Nevada Books

Fabulous pictures and fascinating information about the people who made skiing in the Sierra possible. You don't have to be a skier to enjoy this book!

Frank Allard got a letter that told him his childhood friend had been bushwacked. There is no question that he will not answer the summons to find the killer, though he must make his will, leave his affairs in order, and travel two weeks to reach his destination. The sheriff, seriously wounded, suspects a gang of four rannies who are hiding with the Lenifee clan. After Frank talks his way into the Lenifee canyon, he finds the killer, who shoots his way out and loses two men in the process while killing the clansman who sheltered him. There is no good in this evil. There is a lot of shooting in this book but it is not overdone. There is romance, unexpected, and kind of sweet. And in the end, good triumphs, the bushwacker is killed, and peace reigns. Frank can take his bride back to his ranch. A good read and worth your weekend.

Having lived in Las Vegas for most of my life, Ms. Scott's book brings back vivid memories of the spoiled kids of our town's originating citizens. Susan Berman, may she rest in peace, was one of those kids who was raised in the lap of luxury only experienced by the sons and daughters of the Vegas Mafia. Often times the hoods would use their kids as status symbols, providing the best schools, clothes, cars, etc. to impress their hoodlum friends. Susan is described in Murder of a Mafia Daughter as a perfect example of the heretofore ruling class of Vegas, a group who was cash rich and lacked the class to go with their cash. The book captivates all readers whether they grew up in Sin City, or not. What an inside look into the dark side of our town, and Susan Berman, an unfortunate victim of an unsolved murder. A victim because she wanted to maintain the life style she grew up enjoying, but could no longer afford after the untimely death of her Mob father. What a story! What a book! A great read.

TO THE AUTHOR, THESE ACCOUNTS ARE SO MOVING BUT QUITE INCREDIBLE. ARE THERE ANY INDEPENDENT VERIFICATIONS OF THESE MUSTANG SUICIDE STORIES?

I have been an avid reader of Asian American poetry, and raley have I purchased a book, until now. This book is worth reading, buying, and re-reading. Liu's poetry is visual, moving, and uses the english language, in a unique and personal tone. I suggest anyone who is interesed in any form of Asian literature take a read.

Forbes has written a well-documented and lucid account of the local tribes in California and Nevada dealing with a succession of non-native invaders: the Spanish, the Mexican-Indian, and the Anglo-Americans. Unfortunately, these invaders used increasingly hostile forms of removal, forced labor camps, and extermination to achieve their desires for land and resouces. Can the US criticize any nation for ethnic cleansing or genocide with such a history? Certainly not without acknowledging our own past: this is the fresh perspective one gets from reading Forbes' book. Forbes also makes clear there has been a long process of renewal in local tribes, which continues with vigor and hopefulness today.

it has color pictures and tells of the uses for the plants.

I was contemplating suicide before reading this book but it has changed my life. Thank you, Stephen. Your words have uplifted my soul. Two words: AWESOME.

I finally made it to Las Vegas a couple of years ago. It is not really in between any two places, so you cannot really drive through it on the way from some place that is not California to someplace in California the way you can drive through Reno. You really have to go to Las Vegas on purpose. The question then, of course, is how did you do at the tables, on the slots, etc. The answer is I did not gamble when I was in Las Vegas. Why not? Because the first time I was ever in Nevada I was at a gas station in the middle of nowhere (not on the way to Las Vegas), and there was a slot machine. So I took out a quarter, put it in and yanked the bandit's arm. I won two quarters back so I immediately quit, one of the few people on the face of the planet who can honestly say they were to Nevada and doubled their money on the slot machines.

R. Conrad Stein is aware that his audience is too young to gamble, so Chapter One in this America the Beautiful Second Series look at Nevada introduces "The Silver State" a place where very little come easy. Once the mines played out it was tourism that became the engine that made Nevada once of the fastest growing states. The history of Nevada as part of the American West is detailed in the next three chapters. Chapter Two, "Nevada's Distant Past," begins with the ancient peoples who left petroglyphs and ends with the first explorers from Spain and the United States. Chapter Three, "Pioneering in the Silver State," tells of the Comstock bonanza and the silver mines led to statehood for Nevada. Chapter Four, "Twentieth-Century Nevada," establishes a clear contrast to the past with the Hoover Dam, gambling, and atomic bomb testing.

The geography of Nevada is presented as "Sagebrush and Open Spaces" in Chapter Five, as Stein describes the lay of the land and the hot, dry climate. Chapter Six, "Quiet Villages and Bright Lights," establishes the contrast between the northern part of the state where the cowboys reign, the area around Lake Tahoe in the Sierra Nevada, and the Mecca that is Las Vegas. "Governing the Silver State" is covered in Chapter Seven, and if young readers do not anticipate the state metal being silver, then they are just not paying attention. More interesting is the Tule duck, a duck decoy made 2,000 years ago that is the state artifact.

Chapter Eight, "Nevada at Work," start off talking about the service industry in the state, but covers other aspects of the economy as well. Chapter Nine, "A Look at Nevadans," explains what the population explosion in the state has meant, which has 90 percent of the citizens living in city areas (only California, New Jersey and Hawaii have a greater urban percentage). This is also the chapter where we finally get to this volume's recipe, which is for Basque Garlic Soup (warning: it involves not just garlic but eggs as well). "Entertainment and Fine Arts" is the province of Chapter Ten, which covers basket weaving and literature to go along with leisure activities.

This look at Nevada is filled with full-color photographs, helpful maps, and dozens of informative sidebars. With these latter young students will find some of the most interesting things that Stein has worked into this book, such as the Lost City Museum, the ill-fated Donner Party, the Gridley sack of flour, Benjamin "Don't Call Me Bugsy" Siegel, and the E.T. Highway. A Timeline contrasting U.S. and Nevada state history is provided in the back of the book along with several pages of Fast Facts, and a list of books, organizations, and Internet sites where readers can go To Find Out More about Nevada. What stands out with this particular volume is that Stein sticks a bit more to the modern history of the state and that since there is not as much to say about Nevada as there is about a state like California, there is a bit more depth than we normally get.

Known primarily for its resort city of Las Vegas, Nevada is really a wealth of other cultural and geological resources. Its varied climates--from snow-peaked mountains to beautiful deserts--are almost unparalleled on the continent. This book will tell you and your students all about it.

The "Portrait of America" series is a wonderful introduction for pre-teens to the 50 states and to the places and events that shaped the history of the United States. This "Nevada" installment is particularly good. The book is broken down into sections like "History", "Culture", "Economy" etc., and each section is thoughtfully written and edited. The "Culture" section is especially good and is very inclusive.

This book, as well as the entire "Portrait of America" series, will prove to be a valuable teaching tool to all primary school educators.