Debu's journey brings together many opposites: east and west, thoughts of adults on the young, old country -- new country, Hinduism -- Christianity, tradition and modernity. His odyssey takes him from an ancient land to a new one; sacred rivers flow through each, he creates himself anew as he moves between cultures. It is a voyage of discovery, but not just of places and environments and new friends and colleagues; there is an inner voyage that takes place too. In this kind of journey -- which takes place over decades, on several continents -- although most of these stories are set in Idaho in the last 20 years -- there is ample room for reflection, and doubt and crises of identity. Do I belong to one culture? Or another? Or does that question even have meaning any more? Not least of the gifts of this book is that as Debu ponders the changes that have come about in himself, among his fellow Indians who have come to the United States, and in everyone who has come to the American West, he sees himself in new ways, and we see ourselves in a new light too. That is a valuable gift.

Idaho and Calcutta. Himalayas and Tetron. Indians and Americans. Ganges and Snake river. All comes for a fascinating contiguity in all 16 episode composed by Debu Mojumder, an Indian from Calcutta transformed to American in Idaho Falls. He tales this story of transformation through different characters and creeds busy to establish their own identity. Along with the characters the nature, surrounding with all its content living or non living reacts in harmony. All are foreigner at some point. Episodes that can be shared by all in the global village.

From The Ganges To The Snake River: An East Indian In The American West is an engaging, thought-provoking collection of essays written over a period of twenty years in which Debu Majumdar (who was born and raised on the banks of India's Ganges River) wrote while living in Idaho Falls, Idaho during the 1980s and 1990s. The essays cover everything from Mormon missionaries and Native Americas to fishing and horses. Highly recommended and totally engaging, these cultural essays include: First Idaho Winter; Idaho Trout; Fourth of July; Tiger Hunt; Hunting; Mountain River Ranch; The Missionaries; Be Crazy About; An Excursion on the River; Pollywog Pond; The Poets' Club; A Place to Hang Your Hats; Oh Calcutta; At the Windcave; The Ramayana; and Indians Across the Ocean

Though this wasn't really a historical event, something may of happened like this. The writer mentions that between 1870-1900 was when most communities were being born, so that's the main idea of the story. This is about Teresa Angelino Viscardi, a 14 year old Italian Immigrant. She travels with her large family on a train and by wagon all the way to Idaho territory. But the journey is not easy. It is FAR from easy. They cross a river and two girl's from another wagon drown. Then the saddest thing happens! But you have to read it of course. This diary was so well written I kept thinking that Teresa and Netta, her little sister, who you come to love, were real. This is another powerfully emotionaly and exciting, and truthful Dear America Diary. Keep up the good work Dear America writers! We can't wait for more. Even though this book is sad, you MUST READ IT! Sniffle, sniffle, sob, sob. :(But most of the journey was :)

"West to a Land of Plenty" was a great book, in an 1880's diary form, on a 14 year-old Italian American girl, Teresa.

Teresa lives in a crowded, New York neighborhood with her family, when her father suddenly decides to take the family west, to a new community called Opportunity. With that decision, Teresa's changes just begin!

Going west by train and wagon is exciting to Teresa, but she is also very sad to leave her school and friends. Her pesky little sister, Netta, also gets on her nerves, and Teresa constantly tries to hide her diary from her! When Teresa begins to make friends, however, she finds that things might not be so bad, but then disaster strikes...

This was a great book, and a must read for anyone aged 10 and up! Be sure to also read "Across the Wide and Lonesome Prairie", and "The Great Railroad Race", two other "Dear America" novels.

This was one of the most enjoyable books in the Dear America series.

Fourteen-year-old Teresa Viscardi, while on a history-making trek West to "Opportunity", still experiences ordinary things. She tries to keep her nosy little sister Netta away from her diary, she makes a new best friend, takes care of her baby brother Tomas, and gets a crush on the handsome John Anderson.

Then everything changes when Teresa's father and uncle leave the trail and go off on a "get-rich-quick" scheme. One of her brothers, Ernesto, falls deathly ill. With her grandmother, Teresa goes in search of her father, and finds him. They travel back to the wagon to find that Ernesto is fine, but one of her other family members has passed away from the same illness.

Teresa now addresses her diary to her lost loved one, and it helps her to handle her grief.

I liked how realistic this book was--instead of having a, "everything was just fine and great" type ending, the 3 page epilouge tells how the family arrived at their destination and made a home for themselves by hard work, and how Teresa, after some years of schoolteaching, finds her true love not to be John Anderson but a man she meets in Opportunity.

I was disappointed that this book does not cover Northern Idaho. If you want a book for Southern Idaho to the McCall area this book would be a good resource. If you want a book for Northern Idaho this isn't the right book. In fact the authors reference another book that has detail about North Idaho waters. In addition, some of the Web pages that are referenced are not correct. I found them through an internet search.

This book has excellent descriptions of both the rivers and the roads that lead to the put-ins and take-outs. I wish every state had a book like this. It's fun and easy to read. I often find myself looking through it and dreaming about the next canoe trip in the spring. I've used many floating guide boats and this is, by far, the best organized, most helpful one I've seen.

This is exactly what I was looking for in a canoeing guidebook. Kathy and Ron breakdown the current river classification of Class I waters, into more detailed ratings 1.0-1.5, giving detailed descriptions of each level. This book if for people who aren't comfortable with whitewater runs without an experienced guide. Familes can do alot of these runs. The books consists of flatwater rivers and a few easy whitewater rivers just to spice things up a bit and get a bit of practice. Most of the rivers in detail are below the McCall area, which alot of concentration on southeastern Idaho, which is great for me since I live in northern Utah. They also describe very well the routes to the put ins, take outs, and the roads condition. Your basic lake canoe is suitable for almost all rivers described in this book, but getting into the Class II+ and III rivers, they suggest a river-running canoe is better suited for this. Keep in mind, "beginner" does not mean those who are on a canoe for the first time. You do need to know the basic paddling strokes and be able to read rivers.

I wish every state near me had such a great easy water guidebook like this.

Mr. Coffman has done a good job of transporting his readers back to a time of adventure for young men that would be hard to find today. The book is informative and at times amusing. I enjoyed it.

Having grown up during this era, I can relate to the way things were done in this generation. It should be considered a remarkable event when the author has the commitment and opportunity to revisit places and events which were a part of his life almost 60 years ago. It is obvious that his Forest Service experiences left a lasting impression on the author as a young man. The reader is brought into those experiences with considerable detail.

This is the story of the way life was in the Clearwater National Forest and elsewhere for the folks who lived and worked for the Forest Service about 60 years ago. The author's vivid memories are etched in details that make great reading. Some of his recounts are quite amusing and others testify to the danger and tough mindset required to live in the conditions common to those days and the area. The book let me relive similar experiences from long ago. I especially enjoyed the photos showing lookouts, scenery and people of the US Forest Service.

Read "Outlaw" by Jeff Long as well. He interviewed several key people that Mr. Olsen did not include (most declined to be interviewed at the time). All in all a fairly accurate and factual book and if you lived in the area at the time it stirs strong memories and emotions. Those who lived close to the events cannot forget Bill Pogue and Conley Elms.

In getting to know Claude via correspondence for several years,I believe that I can make a fairly accurate assessment of Claude's true character. Therefore, I believe I can fairly assess the book's veracity and plausibility. The book was interesting, entertaining, and exciting. Mr. Olsen presented the story in as truthful a manner as he could-considering he did not know Claude. In my opinion, overall, a very good book!

As the daughter of Bill Pogue, one of the Game Wardens murdered by Claude Dallas, I know the true story of what happened that day. Jack Olson did a wonderful job of interviewing almost anyone involved and investigating the lifestyle of Claude Dallas that led to this tragic event. I learned as much from reading this book as I did sitting through the long and frustrating trial.

While this book is useful, I feel it falls short in a number of areas. The evaluations of the major waters are good, but those of the various secondary streams and lakes are cryptic, maybe necessarily so, and there are virtually no directions to any of these. The reader is given the name of a secondary stream or lake and a couple of lines evaluation. No directions, not even a general location other than the large portion of the state in which they are grouped. Joe Evancho appears to know what he is talking about, but he doesn't do a good job of passing that information on to the reader. I would rate this book about 3 stars (out of 5) and could recommend it if you don't have access to Retallic and Barker's Flyfisher's Guide to Idaho.

I just completed my first extended visit to Idaho. I bought this book not expecting much, like most fishing books...This is the exception! I was able to select some out of the way spots, and I was never let down! I rented boats, found access, met lesbians (oh just kidding) The BEST fishing book I've read to date! Bob Aydelott

Fishing Idaho, An Angler's Guide is one of the most useful guide books I've ever had the pleasure to read. Mr. Evancho has gone to great lengths to cover every river, stream and lake in the state of Idaho. He does so without giving away any secret fishing holes, but the information is there for the determined angler to find those special places on his or her own. The book also includes other information useful to anyone plying the backroads of Idaho -- information on camping, boat ramps and air strips. You can tell that a lot of work went into producing this fine book. It makes a great gift for the angler on your list.

First off I should let it be known that I am a fan of the Bob Lee Swagger novels and I also thought that Dirty White Boys was a good read. Stephen Hunter's first novels showed promise but they were awkward. They came across as trying to be works of literature. But with Point Of Impact Hunter found his stride. For those who are involved with the "gun culture" this series is superb. The technical details are dead on. But in Time To hunt Swagger comes full circle. The great American war hero finally finds peace with himself and has a re-match with his nemisis. This novel is more then just a suspense/thriller. In Time To Hunt Hunter finally achieves a level of literature and the best part of it is he isn't trying. Slow moving? No it trys to capture the pacing of real life. Rest assured though when the action happens it happens in buckets. Being from Idaho I especially enjoyed the sequence in the Sawtooths. If I have any complaint and it is minor is the fact that there are two hospitals in Boise. There is no Boise General Hospital.

It is usually a bad idea to continue the adventures of a hero from a successful book or film. Sequels tend to be a watered-down retread that ruins the memory of the original. However, this is the second time that Stephen Hunter has pulled off a continuation of the adventures of Bob Lee Swagger, the Veitnam veteran and retired Marine sniper first introduced in the classic POINT OF IMPACT. This time, an old enemy from Swagger's past shows up to wreck the peaceful life he has built for himself with his wife, Julie (the widow of Swagger's spotter during the Veitnam War) and their now 5 year old daughter, Nikki. After opening with a nerve-jangling attempt on their lives, Hunter daringly moves the story back in time to the war to focus on the aforementioned Donny Fenn, Julie's first husband. We learn the bizarre circumstances that got Donny sent to Veitnam for a second tour that would end up taking his life. Afterwards, Hunter shifts back to the present as Swagger tries desperately to figure out who wants him and his family dead. The strength of these books is that Hunter has allowed Swagger to grow and evolve through each book. He becomes more human and likable, and even easier to identify with despite his almost supernatural abilities as a killer. Everyime you think that Hunter has hit his peak, he outdoes himself with yet another over-the-top, nailbiting, edge-of-your-seat action sequence that is still wholly credible. TIME TO HUNT is better than BLACK LIGHT, although its not quite as good as POINT OF IMPACT. But it does come awfully close. I personally can't wait for Hunter's next book, about Bob Lee Swagger or anybody else for that matter.

I have read Point of Impact, Black Light and now Time to Hunt. This book was fabulous! I really enjoy the way Mr. Hunter entwines the characters from all these books to make a story that never stops twisting and turning! The detail of the snipers world and his heroic characters pull you in and never let you go until the book is done. I agree with others who feel this is his best book, although that may be because I read all three in a row with no let up, so actually I probably am feeling the rush of the entire trilogy. I just ordered Dirty White Boys to finish off the Bob Lee Swagger saga. I can hardly wait; I love Mr. Hunter's style!

Big Trouble is a thick, digressive read that requires physical and mental stamina. For the experienced reader only.

For the first 100 pages, the digressions into every day life in 19th century America seem a maddening distraction, but then the reader begins to think and see the book in terms of the period it describes. What nobler acheivement for an historian?

Ostensibly the book is an account of the assasination of a former Idaho govenor by the Western Federation of Miners and the labor leaders capture and subseguent trial in Bosie. While it is a revealing labor history of the west at the turn of the last century, it also explores personal ambition, bomb making, capsule biograhies of everyone involved from Alan Pinkerton to Clarence Darrow, ehtnic newspapers in New York, the role of faternal organizations in settling the west, the poetry of Edgar Lee Masters (law partner to Darrow), widespread corruption caused by the bloody labor-capital wars, and much more.

As another reviewer pointed out, Big Trouble is a book begging to be hyper-texted.

Although the book is flawed in some ways it is an education in the best sense and you will miss a truly great achievement in passing it by.

After finishing Big Trouble the reader is left to wonder what impossible literary standard Lukas had in mind when he killed himself only hours after giving the manuscript to his publisher.

It was with great sadness that I learned of Anthony Lukas' death. Having been prompted by 'Big Trouble' to read his other prize winning book 'Common Ground', I am convinced we've lost a major talent and human being. Having lived in Boise, Idaho, this account of the murder of the Governor during the turn of the century was fascinating. Readers may be interested to know that the Idanha Hotel, where many of the key figures lived during the trial still bears their famous names on the room doors. The book is so exhaustively researched that details of conversations come out allowing it to be read almost like a novel. I found the diversions helpful in illuminating and embellishing the atmosphere and culture of the day. The beauty of this book is that you learn about so many different historical events and issues, not just the one at the center of the story. I highly recommend this book.

The principal story of this thoroughly engrossing book is a sensationalist murder trial that took place in Idaho in 1905--but that's only the jumping off point. Lukas pulls in every thread of the tangled issues and events that led up to that trial, and so demonstrates the vast complexity of history. When black soldiers are brought in to guard rioting miners, you get a history of African Americans in the U.S. military. When rival detective agencies are vying for control of the case, you read a history of law enforcement. You meet Clarence Darrow (who represented the defendants), Ethel Barrymore and baseball great Walter Johnson, along with Americans unknown to most modern readers, but no less influential and prominent in their day, such as labor leader Bill Haywood and Pinkerton detective James McParland. The history of organized labor, American class consciousness, and the broken promise of the American West are all central to the story. Lukas's writing is precise, compelling and extremely readable. I thought I knew a thing or two about American history, until I read this book; every page brought a new revelation.

According to the author, if the United States ever teetered at the brink of class war, it was in the western states at the early part of this century. Those volatile times are a fascinating mirror through which to contemplate our own.

After a recent trip to my family's cabin in Cardiff Spur, I caught the history bug. Back in the dusty shelves I found a old book about the ghost towns of Idaho. A small book, probably out of publication by now, that had details about North Central Idaho that the schools don't teach - the drama. When I decided to make the trek back to the cabin, I decided I would be better informed of the area and what it offered in the way of hiking and historical sites. In that manner, I came across "Snowbound."
Ladd Hamilton did a wonderful job of recreating an incident that has been told in many different versions. I knew the fate of George Colegate before I started reading the book, but the rich detail helped make the story vivid and more human.
It was a bit slow paced at times, and the heartbreaking part is that no one will ever know exactly what happened to George Colegate. Regardless, an awesome history of the area surrounding the Lolo Trail for those who are interested.

I just finished this book (February 2003) and I must say that it was a very riveting book. Since I have been to some of the places that are spoken of in this book and am a resident of the Lewiston,ID and Clarkston,WA valley, it was all the more fascinating.
The positives of this book are too many to list, but let me begin by saying that it gives a vivid picture of the beauty but also the brutality of nature. The Bitterroot mountains, the Lochsa River, etc. are described so well, you feel like you're there. The Carlin hunting party that ventured into these parts in October of 1893 did not expect such harsh conditions - it was an unusually snowy and wet Fall. Very few people in the world have faced the hardships they faced, and their heart-wrenching decision to leave a sick man behind can only be understood by those who appreciate the harsh conditions they were in, both in terms of weather, but also in terms of their own physical and mental weakness at the time.
Ladd Hamilton does a good job at remaining objective on his assessment of their decision. But I, for one, do not fault them for it. The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few or the one. Far from being an act of inhumanity, as one reviewer calls it, I see in the Carlin party an example of real courage and ingenuity. They did not arrive at their decision in a flippant manner - they really struggled with it, and they chose to act on logic, rather than on sentiment. What a breath of fresh air that is in our feelings-oriented society!!
One member of the party, Keeley (who was hired by Carlin to aid them in their exit), ends up twisting the story against his comrades - but this was clearly because of his greed and his bitterness for not having received more $$$ for his services.
Read it for yourself, and enjoy!

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This is a "True Crime." In 1893, two spoiled rich boy-men and a brother-in-law - all from New York, and 2 local men (a guide and a cook) went off into the Bitterroot Mountains for a hunting foray. Not all came out. The Great White Hunters were exposed to be neither Great nor much good as hunters. The aftermath of their foibles and folly is an interesting juxtaposition of Eastern American v. Western, and the idle idyll rich v. working folk of the time.

The hunting "expedition" and its wending out of the wilderness are slow going. Unfortunately for the reader, so also is author Ladd Hamilton's pacing and writing style. In the beginning, I had to create a chart of the participants - then, reading further, they each become more easily identifyable.

Two portions in the book are among the most sad and gruesome testimentaries of man's inhumanity to man and animal of any this reader has ever read - I will not spoil it for you by revealing further. And speaking of spoilage, one is cautioned to employ "Owen's Rule" and not look at the included photos before reading - as they disclose those who came out alive.

I wasn't sure what to make of this book when it was offered to me as an advance copy at the book store where I work. I enjoy the Internet, I find it a vital tool for research and entertainment, even though I'm not nearly as consumed by it as many other people. But what I found in this book was a fascinating story of two outcasts in the boonies of Idaho who, on the surface, may seem like burnout stoners, but are actually extremely intelligent and insightful.

Journalist Jon Katz followed these two "geeks" as they gambled with everything they owned to trek out to Chicago with a U-Haul and find a place where their computer skills could mean something. Their story is a "fish-out-of-water" experience, full of humor, hope, and sadness. You'll find yourself rooting for Jesse and Eric as they go through the ups and downs of finding themselves in a strange new environment.

There are also some interesting testimonials from various other "geeks" (although the interminable analysis of Columbine gets old fast). Jesse's adventures while battling the odds and applying to the University of Chicago make for some riveting reading. A very good book and a keen insight on "geek culture."

I thoroughly enjoyed Geeks (by Jon Katz) because of how I could relate to it. With so many real life examples in this book, it is hard not to relate to it. The story is so typical for so many people I know, and it all sounds very familiar. I really enjoyed all the characters in the book because of their courage. I especially liked Jesse because of his leadership. I'm sure that it took a lot of guts for Jesse to get himself and his friend into the real business world. After reading the book I was more encouraged to go to college, and work my hardest. If you're looking for a good book to read, and have a good time reading it, then Geeks would most definitely it!!

I've taken if upon myself to become a one-woman task force in an effort to encourage educators, parents and kids to read this book.

It addresses the lost members of our youth, those labeled geek, freak, outcast, weirdo and oddball; the kids who most need someone to reach out and assure them that high school is but one, small segment of their entire lives,and if there seems no place for them there, a place most definitely exists in the world. In fact, it is their time. In the wake of Columbine we must acknowledge that our kids are in need -- of our support, reassurance, nurturing. These quiet, oddball kids are usually the brightest, most creative, intense, thoughtful people, and rather than allow that unique voice to be squelched, we must encourage them to grow and be strong in their individuality.

GEEKS will help parents and educators to understand, and will show kids that there is a world out there waiting to embrace them with open arms. At this time in the world, this book should be required reading.

Anyone who truly cares about the well being and future of our youth cannot afford NOT to read it.