Arkansas Books

If you are interested in learning about the trails, river, people, geology and biology of the Buffalo River . . . this is the place to start. No one knows the Buffalo River country better than Ken Smith. It has been his passion for more than 40 years. An earlier book he wrote, Buffalo River Country, played a key role in the creation of America's first national river. He knows the Buffalo River trail as no one else can. He laid it out and supervised its construction. He is actively involved today in the extention of it from Hwy 65 to Hwy 14. This trail will ultimately make it possible for a hiker to travel by trail from St Louis, Missouri to near Ft. Smith Arkansas.

Buffalo River Handbook easily rates five stars for anyone going to the Buffalo. I would also buy the Trails Illustrated maps of the Buffalo which he also edited and which go hand in hand with the Buffalo River Handbook.

Admittedly, it is difficult to be comprehensive and remain a "handbook," meaning something that you could take with you and refer to while on the trail or the river. If you are looking for specific maps for trails, I would recommend books by Tim Ernst, or if you are looking for details on running the river, A Canoeing & Kayaking Guide to the Ozarks are both superior for their individual information. This said, if you want something to refer to in general with historical as well as geological information along with talk of the flora and fauna with generalized information on trails and the river this book is outstanding. Excellent color and black and white pictures, and a searchable index.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! This collection of short stories is by far one of the most engaging I've ever read! It's the sort of thing you'll want to read many times over!!!

You don't have to be an Arab American to appreciate this collection of short stories. Some of the voices may not be familiar, but many of the stories are. At times heartbreaking, at times hilarious, each story represents a facet of the human experience. If you consider yourself to be a literary adventurer, add this anthology to your "to do" list.

Thomas Nuttall traveled through Arkansas on the White river and described what he saw in great detail. He actually named many of the plants that he found on the trip. The drawings in the book depict landscapes that anyone from Arkansas would recognize yet devoid of all the manmade features.

This is the journal of Thomas Nuttall who, in 1819, with $200 and a residual case of malaria,traveled from Philadelphia down the Ohio and the Mississippi to the Arkansas River and various of its tributaries. His journey extended as far west as the current site of Oklahoma City. His account of the plant and animal life, the geology and the streams of Arkansas and eastern Oklahoma are accurate, jargon-free and, in many cases, still definitive. His portrayals of the European and Native Americans he met are objective, unsentimental and unprejudiced. Througout the considerable dangers and difficulties he faced, he maintained, and conveyed, a refreshing sense of wonder at the natural world he explored, an attitude of realistic compassion for the people he encountered and a sense of the historical significance of what he witnessed. The journals are well-edited by Prof. Lottinville whose notes identify sites described by Mr. Nuttall with their current names and provide historical context for various events discussed in the book. This book is a great find for anyone interested in the land, history and people of Arkansas and Oklahoma.

A hard-to-get and must-to-read for those who need an objective account of China's painstaking movement to enhance liberal democracy in socialistic reform. This book offers abundant daily reports and photographs to give a panorama of a nation's struggle to order vs. development in its early days into "globalization".

Tells the story of the uprising and the massacre, along with color and black + white photographs. This book did a great job of explaining the events that took place in an easy to understand fashion.

Etta Pruitt Martin captures the early days of Texas in her descriptive writing style and researched text in "Molly Anderson-The Saga of a Pioneer Woman." This historical novel is vividly interwoven with history of prestatehood Texas, the war with Mexico, the battle of the Alamo and the Civil War. This book is a must for the student having to learn Texas history, because when you read about Molly's life, you are learning Texas history. The main character, Molly, is a dynamic and loving woman who has strong family and community values; her life is steeped in adventure, spirituality, love and losses. The author, and eighty-five-year-old fifth generation Texan, has created and combined a saga that holds the interest of the reader. It is safe reading for ages nine to ninety. The author refers to Molly as a pioneer woman, but in today's world, Molly would belong at the top of the category of "First Ladies of Texas." Promoting education, civil rights, preserving the land, and healing the wounded are some of the accomplishments of Molly. And like a true First Lady, love for her family is foremost! If you have been looking for a "good book", take time and read "Molly Anderson the Saga of a Pioneer Woman."

Molly Anderson, The Saga Of A Pioneer Woman, puts a human face on the historical events of 19th century Texas. From the time of the emigration and land empressarios to the post reconstruction era, author Etta Pruitt Martin brings alive the human drama to these times. Etta tells this story with knowledge and authority. She tackles all aspects of Molly's life including the frustrations of a woman raising her children alone and running a frontier farm. Also in this book, Etta addresses inter-racial relationships of the times, an aspect of life often overlooked.

Molly Anderson, widowed soon after her young family arrived in Texas, faced diversity head on. Within this adversity there was the mundane life that must be lived to survive in the frontier. With all that happened to Molly and her sons, they still had to plow and plant in the Spring and harvest their crop in the Fall. She struggled to educate her sons, She saw them go off to war and become men one at a time. After the fall of the Alamo, the defeat of Santa Anna at San Jacinto, the end of the war of Northern aggression and the end of the reconstruction era, the blue bonnets were in full bloom in the Brazos River valley. Life went on.

Molly Anderson, the story of an independent wife, woman and mother.

It was a fun book. A great way to learn about the history of a state.

This book is absolutely delightful. I love the illustrations. Reading this book is a great way to discover all the wonderful things about the great state of Arkansas.

Appleman's work deserved to be more widely read. This is a fantastic collection of poems that are alternately funny, angry, and profound, and always connect the day-to-day with the universal. The poems from "Darwin's Ark" perfectly marry the poetic with the scientific, and bring light and metaphoric power to the concepts of evolution, even where it may only apply to cars. Additionally, the poems from "Let There Be Light" bring humor (and a healthy sense of absurdity) to the stories and characters from the Bible, without ever mocking the subject matter. Rather, the characters here are wonderfully human-- and Appleman's version of Noah's Ark is both tragic and laugh-out-loud funny. His work feels more relevant in today's post-9/11 world than ever. This is a powerful collection that can stand with the finest in contemporary verse; Appleman's work is not to be missed.

Philip Appleman is one of the country's most important poets. This retrospective collection covers his career to date and is an excellent introduction to his work. Appleman's poems summon up a variety of emotions--alternatively anger, outrage, sadness and amusement. They never fail to be thought-provoking. A word of warning: Appleman is a humanist, and several of his pieces are criticial of religion. This is not greeting card verse, it's poetry for the mature intellect.

Paul Greenberg is an editorial editor for the Arkansas Democrat- Gazette and a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist. Residing in the state of Arkansas and specializing in political commentary, Greenberg had the opportunity to follow and observe the Clinton legacy for more than twenty years when he published this book, "No Surprises", in 1996. Starting with the Clinton presidency and continuing through his first term as president, Greenberg has voiced many opinions about Clinton and his policies, many of which are included in this book.

Rather than writing this book in the normal sense, Greenberg instead chose to make this book a collection of previous writings about the governor- turned- president from Arkansas. Greenberg is a very articulate, thoughtful journalist who has the ability to keep readers interested even when the reader may not agree with his viewpoints. When it comes to Bill Clinton, Greenberg's feelings are obviously mixed, based on the articles that he chose for inclusion in this book. In some instances, Greenberg praises the governor/president for doing the right thing. Other times, Greenberg is highly critical of "young smoothie", particularly with Clinton's tendency to agree with whatever views his present audience espouses. Throughout his entire political career, Clinton has been known to do this, and he has the practice down to an art, seeming to agree with anyone at anytime, even when the opinions he voices and the people he agrees with are contradictory with each other.

Greenberg is the man who coined the phrase "slick willie" and the name stuck with Clinton throughout his political career. You can sense a feeling of frustration on the part of Greenberg toward the former governor/president as you read these articles. Greenberg seems like he really wants to like Clinton and support him more than he already does, but some of Clinton's tactics are just more than the journalist can stomach.

Paul Greenberg is a very compelling and respectful writer. Unlike the numerous Clinton- bashing books out there, "No Surprises" is respectfully written and compelling to read. Greenberg avoids negative bashing, even when he feels that Clinton has made an enormous mistake in governing. It all makes for a very entertaining read from this talented journalist from Arkansas.

I have read several books about Bill Clinton. This one is unique, and in that much of it is pre-presidential, provides uncanny insight into the range of events surrounding Clinton today. Author is a recognized, awarded civil rights writer, with convictions which defy partisan affiliations or stereotyped ideology. There were several times when things he had written made me laugh out loud. Many times he speaks with great conviction, always hopeful for Clinton's best, ready to forgive, and then the next disappointment. I've not seen another Clinton book like it, and I've read at least 30. Greenberg even correctly analyzes the problem that Republicans have had against Clinton, and the misperception that has led their strategy astray. Because the book uses as source material, articles that he had written as a journalist, you get that perspective that comes as the events take place. It's rewarding to read the author's interpretations of those events without knowledge of what would happen in the years ahead, and at times uncanny how on target his read of an event's significance was, with regard to future behavior. He couldn't care less about most of the sexual stuff - he's more interested in greater issues. A must read for all with an interest in Clinton.

Fay Jones is one of America's great Architects. This book is short but has some detailed visions by Fay, who was a personal friend.

This is a small book on master architect Fey Jones. There is a short intro by Robert Ivy (author of the 1992 Jones Monograph), a short bio on Jones that contains many quotes by the architect. Two chapters complete the book with the architect's own words on his design process and organic architecture. The book contains plans, sections, photos and some detail drawings of some of Jones more noted projects and furniture pieces. It is small book of only 94 pages. It is light reading and not a retrospective of his work. However, it is a beautiful little book for a great value and would make a nice gift for an architect or architecture enthusiest.

This is a great guide book for Arkansas and S. Missouri rivers. If you need information about a river in AR./Mo. then this is the book to start your research.

The venerable "blue book" of Ozark whitewater streams and paddling is as good a read as ever, and the information is still some of the best you'll find anywhere on the topic. This is *the* book that I always have in my shuttle vehicle. I have a nearly unrecognizable copy that has gone on a few too many adventures, and I bought a new second edition copy a while back and am in the process of wearing it out too. With the number of new paddlers in the area growing in leaps and bounds, this text provides an essential starting point for those wanting to explore the exciting whitewater of Arkansas and Missouri. Highly recommended!