A pleasant but uninspired collection of vignettes about the history
of the West that offers nothing new. Noted Western author Brown
(When the Century Was Young; 1993, etc.) serves up a new volume
detailing the life and history of the American frontier. The
material is culled from the text of three previous picture books -
Fighting Indians of the West, Trail Driving Days, and The Settlers'
West - that he co-authored in the 1940s and 1950s with the late
Martin Schmitt (editor of General George Crook: His Autobiography,
1946); this version also includes several photographs from the
earlier volumes. Always sensitive to the long, losing struggle of
the Indians, Brown movingly depicts Sioux chief Red Cloud's
successful war to close the Bozeman Trail (including the so-called
Fetterman Massacre) and Cheyenne chief Black Kettle's unsuccessful
attempts to keep the peace, shattered by the Sand Creek and Washita
massacres. But the white West is also covered, with glimpses of
life on the great cattle drives and of the boomtowns at the end of
the beef trails - towns like Abilene, Tex., and Wichita, Kans.,
which thrived as rail centers for the shipment of cattle. The
mythmaking process that shaped the West of popular imagination is
also dear to Brown's heart, and he brings into focus the impact of
tall tales (Paul Bunyan, etc.), Wild West shows (Buffalo Bill, et
al.), rodeos, Billy the Kid's inflated legend, and The Virginian, a
novel by Harvard-educated Philadelphia lawyer Owen Wister that
supplanted real-life cowboy Charlie Siringo's much more authentic A
Texas CowBoy in the public imagination. Brown writes in an engaging
style, but our view of frontier history has changed a lot in 40
years. Rather than this recycled material, itself seduced by the
myths it seeks to expose, better to read Brown's own Bury My Heart
at Wounded Knee. (Kirkus Reviews)
The American West centers on three subjects: Native Americans, settlers, and ranchers. Dee Brown re-creates these groups struggles for their place in this new landscape and illuminates the history of the old West in a single volume, filled with maps and vintage photographs. In his spirited telling of this national saga, Brown demonstrates once again his abilities as a master storyteller and as an entertaining popular historian.
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!
Welcome to Loot.co.za!
Sign in / Register |Wishlists & Gift Vouchers |Help | Advanced search
(2)
