We hope you all had a wonderful summer!
Our first book of the fall will be Texas Women on the Cattle Trails, edited by the late Sara Massey.
Texas A&M Press has given us a few copies to give away – comment below that you would like a free copy and email your mailing information to bookgroup@texaspbs.org. Remember, first come, first served!
Welcome back! We will chat with our experts in late September – stay tuned for an official date. Here is a little information about the book:
Texas Women on the Cattle Trails tells the stories of sixteen women who drove cattle up the trail from Texas during the last half of the nineteenth century. Some were young; some were old (over thirty). Some took to the trails by choice; others, out of necessity. Some went along to look at the stars; others, to work the cattle. Some made money and built ranching empires, but others went broke and lived hard, even desperate lives. The courage of Margaret Borland and the spunk of Willie Matthews, the pure delight of Cornelia Adair viewing the buffalo, and the joy of Mary Bunton gazing at night constellations on the open range offer new insights into women’s experiences of the West. For the most part, these were ordinary women doing the best they could in difficult frontier conditions. They did not see themselves as living in unusual times or participating in “romantic” lifestyles, although the women who actually took to the trail were few in number. Like the cowboys on cattle drives, they faced dust and heat, thirst and exhaustion, rustlers and Indians, stampedes and prairie fires. Drawing heavily on the accounts of the women themselves, the authors of these chapters vividly illustrate the complexity and diversity of women’s experiences on the cattle trails. Their stories of cattle drives and moving cattle to distant pastures add an important chapter to the story of life in the real Old West. Volume editor Sara R. Massey served as editor of Black Cowboys of Texas. While on the staff of the Institute of Texan Cultures, she was also the supervising editor for five books on Texas ethnic groups, the Texans All series published by Texas A&M University Press. She holds a doctorate from the University of Northern Colorado.
I have enjoyed participating in previous book talks and I appreciate having a copy of Texas Women on the Cattle Trails. I am working on a couple of early Big Bend ranching exhibits for Brewster County and I would like to be informed well enough to advocate for including women in the story.
Sincerely,
Jim Bones
P. O. Box 2111
Alpine, Texas 79831
Would enjoy this book club and appreciate a copy of Texas Women on the Cattle Trails– if any are left!
April,
Unfortunately, we have given away all of our free copies! You can purchase a copy from Texas A&M press by following this link: http://www.tamupress.com/product/Texas-Women-on-the-Cattle-Trails,345.aspx
We look forward to your participation!
Thanks so much for your interest!