Marc Simmons has done a wonderful job documenting the Southwest through many of his writings. In "The Little Lion of the Soutwest" he brings to life Manuel Antonio (Duran y) Chaves. Manuel lived through a drastically changing political environment of what he considered his homeland since when the Duran y Chaveses first found their way into what is now the American Southwest in the early 1600s. Simmons documents Manuel's childhood, military service, and livelihood through his son, Amado's collection, and other historical documentation. Mr. Simmons puts a face on some of the personalities that helped shape (what is now) New Mexico during the 1800s.

These are the tales of which my family grew up on. This story reminiscents to how well our great+ grandfathers lived compared to what resulted when many hispanic families were pushed off their lands. As a child, I remember hearing tales about the dealings with the Native Americans, having huge herds of cattle and sheep, and that there were a few in the family who fought in the old wars. During that time, I chalked these up as family "fish tales". In reading "The Little Lion", some of these myths come to life. Mr. Simmons helps in piecing together a history of what one great man of the Chavez family went through. For this I am grateful to read about because my fifth great grandfather was one of Manuel Antonio's uncles. Mr. Simmons writing's on Manuel Antonio Chavez makes many proud of the honor of being part of this "Distinctive American Clan".

This book is one I will always cherish, knowing someone took the time in giving a voice to a few lives of the Southwest. This is the stuff that should be taught in American History.

In the November 2000 issue of The Bloomsbury Review, in the "Gifts for Booklovers" section Lori D. Kranz wrote:

Her medium is clay, her inspiration the Galisteo Basin where she lives and works. Native New Mexican Priscilla Hoback makes what she calls "clay murals" or fired clay paintings. Hoback started out as a self -taught potter in Santa Fe, where she was born, and for many years created and sold functional pieces for the kitchen in her studio/shop on Canyon Road and at local craft fairs. In 1977, with her children gone to college, she yearned for a change, for a more peaceful life in the country, and so she bought a small, run-down ranch near Galisteo village, which she turned into a studio, a house, a garden, and a home for her horses, dogs, ducks, and chickens. In her meanderings through the basin valley, she became fascinated with its geology, wildlife, ancient petroglyphs, and abandoned mines-particularly clay mines. Her work grew in both size and inventiveness as she began to incorporate these influences, gathering raw materials from the land, experimenting with her own recipes, and firing them in a large kiln of her own making.

For her murals, Hoback uses the wet clay as her canvas, drawing images on it with her fingers, a pen, or a trowel. Then she brushes on pigments and creates texture by scraping away or building up layers of clay. Her imagery is of animals :horses, buffalo, deer, antelope, birds, and her favorite, bears. Before it has dried, she cuts the clay slab into smaller pieces and punches holes in them, which allows them to be screw-mounted on plywood for later hanging. Then comes what she considers the best part: the firing. Hoback sees kilns as "combinations of dragon, slave, and ancient god." The result of her efforts is a unique blend of ceramic art, painting, and installation art.

Living Clay is Hoback's story : her life, her process, her creations, her beautiful desert surroundings, all illustrated in full color. From an accomplisher potter she has become a singuar artist. "Hands ask, clay responds." she says. Her book is a testament to the beauty of what hands are capable of.

This is the book to buy if you've ever floated through the Rio Grande Gorge near Taos and, as you passed beneath the John Dunn Bridge, someone on your trip asked, "who exactly was John Dunn?" As a river guide you have full authority (and some would argue a professional obligation) to make up whatever answer you like, but I've found it helpful to occasionally sprinkle facts among the many assertions I've made to trusting passengers over the years. This slim volume, only 163 pages, is full of wonderful information about the life of John Dunn for whom that bridge is named, as well as northern New Mexico from the late 1800's through 1953, the year Mr. Dunn died. By reading this book you will be well prepared for passengers' questions and, as a bonus, you'll glimpse a lifestyle that predates most of us. For me the few early photos of the Rio Grande, all from pre-boating years, and the building of the John Dunn Bridge are alone worth the price of the book. The regional history and the life of John Dunn are exquisite bonuses.

John Dunn apparently was an irascible and only sporadically honest fellow, the sort of individual whose life story is fun to read about. His is not an exception. You'll learn about his early years in Texas, his later life in New Mexico, and the various legal and not-so-legal enterprises in which he was engaged throughout. I don't think I would have liked being around John Dunn, but I did enjoy reading about his adventures. I suspect you will too.

Lt. David Buckalew and what few men he has left are on their way back to Texas after being beaten by the Union Army. On the way they find out about a bunch of weapons and powder hidden on a ranch. They decide to capture it and take it back with them to help their cause. They are only 20 men strong and this number will drop. The weapons and powder are hidden on a ranch owned by people who back the Union. They are successful it starting toward Texas with it but it is a long way from over. Bucklaew and his few men have to fight the people for the Union also a group of Indians led by Comanchero Floyd Bearfield, who wants the stuff to sell. Bucklaew is a green Lt., therefore, his men may more attention to Sergeant Noley Mitchell than to him. Can he get the material back to Texas? Will the men ever respect him? The book moves fast and will hold your attention. Some people get killed you don't want to and some live you don't want to. A good Western book, but then Kelton usually writes a good one.

Dorothy Hoard doesn't just present a book on hiking the Los Alamos outdoors. She leads the hiker on a guided tour of the environs, its geology, its people, its natural and social history. She walks the walks of the ancient Pueblo Indians as she explores the niches of their art, lifestyle, and work. She introduces the hiker to the area's unique rock and land formations, and the fragile yet resourceful flora, while inviting the hiker to appreciate the strength of this ancient land and the art and work of its innovative people. This is a book not just about hiking; this is a book about discovery in the land of the Ancients.

"Los Ojos del Tejedor: The Eyes of the Weaver" is a wonderful regional story based on the author's youth. She is a descendent of the Ortega family of Chimayo. The Ortega family has been weaving in the small, rural community of Chimayo for more than eight generations and the quality of their rugs and blankets is well known. They own a store in Chimayo and in several other locations where their Hispanic style rugs and blankets are sold in many sizes. Chimayo is a mountain community north of Santa Fe best known for the Santuario de Chimayo, an old adobe church pilgrims flock to for its miracles of healing and tourists visit as a fine, historical example of New Mexico adobe churches.

This book beautifully describes Hispanic traditions and the importance of teaching the children these skills. Ten year old Cristina loves going to her grandparents' house, but she is particularly nervous about this trip. She knows that she is going to spend a week there to learn how to weave and is filled with anxiety over weaving as well as her grandfather, and she doesn't speak Spanish as well as she'd like. Her mother suggests that her cousin, who speaks better Spanish, should join her and their grandparents, and that makes Cristina feel more confident about her visit.

This delightful book moves beyond learning to weave on the loom. Cristina weaves in her own memories of Hispanic culture through other activities during this visit. Spanish words and phrases are sprinkled as regional seasoning, adding depth to the flavor of her story. A glossary of these words is found at the back to help non-Spanish speakers navigate their way through this book. Phrases are translated in the text of the book. In addition to stumbling with her grandfather's Spanish, she also picks regional vegetables from the garden and cooks traditional New Mexican foods, which also contributes to the fullness of the text.

The illustrations add a lot to the text. They are done in a "painterly" syle common among the works of the early Taos painters, supporting both the regional and historic feel of this book. The book does a beautiful and complete job of representing the New Mexico Hispanic culture and is a must for anyone who wants to learn more about this subject. But in addition to the social studies lesson, this book is about families and how they relate to one another. It is a personal story about a child's belonging to her family and rising up to their expectations with love and compassion.

This is the second book in Monty Joynes' series about Anglo (aka Booker Washington), a white man who has meandered his way into the spiritual center of a contracting Pueblo Indian community.

I discovered LOST IN LAS VEGAS after stumbling across the initial work, NAKED INTO THE NIGHT, in my local college library. I was quite impressed, all the more so because I discovered half way through reading it that the author lived in my relatively obscure mountain town! I found him in the phone directory, gave him a call, and after a half-hour conversation, immediately went out and bought the other two books. I was not disappointed!

LOST IN LAS VEGAS takes Anglo, who has by now earned a place of controversial respect among elders of his adopted Pueblo tribe, on the onerous task of retrieving a lost young Indian leader who is squandering his special dancing talents in the irreverent casinos of Nevada's gambling capitol. With characteristic sangfroid and guileless generosity, Anglo eventually wins the trust of the cynical dancer and even the high class prostitutes who control him. Anglo assists Dancer on an extraordinary vision quest in the desert outside Las Vegas, which realigns the young man with his Native roots. While the outcome is predictable, the journey is uplifting and often spellbinding. This is my favorite of the three works published so far.

All the books in Monty Joynes' series belong in the category of what might be called spiritual or allegorical fiction. Although the stories are obviously imaginary, they evoke perennial truths and awaken an intuitive sense of the sublime. I am really surprised these works have not received greater popular acclaim. I found them much better written, more profound and believably realistic than such recent bestsellers as CELESTINE PROPHESY and CONVERSATIONS WITH GOD. Perhaps they'll be the sleepers of the year.

New Mexico is outrageous, mysterious, weird, funny, aggravating, and a vital part of our world. Latham goes where no tourist dares and says what no C of C suit dares whisper. His newsman's eye and artistic soul create a work of highway and waterway art that traps the soul of the state in a sculpture of words. Like his quest for a good cup of coffee, the search goes on to define this place. All the fun is in the journey. . .or reading about it.

I bought this book as a present for a friend from New Mexico and ended up wanting to keep it.The pictures and stories are rather amazing and anyone with a thing for cars should check out this book.

Of course, you need to be able to read spanish to understand this, but I am bilingual and I was needing a book that actually approached "magia" in Mexico from a historical and anthropological view. Lilian has published other books and I reviewed several of them as well as reading this one and I am comfortable that she is a scholar and not a "whole cloth" inventer. Having grown up in Mexico I could cross-correlate many things she said to end up convinced that the work is indeed scientifically sound.
It's also well written and organized and extensively bibliographed.