On July 23, 2000, the Kansas City Star published a books article it titled "Read along, little dogies," by Bill Marvel of the Dallas Morning News. It was so good that I searched for the link so you'd be able to read it. Unfortunately, this is one of those papers that has found that articles more than a week old can become profit centers, and will charge you $2 to access it (less if you want to access additional articles for a fee also)... I just hope the writers are receiving royalties on these subsequent sales.
In the Dallas Morning News Archive I found the following in the abstract for the story:
Headline: Blazing new trails Today's Western writers find new ways to tell sagebrush
stories
Writer:
Bill Marvel
Published: 06-24-2000
Page Number: 1C
Word Count: 1871
Summary: Nobody remembered quite when The
Stranger rode into town. He wore a
white hat and sat at ease in the saddle,
and he knew the bad guys from the
good guys. He told stories about the
Old West, about the days when men
were men and women were either.....
It was the 46th annual convention of the Western Writers of America which set the stage for the article. That meeting was at the YO Ranch Resort Hotel in Kerrville, TX, and while they make a mighty decent french toast and ham for breakfast, let me just mention that I found the food and the service both superior just across Sidney Baker (Highway 16) at the Cartwheels Restaurant adjacent to the Days Inn of Kerrville.
No Gettysburg Address here, but you ARE in the Land of Linkin' ... When I read the article referred to above, I thought, there's quite a variety, they should all be linked to where there are reviews and other books by the same author - hey, I can handle THAT part !
But, before I do, let me reference one book along these lines which I'd previously identified while writing the Erik Moll review for my Music Pages; it is Git Along, Little Dogies: Songs and and Songmakers of the American West. One of its authors, Austin Fife, has several other books on cowboys, the West, and Western song, though they are special order, out of stock, or out of print; your area library might have them, however.
Also, besides the listing below, take a look at the Western listing under Librarian's Recommendations. Titles below marked with an * asterisk are my pick; the other titles, and all of the authors below were mentioned in the Bill Marvel article.
W. Michael and
Kathleen O'Neal Gear People of the
Lakes
Stephen Harrigan The Gates of the Alamo
Tony Hillerman
The Best of the
West: An Anthology of
Classic Writing from the
American West *
Elmer Kelton The Time It Never Rained
Kat Martin (primarily romances)
Candy Moulton Legacy of the Tetons: Homesteading in Jackson Hole *
Jane Smiley The All-True Travels and Adventures of Lidie Newton
and of course, can't forget these old timers:
Max Brand The Bells of San Carlos *
Zane Grey Last of the Duanes *
Louis L'Amour Lonely on the Mountain *
Another source of top Western books and authors is to see who / what the Spur Awards were given to. First awarded in 1954, and selected by the Western Writers of America, the link here will get you to every years' winners.
There seems to be a problem with links to the Western Writers of America site, but their online magazine, Roundup seems to be just fine, and is certainly worth a look (lots of Western book reviews there).
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