about the parent who dies too young. It is important to fill in the gaps towards understanding, take the measure of that faded figure in the background.  Ervin R. Stutzman, Moderator of Mennonite Church USA, is that child. In a decade-long research and writing project, he went on an exceptional journey to find his father, Tobias Stutzman, who at age 37 was killed in a car accident. Ervin was only a toddler and has no memories of his father. In the years after Tobe's death, Ervin's mother Emma spoke little of him, nor did others in the Amish community of which he had been a part. It was as if a veil of silence had been drawn, secrets tucked away. Years later Ervin determined to dive into the wreck and retrieve the cargo of the past. Tobias Stutzman came to maturity in an agriculture community but knew early on that he did not get his juice from farming. He dreamed of his own woodworking business. In his first job he had permission to use his employer's shop for his own woodworking projects. He had what one might call an avarice for doing, seeing in every possibility an opportunity that might not come his way again. He made things out of wood, and later, metal: tables, cabinets, custom-built buggies, wooden wagon boxes, address lamps, chicken catchers, feed scoops, tomato racks, self-watering flower pots and glove display racks. He even marketed sewing machines. "If it is made of wood, we can do it!" said a sign outside his shop during the earlier years. A recurrent theme is borrowed money.  The Stutzmans got into debt even as a newly married couple. Tobe performed on a grand scale; he appears not to have foreseen or planned for major decisions. Things were entered but not balanced. Tobe was perhaps unpracticed in an awareness of his own needs. Because the contours of his heart were warm and generous, he was easily distracted by the claims of others. One is struck by his raw capability as he struggled to keep work and family afloat. Yet his story includes no turning from bad habits. Instead he carries on blindly, creating the same painful situation - a trail of debt - over and again. Had he seen his besetting sin with clarity, he might have asked his community to make him accountable much earlier than they later did, on their own terms. What went amiss with Tobe's strivings?  Sociologists remind us that behaviors in families are usually passed along and can become the emotional legacy of generations. Tobias' parents, John and Anna, kept their counsel about their financial woes and marital disappointments. John was rather given to abrupt announcements of upheaval ("We're moving!) without much explanation. He did not come to Tobe and Emma's wedding; it is not clear what the falling-out was about. Possibly Tobe carried this oblique and flawed communication - the constipated silence, the shutting down - into his own family life. Indeed, Tobe and Emma seemed bound by opposite needs in their subterranean drama of spenders versus savers  - his restlessness to wander and experiment, her need to find a settled place.   It is important to see our forebears in their lapses, in their all too human misdemeanors, for they are we. Their besetting sins are likely ours, too. Distinction and idiosyncrasy alike provide the flickering backdrop in all of our lives. We all carry invisible scars from childhood. None of us live up to our deepest principles. Yet when one writes about the past, it is tempting to present things in the best possible light against future scrutiny. There is many a lightly-sleeping dragon past which one must tiptoe, not least the beast called denial, for it would be much easier to idealize such a loss and leave some things well and alone. Ervin Stutzman does not assign to his past a grandeur it could never have possessed, nor does he hold an exaggerated subservience to it that would preclude a clear seeing.   Tobias of the Amish is a finely wrought portrait of Amish life in its observation of the Ordnung, those boundaries set by rule. The story invites questions about how one defines success. There is a certain poignancy in a wall motto Tobe once made: "If mistakes were money, I'd be rich." (Perhaps today he would be investing in stocks or conglomerates.)  Would Tobe have been accepted into the middle of his community, and not on its combative edges, had he put his energies into something perceived to be more "spiritual"? Perhaps the foibles of a well-meaning father set forth a compelling counter-schooling. Unlike his father, Ervin had educational opportunities that have drawn him into a many-sided academic world. In contrast to his father, he can live in a dozen cities of the mind, cities about which his father might only have dreamed.   Tobe exhibited a move-on spirit in a community that valued, rather, earning a living in an approved occupation in a settled place. He chafed under the patterns of authority and restraints on behavior, and he found ways around official channels. He installed electric lights in his shop without asking permission. He and his wife gave their children second names in a community that viewed an additional moniker as worldly. They eventually joined the Beachy church because Tobe wanted modern conveniences.  Clearly, his entrepreneurial bent and its attendant risk-taking fell outside the comfort zone of others, and eventually they turned away. Who knows, today Tobe might be diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder: the powerlessness to focus amid many perceived competing urgencies. (One pictures his work area piled high with unfinished tasks.)    Ervin Stutzman's link to his father was renegotiated, even in death. On a clear day you can see a long way back.    

wasn't too sure what I might find in this book.Was ever so pleased to have selected an outstanding story. Tobias reminded me of someone I knew, my Dad. Smart as a whip but, always a day late and a dollar short. I was a depression kid and I remember so many families living from one meal to another, one bad break to another, and so on. Tobias was so much "the man of his era". Thanks to the author for an heart touching book. d.c. haas

Thomas, an obvious student of history, has brought to life a small frontier town of yesteryear. Immediately engaging, it's the story of Matty and Tom who leave Pennsyl-vania for central Kansas. They are newcomers, acclimating to the expanding western front following the American Civil War. Complete with a historical reference section, this moving story should become a favorite of students and teachers alike.

The Town on Rambling Creek is an excellent historical fiction novel. As a teacher of American history, I enjoyed and appreciated the use of facts that accurately depicted what a person moving west may have encountered during the period of time after the Civil War. Matty and Tom's experiences in the novel were typical to most pioneers. Carroll Thomas weaves the events of America's past creatively into the fifth Matty Trescott novel. I found this book to be my favorite in the series and look forward to reading the next story about Matty and her adventures!

I live in New york on the Island. I've always, always had a fascination with the old west, and in particular the state of Kansas.. even though I haven't yet been there. For Christmas this year, my mum gave me among other things, an actual Kansas license plate along with this book. I started reading it right away and it has been entirely engrossing. Very interesting individual tales, some are pretty short, so this is the perfect book to read while on the train. I love it.

Here's one for the history buffs out there. Kids and adults, read about frontier life in Kansas. This is an excellent addition to any library collection. -Native Kansan

Being an enthusiastic amateur treasure hunter myself, in years past, I diligently read each and every volume of Mr. Terry's exhaustively researched works. Although I found some the information erroneous or far from exact - for instance many locations cited as "ghost towns" are FAR from being one - there are so many intriguing stories of legends, factual evidence & stories of past recoveries that any true TH'r will be enthralled. Treasure hunting is supposedly America's fastest growing hobby: it's uniquely enjoyable for the adventure, historical aspects & healthy outdoor recreation. And when you really find something decent...Boy Howdy!! Not as easy as it sounds, though. To be a professional TH'r, one has to have patience, applying oneself with the perseverance of a detective: because that's what it takes to be successful. Exhaustive research is the key: going where people gathered long ago (old picnic grounds & abandoned schoolyards, for instance) will be beneficial for coin shooters who are after more than modern coins....for me, finding modern coins was a complete waste of time & energy. Going for the gold? Go where it is KNOWN to be & be creative: the better your equipment - i.e. a decent detector which finds gold & common sense makes this a most fascinating hobby. For some, it's a life's career. Good luck!!

Found this to be a very interesting paperback book for anyone dreaming of treasure hunting/finds. But, I wish it was updated. I'm sure there are more interesting things about Florida. Not all of Fla. treasure finds are in the sea as this book notes. Worth reading.Open anywhere and begin reading.

Milazzo has captured the evolution of clean water law superbly. Not only does he give the reader an excellent overview of the early efforts to enact clean water legislation but he captures the significant controversies and compromises involved in the 1972 Federal Water Pollution Control Act amendments. As the Senate staff author of those amendments and the person responsible for converting the policy decisions of the Senate Committee members in to legislative language I can vouch for the accuracy of Milazzo's history. As a key participant in the 45 conference committee meetings which finally resulted in the amendments I was impressed by his recitation of the events and controversies which characterized the negotiations. While any history of this kind must omit some of the essential debates none has captured so many so well. Leon G. Billings.

I've wondered for years how Senator Edmund Muskie -- not previously known for his environmental interests -- became the key player in producing the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts. This fine scholarly book gives the answer and provides a look at the long-neglected role of congressional leaders in the post-World War II environmental movement.

I loved this book. One of the few history books I've read that I would describe as a page-turner. Loaded with interesting facts and characters while at the same time doing an excellent job of conveying the overall progression of the settlement of Western Kansas.

As a frequent reader of historical fiction and non-fiction, I found this book to be both enjoyable and informative. I learned a great deal about the cultural history of the individuals who attempted to settle this difficult land and how they interacted with the environment, the government and the Indians. I found the insights regarding life in a dugout or a sod house particularly interesting, and the enclosed historical jokes about certain Kansas towns and prairie insect pests made me laugh out loud. I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in learning more about the truth of the "Wild, Wild West" of North America. Miner helps to dispell many of the myths.

This is a superlative bio of Scott, a man who spanned a considerable amount of time in the formulative years of the United States and its army. The events of the Civil War, and all its eccentric generals and characters have tended to overlook Scott, but his overall influence on the period can not be denied. Often eccentric, and certainly arrogant, Scott virtually created the modern US army. His regulations and drill manuels professionalized this nations army after its embarrassing and ameteur performance in the War of 1812. Scott, who fought prominently in that conflict at both Chipawa and Lundy's Lane drilled his brigade to a standard that no other American units reached in that war. He saw the need first hand to improve the army's standards and drill. Heavily influenced by French and European models, he standardized the US army and paved the ground for its development and vast improvement.

Scott was a vain and arrogant individual, he was not called Old Fuss and Feathers for nothing. Found of gaudy uniforms, and pomp and ceremony these outward ego trips belied his inner genius. Many US Presidents disliked Scotts arrogance and his virtual control of the army. Scott in turn looked upon the likes of Jackson, Harrison and Tyler as the Dark Ages in American politics!

Scott was an elitest, he was aristocratic in his outlook, and it is perhasps for this reason that he has often been overlooked in US History. To better understand the emergence of the US and the professionalism of its army, the need to understand Scott's contributions in that regard is paramount. The army he painstakingly created all through the first half of the 19th Century saw final fruition in the Mexican war of 1846. Here Scott's brilliant generalship and strategic outlook ensured his success against the Mexicans. The army he created not only could outmaneaver the enemy, but could outfight them as well. In every major action, the US Army inflicted two or three times the losses on the Mexicans, even while the latter were often defending in fixed positions. All the future greats of the Civil War, Grant, Lee, etc. acknowledged Scotts genius. The Mexican campaign was a model for all to follow. Sherman's march to the sea was certainly inspired by it. In order to have a greater undertanding of the Civil War, and antebellum American in general, we should not neglect the contributions of Winfield Scott.

Timothy Johnson's biography is probably one of the most satisfying bios one can ever read. Unlike most bios it does not get bogged down with excessive details pertaining to an individuals life. Johnson keeps Scotts life and career moving at a comfortable pace, with ample time for reflection on the times he lived in. We see the great general in all his strengths and weaknesses. Johnson accomplishes this in a leisurely 240 odd pages, far more satisfying than many bios we encounter today which feel the need to be twice this length most of the time. In short, I cannot recommend this work highly enough for its depiction of the man, and the times he lived in.

It's ironic that after 60 years, two biographies of Winfield Scott appeared almost simultaneously. John Eisenhower's Agent of Destinyattracted more attention, but Johnson's book is by far the more satisfying of the two. A professional historian, Johnson places Scott within the context of his time, giving the reader a better appreciation of the general and his place in 19th century American history. I read both books, and I have to say I was surpised to be disappointed with the Eisenhower book as much as I was. I liked his book on the Mexican-American War "So Far From God", but I think he overreached with this one. He focuses on the man, while Johnson focuses on the man and his times. In doing so, it gives a more complete and ultimately more satisfying account. Highly recommended!

I enjoyed this book very much. It takes one on an exciting journey through magical lands that come alive in this fantasy book. The characters in this book make it a delight. This book is a treasure, and anyone of any age would enjoy it.

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz The Kansas Centennial Edition By L. Frank Baum Illustrations by Michael McCurdy Foreword by Ray Bradbury ISBN 0-7006-0985-7, 600 Words

Dorothy and Toto are home again thanks to the University Press of Kansas' publication of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz: Kansas Centennial Edition. The wizards at the Press conceived of the edition after discovering that L. Frank Baum's book, first published in 1900, was in the public domain. The original print story about a little girl and her dog may be a surprise to Kansans familiar only with the classic 1939 film version of the Wizard of Oz. Even Judy Garland might be shocked by the new edition's black-and-white drawings by acclaimed children's book illustrator Michael McCurdy.

As a child during the 1960s, I remember watching the annual television broadcast of the Wizard of Oz. The scenes when the Wicked Witch sent the Winged Monkeys against Dorothy and her friends were so frightening that I would hide behind a chair. Now as an adult, I find some of McCurdy's illustrations equally unsettling, but rather than hide from them, the drawings compel me to examine and reflect upon Dorothy's journey, a journey that may be interpreted as one from innocence to knowledge.

The most provocative of McCurdy's twenty-five scratch board illustrations is the one in which Dorothy confronts the Witch. The witch has the pointed chin and bony fingers we expect from fairy tale witches, but her eye patch makes McCurdy's witch especially sinister. The Witch tricks Dorothy into giving her one of her Silver Shoes, (they are ruby slippers in the film version). With one foot bare, the angry Dorothy grabs the nearest object, a bucket of water, and throws it on the Witch. "...I never thought a little girl like you would ever be able to melt me and end my wicked deeds," wails the Witch.

W.W. Denslow illustrated the first Wizard of Oz book and his illustrations have remained popular. While Denslow's illustrations are charming and whimsical, they have none of the psychological interest of McCurdy's. As unusual as McCurdy's artwork, is the new edition's forward by science fiction and fantasy author Ray Bradbury. Bradbury contrasts the Wonderful Wizard of Oz with Lewis Carrol's Alice in Wonderland.

Bradbury writes, "...Lewis Carroll's cast of characters would have died here of saccharine or run back to hide behind the cold Glass. Baum settled in, delighted with bright nothings. If the Wicked Witch is truly dead it is because L. Frank Baum landed on her with his Boy's-Life-Forever-Sunkist philosophy. No witch could survive Baum, even today when witches beam themselves up."

A criterion for literature to be considered classic is its ability to be reinterpreted over time. In 1964, Henry Littlefield wrote an article in the American Quarterly entitled, "The Wizard of Oz: Parable on Populism." Littlefield suggests Baum's book is an allegory for the Populist politics of the 1890s in which "led by naïve innocence and goodwill, the farmer, laborer and the politician approach the mystic holder of national power and ask for personal fulfillment."

Baum was aware that a story holds different meanings for different ages. In the forward to the original Oz, Baum notes that most horrible characters and disagreeable incidents have been eliminated from modern fairy tales. "Having this thought in mind, the story... was written solely to please children of today. It aspires to be a modernized fairy tale, in which wonderment and joy are retained and the heartaches and nightmares are left out."

One-hundred years after its initial publication, the children's classic The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum remains worthy of reading by every Kansan regardless of age. However, in Michael McCurdy's illustrations, adults may find new meaning for an old children's story.

Paul Hawkins is regional librarian for the South Central Kansas Library System.