Book Description
When Bo spots what he thinks is a "rip-roarin', rootin'-tootin', shiny red armadillo," he knows what he has to do. Follow that armadillo! Bo leaves his mother and three brothers behind and takes off for a two-stepping, bronco-bucking adventure. Jan Brett turns her considerable talents toward the Texas countryside in this amusing story of an armadillo on his own. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

Armadillo Rodeo by Jan Brett
This book is really cute! The 7 year old boy I purchased it for wants to read it over and over again! The illustrations are really colorful and well done. This is the type of book that is great fun for a boy or girl - ages 4 to 8, I should think. The author, Jan Brett, is very clever. I will look for more of this authors books in the future for children on my gift list.
Loriann Ringgold
Elko, NV

A delightful adventure
For children and for those who just love that critter I love so...you will enjoy this book very much. With a delightful story and wonderful illustrations, it is sure to please.

Walking across Texas
This is really a cute book and I know my niece will really enjoy it. I recommend buying and reading it to all children.It is truly fun.

Armadillo Befriends Boot
A slightly different tale from Jan Brett.Gone is the European feel of so many of her books.It is replaced by a healthy jargon-filled dose of American Western.Gone are the hedgehogs; welcome the armadillos.

Bo is one of four armadillo brothers.He tends to be curious and wander so his mother tries to keep a close watch on him.Like all armadillos, Bo's eyesight is not very good.So one day while he is following a lizard, he sees a red cowboy boot and thinks it is a red armadillo.

The boot in question is being worn by a young girl who is trying to scuff them up so she won't look like a tenderfoot at the rodeo.But Bo does not see the girl, or the other boot for that matter.Instead, he thinks he has found a playful new friend.

Chasing after the boot, Bo has many experiences while his mother and brothers search for him (as seen in the side panels).Bo's adventure takes him across the rodeo arena, to a bar-b-que, into an encounter with a jalapeno, to a barn dance, a hayloft, and ultimately to the truth about his new friend.

In the end we learn that while Bo has learned the truth of his day's adventures, he knows just what to do when he feels a little mischievous.

I usually give Jan Brett's books five stars but gave this one only four.I did that only because of the heavy use of Western jargon that needs to be explained to young ears in order for the story to make sense.But it is still a very fun book with beautiful illustrations.

The book I have the most fun reading aloud to my 7-year old!
My sister, a nearby neighbor of Jan Brett's,discovered this book and sent it to my then 5-year old son for his birthday.Bo's nearsighted adventures entertain; and his being lost and not knowing he's lost delights my son.Most children will envy Bo's adventure to the rodeo and understand his curioisity.Having developed quite the Texas "accent and attitude" while reading this book, it's at the top of our list of all-time favorites.Thank you Jan Brett! ... Read more

Book Description

Customer Reviews (1)

Rodeo Legends
My son has really enjoyed reading about the various people and events that they pursue in this book.Interesting to read. ... Read more

Book Description
Wild Ride presents a fascinating history of rodeo from its rugged beginnings in Mexico to today's professional circuits. This book captures the mystique of the cowboy and his place in Western folklore, from the early days when groups of cowboys from neighboring ranches met to settle arguments over who was the best at performing ranching tasks to the multimillion-dollar prizes and endorsements awarded to today's professionals all over the world including Canada, Brazil, and Australia.
... Read more

Book Description

Yee–hah! It's rodeo time!

Bareback bronc riding, barrel racing, calf roping, the livestock show, the fiddling contest, and don't forget lunch –– how are Katie and Cameron going to fit it all in and still have time to help their uncle, Cactus Joe, with chores? By making a schedule, of course. But making a schedule and sticking to it turn out to be two very different things!

Customer Reviews (1)

Great for kids at home and at school
This book is great for kids who are interested in math and also for those you wish to get interested in math.It makes math fun. ... Read more

Book Description

Customer Reviews (1)

Living in the Past and Embracing the Future
Who better to describe the Westerner condition than William Kittredge. Not only is he one of the West's most celebrated writers but is the son of a rancher from southeastern Oregon. Kittredge inherited his father's ranch and stuck it out until he hit 33 when headed off to study and teach creative writing first in Iowa and then Montana.

Kittredge's homeland is not the kind of place where most family car loads whizzing through the vast expanses stop to take in the scenery. Such perspectives make it difficult to garner public sentiment in favor of, not only protecting desert ecosystems, but also convincing the public that such places are an important part of our western tradition.

A good writer, however, has the ability to consistently re-evaluate his circumstances. Kittredge makes no bones about what's been lost, in part, due to his own father who "got his hands on a paradise of waterbirds and fertility, and ... remade it into what he understood as useful, a sprawling system of irrigation and drainage canals and agribusiness fields." While he is driving along the Salmon River on a cold solitary night thinking about the paradigm between the loss of salmon and grizzly bears and our inertia to do anything about it he says: "[i]n wintertime moonlight, the icy Sawtooth Range was aglow under a swirling sky. I contemplated the serious, classical, fool-making mysteries. How to proceed? Can it be true we suffer from a nostalgia for which there is no remedy on earth?"

Kittredge's genius lies in his ability, in a few short sentences, to, not only put you right inside of the writer's mind when they reflect on their experience, but allow you to visualize just what he is seeing, almost as if you where there. Most of all, he brings home the inherent conflict experienced by all of us who are deciding whether to hang on to the past or to embrace the new west.

Harold Shepherd is the Author of Compromising Democracy: The Rise and Fall of the Second Conquest of Western Rangelands

... Read more

Product Description
Three sexy, sassy, and bold heroines find love and romance with three rugged, hunky cowboys who capture their hearts.* * *MELANIE'S PROTECTOR:Melanie Blake needs protection so she picks Steve McCall to help her escape the people in hot pursuit of her. Steve has no idea the woman stowed away in his camper is smoldering with passion.* * *KARLY'S DRIFTER:Karly Jackson follows the Montana rodeo circuit shooting photos of the cowboys for her book. Hawk Rivers is opposed to be being featured in her book. Karly wants to know what he is hiding. On the other hand, Hawk is eager to share her bed and midnight pleasures after the rodeo ends.* * *JOSIE'S HEARTBREAKER:Josie Landford sets out to fulfill a life long fantasy--a hot, sizzling, no-strings-attached affair with a rugged and rough cowboy. Rex West isn't quite sure what to think of the breezy, sexy Josie Landford. He gives her a call and finds himself on a seductive wild ride. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

all three of the thrilling Rodeo Cowboy stories under one cover!
MELANIE'S PROTECTOR
Melanie is in big trouble.While working as a speech writer for the governor, she accidentally comes across information about a cover-up and kickbacks.The governor catches her with the open computer file, since then she's been in serious danger.She's on the run and needs help, which she finds in a saddle bronc rider, Steve.

Melanie picked Steve because he looked honest.She follows him out to his truck and camper and when he leaves the camper unlocked, she seizes the opportunity to hide inside.Her intention is to make him drive her to Bozeman where she can catch her flight, only she wasn't counting on her hand-picked cowboy's unwillingness to go along with her plan.Even with her holding a gun on him, he calmly talks to her, makes coffee, and then goes to bed.Melanie falls asleep with the gun still in her hand but wakes up when she feels him attempting to relieve her of the weapon and they end up in a wrestling match that arouses them both.Steve fully intends to find out what Melanie is so terrified of that she'd go to these extremes.There's no way he'll allow any harm to come to her.Until she's ready to tell him what's going on, there are other things they can do to occupy their time and relieve some of the sexual tension between them.Will he be able to protect Melanie from the high-powered men who are after her?

MELANIE'S PROTECTOR is the first book in Sage Burnett's RODEO COWBOYS series starting it off with a bang. This book is fast paced and will delight readers with the interactions between Melanie and Steve.Melanie is just an innocent woman who accidentally saw some incriminating files in the governor's office.Steve is a cowboy whose mama taught him to always help a lady in trouble and he takes her teachings to heart.Melanie didn't want to involve Steve in her problems but from the minute she kidnapped him, he takes on her worries as his own.

KARLY'S DRIFTER
Karly Jackson is a freelance photographer.She's spent a month traveling the rodeo circuit snapping pictures for a book.Most of the cowboys she comes across are thrilled at the opportunity to be immortalized in her book, but the one man who really intrigues Karly flat out refuses to have any part of it.

Karly is inexplicably drawn to Hawk despite his gruff attitude and refusal to sign the release form to allow her to use the pictures she's taken of him.Her lack of fear and refusal to back down to him arouse Hawk far more than he cares to think about.After the final competition, Hawk pays a visit to Karly's motor home with the intention of taking the film that contains pictures of him.He doesn't get the film but it turns out to be a trip well worth making.Without any preamble he suggests they go to bed, according to him there's no need for courtship stuff is a waste of time and Karly couldn't agree more.Hawk swears that he's bad for her and they can't have a permanent relationship, but Karly's already half in love with him.Will she get her heart broken and what is this big secret that he insists on keeping to himself?

KARLY'S DRIFTER is the second book in Sage Burnett's RODEO COWBOY series.This story packs quite a wallop with the fast paced storyline, hot sex, and unforgettable characters.I adored Karly's quick witted banter with Hawk and the fact that she didn't let him intimidate her.Hawk is the strong silent type and right from the first page you get the sense that he's been very hurt in the past.It's a refreshing change of pace to be able to view rodeo cowboys as people with very real problems and a life outside of the rodeo circuit.

JOSIE'S HEARTBREAKER
Josie Landford is finally free of a twenty-year oppressive marriage and her son has gone away to college.She's decided that it's time for her to live out her sexual fantasies with a rodeo cowboy.With that goal in mind, she attends her very first rodeo and finds her ideal candidate in number twenty-seven, Rex West.

Josie may know exactly what she wants from Rex - scorching sex, but his old-fashioned ideals aren't going to allow for her to take the lead in any relationship that develops between them.He believes in courtship, even if it is just a short one before going to bed with a woman.Josie would rather try to keep their encounters sexual but Rex's insistence on opening doors and dinner dates is causing a riot of emotions that she isn't ready for and, quiet honestly, didn't anticipate.After their first dinner date, Josie and Rex end up back at her place.Surprisingly, rather than jumping into bed, Josie becomes nervous.She has no doubt that she wants Rex but first she wants to establish some ground rules.Her first rule is that they will not have a one-night stand.The second rule - no strings attached.She lets him pick rule number three, his rule - one night a week.What will happen when their one night a week affair turns out not to be enough?

JOSIE'S HEARTBREAKER is the final book in Sage Burnett's RODEO COWBOY series.Don't worry if you haven't read the first two stories, each of the books can be read independently.I particularly liked JOSIE'S HEARTBREAKER because the main characters are more mature; both have been in long term marriages and have no qualms about who they are or what they want from each other.Rex's gentlemanly qualities quickly won me over, I was continuously tantalized with his rough and ready cowboy attitude.The combination of the two traits is enough to keep any girl salivating!Josie had a simple affair all planned out; an affair devoid of complicated emotional attachment.Rex turns out to be unlike any man she's ever known and she's not sure how to deal with her developing feelings. This is truly a fun tale that will feed your fantasies about cowboys, yet leave you hungering for more.

Chrissy Dionne (courtesy of Romance Junkies)

A GREAT READ
This book is a totally enjoyable read. All three stories take place at rodeos, but each book is unique with different characters in each story. If you like sexy cowboys, then I would recommend it. Great romance stories and very hot! ... Read more

Amazon.com
One of the most beloved figures in country music (non-music division), Nudie Cohn was born a million metaphoric miles from the birthplace of the hillbilly sound. His remarkable journey--from tailor's apprentice in his birthplace of Kiev, Russia, to America's undisputed king of Western wear--is lovingly documented in Nudie: The Rodeo Tailor by authors Jamie Lee Nudie (his granddaughter) and Mary Lynn Cabrall. More pictorial celebration than detailed biography, the book wisely lets the photos of his famous friends and his splendid suits tell the story; the accompanying text is light and breezy, providing a mere overview of Cohn's life and travels. An incredible range of actors and musicians appear, usually donning Nudie's one-of-a-kind creations. Supposedly the first tailor to add rhinestones to a Western suit, Nudie was as flamboyant as his gloriously embroidered, superbly studded garments. Like many immigrants to the States, this Russian-born Jew was clearly fascinated by the more mythic aspects of Americana--Hollywood, cowboys, and western music--and eventually became a unique part of Americana himself. --Marc GreilsamerBook Description
Born in Kiev, Ukraine in 1902, Nudie Cohn built an impeccable reputation as one of the most sought after clothiers in Los Angeles... all on a few sparkly G-strings.Nudie the Rodeo Tailor tells the unbelievable story of Nudie and Bobbie Cohn and the legendary fashion legacy they created. Nudie Cohn's first store (Nudie's for the Ladies, New York City) featured those famous and lavishly ornamented G-strings and stage costumes, and allowed him to build a reputation as a master tailor with a taste for the flashy.After a few years, Nudie turned his attention to making western clothing, and became the first person to incorporate rhinestones into cowboy dress. It was the $10,000 gold suit that Nudie made for Elvis Presley that rocketed Nudie to stardom and cemented his status in fashion history; Nudie would go on to design clothing for Dale Evans and Roy Rogers, Elton John, Gene Autry, John Wayne, John Lennon, Steve McQueen, Johnny Cash, Eric Clapton, and the rock groups America and the Flying Burrito Brothers. Nudie blurred the boundaries of fashion and cast a far-reaching influence over the clothing worn in country music, rock music, movies, and television. Nudie the Rodeo Tailor chronicles the life of the man who epitomizes the American Dream itself, with an amazing selection of photographs of suits, clothing, accessories, and of Nudie himself with the hundreds of clients and friends he made through the years. Nudie the Rodeo Tailor is the most comprehensive and handsome book on Nudie Cohn and his clothing ever created-a long overdue testament to his spirit and talent. Jamie Lee Nudie was born to Barbara Cohn and Sun Studio-sensation Jimmy Wilson in North Hollywood, California. The granddaughter of Nudie and Bobbie grew up in Nudie's Rodeo Tailors, greeting the stars and clientele with the same friendly persona. Jamie is a mother of three children living in the San Fernando Valley, caring for her grandmother Bobbie Nudie and working on many projects pertaining to the Nudie legacy.Mary Lynn Cabrall was born in Castro Valley, California, and has always dreamed of becoming a cowgirl. She learned leather tooling, and her interest in vintage clothing led her to start mimicking Nudie suits. Mary Lynn later acquired a sixty-year-old chain-stitch embroidery machine, and she took up the art of machine embroidery. Today Mary Lynn and Jamie Lee work to re-create the Nudie magic. Leatherwork, silverwork, embroidery, rhinestones, and the best rodeo tailoring money can buy can be still be ordered from Nudie's Rodeo Tailors. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

The Best on The Best
Leave this on your coffee table and it will be picked up. Nudie's name gets their attention, but then his work keeps them looking. Some may label his work as kitsch. I contend Nudie was a great American artist.

This book is worthy of the man. Nicely laid out. Die-cut on the front. A great gift or addition to your library. ... Read more

Book Description

Customer Reviews (9)

That championship season . . .
Author Phillips follows a handful of champion steer wrestlers on a year's round of rodeos, focusing mostly on 23-year-old Luke Branquinho from Los Alamos, California, who in 2004 went to the National Finals and finished first, with over $193,000 in overall earnings. That is the book in a nutshell. Readers follow along as Luke, his brother Casey, best friend Travis Cadwell, and a colleague Marc Jensen crisscross the West to compete at dozens of rodeos. The steer wrestling itself and the competition get almost asmuch attention as the long-distance rig driving, poker playing, carousing, beer drinking, junk food eating, gambling, pot smoking, cell-phone talking, and the idle conversations, story telling, boredom, practical joking, raillery, tomfoolery, and high jinks that fill the time between rodeos and rides.

The book is an honest effort to recreate the experience of being on the road with this fraternity of men in their twenties and thirties, living out dreams of rodeo glory, pitting skill against luck in the arena, building friendships that qualify as a rough-and-ready kind of male bonding, struggling with disappointments, and dealing with physical ailments that range from colossal hangovers to serious injuries. You won't find much padding - no history of steer wrestling, no side-trips and detours into related subjects, and very little character study or analysis of the sport itself. It's pretty much play-by-play - whether behind the scenes or out in front of the crowd - ending in a 40-page account of the ten-day Finals in Las Vegas. A quick read, with a 16-page section of great action photos and thumbnail portraits of the cowboys featured in the book.

good read
I got very interested in the characters, and learned some things about the life of a rodeo cowboy.It's a good summer read.

Blacktop Cowboys is an actual on the road cowboy story
I bought this book as I college rodeoed with some of its characters. Appears they haven't changed much. The author did a great job of showing what it really is like out on the road. Not just the glitzy outlook but the behind the scenes.

Brilliantly Captured
I had read a glowing review of Blacktop Cowboys that piqued my interest.Though my husband describes me as a neo-aristocratic fashionista, little did he know that up to the age of 11 I rode western saddle and particpated in, albeit very small, local rodeos.There is something about these men (and women) who capture a part of America that holds a seemingly romantic life.Hats off, literally, to Ty Phillips! He wrote a wonderful book on today's steer wrestlers. And thanks to the gentlemen who allowed Mr. Phillips into their life.Without their participation I don't know if Mr. Phillips could have written so honestly about them.Mr. Phillips does not romantize, per se, about the life, but is able to put one there, watching the milesigns go by, feel the dust in one's nose, and the frustration or joy of an event.Whether one has an interest in rodeos or cowboys, buy this book, you won't read anything better.Thank you Mr. Phillips for writing about a subject few of us will ever know as well,than through your words.

Tells it Like it is
Phillips takes all those fans of professional rodeo on the road at 85 miles an hour in a 350 pickup, pulling an alumumum trailer loaded with horses and living space.Due to the descriptive skills of the author, the reader becomes a silent witness to the good, the bad, and the ugly side of life with the rodeo cowboy. I couldn't put the book down. ... Read more

Book Description
The little town of Cavity is no place for Rodeo Ron and his multicolored milkshake cows.

Not a soul in Cavity will drink milk. They'll only drink extra-fizzy, extra-sweet sodas from Frothy and Fruity's. Which would explain everyone's uncontrollable burping and dirty brown teeth. So Rodeo Ron moseys on over to Frothy and Fruity's soda bar and challenges those two belching brothers to a shake-off -- milkshakes vs. soda! Frothy and Fruity gather their sugars and syrups. Rodeo Ron gathers his milkshake cows.

The shake-off is on! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Rodeo Ron is a lot of fun!
We found this book in the library one day and we checked it out so many times, I decided to just buy it.The boys I babysit (4 1/2, 2 1/2) love this story and love to shake shake shake along with the cows while I'm reading to them.It's a great story with vivid, funny illustrations and a much needed lesson about good nutrition for kids!I highly recommend this book for any young child.

Shake Up Some Colorful Drinks
Rodeo Ron reforms the town with Rotten Teeth by introducing his tasty shakes from his cows: the first one as yellow as a field of sun ripened corn, the second as blue as a cloudless sky and the th ird as green as a fresh spring meadow. The milkshake cows not only make tasty shakes, they dispense colorful shakes. This would be a fun introduction to a lesson on making milkshakes of three colors using a variety of flavorings. Even little kids can use a blender to transform plain old burpless milk into yummy snacks that everyone will love. There are no recipes in the book, but it won't take most kids more than a minute to come up with ideas for their own tasty drinks.

Must Have For Dental Offices!!
Great kids book, young and old. Town called Cavity only serves soda to drink and everyones teeth are rotted. Great western and very colorful! ... Read more

Amazon.com
The rodeo is in W.K. Stratton's blood. He attended his first one in utero just days before he was born (on Will Rogers birthday, naturally). He is also the son of a bull-riding cowboy that left him and his mother when Stratton was an infant. The search for this elusive "rodeo bum" father is an underlying theme of Chasing the Rodeo but its main focus is on the action in the ring. Stratton spent a year following the professional rodeo and bull-riding tours and he explores the circuit with a keen and sympathetic eye. He writes about the history of the sport and its place in the mythology of the West, cowboy legends, current stars, and classic rodeo towns, such as Prescott, Arizona, and Pecos, Texas--both of which claim the title as the true birthplace of rodeo. He also looks at the growing popularity of rodeo and bull-riding and what it means for its future now that major events have corporate sponsors and are held in Las Vegas casinos rather than fairgrounds. While acknowledging that the big money prizes are good for the athletes, Stratton worries that marketing considerations will force the sport away from the very traditions that make it interesting. As proof, he bemoans the fact that helmets and Nike shoes are starting to replace Western hats and boots at some rodeos. Still, he encounters plenty of true Western spirit and memorable characters during his journey to keep his love for the rodeo alive and his enthusiasm for his subject proves contagious. Even those who have never considered attending a rodeo will likely find themselves enthralled by this wild ride of a book. --Shawn CarkonenBook Description

Customer Reviews (9)

Call of the wild . . .
While rodeo insiders may find fault with this book and quibble over details, it remains an excellent introduction to the history, the personalities, and the meaning of this sport as it's evolved over the past century. Stratton, a journalist based in Austin, TX, with roots in Oklahoma, comes by his "kicker" credentials fairly enough - his mother a cowgirl in her own right and his father a rodeo cowboy who went on down the road and never came back. Stratton's book is a personal journey, a search for an understanding of the romance of rodeo - the call of the wild in the soul, the appeal of risk-taking, the love of a past that can be recaptured for a moment in a beautifully executed ride on a bucking horse or bull. And he does much to reclaim the essentials of a pastoral ritual that has been compromised by commercialism, corporate sponsorships, and marketing that positions it as an extreme sport.

Stratton covers some familiar ground that will not be new for all readers, but many stories deserve retelling, such as that of George Fletcher at the 1911 Pendleton Roundup, the first bulldogger, Bill Pickett, and the death of champion bull rider Lane Frost. Then there is an account of the first rodeo "cowgirl," Lucille Mulhall and of Indian cowboy Will Sampson, who played Chief Bromden in "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest." In Prescott, AZ, he has occasion to recall at length the rodeo film "Junior Bonner" with Steve McQueen.

There is a wide array of other personalities who find their way into Stratton's book: Justin McBride, Will Rogers, Tom Mix, Willie Nelson, Jack Kerouac, Ben Johnson, Theodore Roosevelt, Buffalo Bill Cody, and evangelist Susie Luchsinger. He gets closest to the sport itself in conversations with all-around champion Jesse Bail and bullriding champion Freckles Brown. The first-chapter account of Brown's famous ride on Tornado at the National Finals in 1967 just takes your breath away. Finally there is the search for the story of Stratton's absent cowboy father, which rounds out the book with more than a little poignance. I loved this book and recommend it to anyone curious about rodeo, the fascination it holds for both fans and participants, and its place in American popular culture.

Exploring the history of chutes to its current popularity and uncovering myths and realities alike
Rodeo's roots may be in the primitive West of the past, but today it's prime-time TV material, even while steeped in tradition, filled with pros and tours. Journalist W.K. Stratton followed the pro rodeo circuit for one year, exploring the history of chutes to its current popularity and uncovering myths and realities alike. His findings about the people and politics of today's rodeo make for lively reading in Chasing The Rodeo: On Wild Rides And Big Dreams, Broken Hearts And Broken Bones, And One Man's Search For The West. A spirited account of today's wild riders.

Rodeo:Universality of the American West
Having grown up in Texas, I easily recognize many names and places and am quite familiar with rodeos.W.K. Stratton brilliantly blends the romantic lure of the rodeo as an expression of the American West with the univeral theme of the quest for identity. The book is a delightful mixture of colorful characters, amusing anecdotes, and sad stories. Mr. Stratton's personal quest mirrors that of all, not just those familiar with the sport or the region.His story's appeal lies in the universality of each human's struggles with issues of identity, values, and sense of place.I heartily recommend Chasing the Rodeo to anyone who appreciates a book that both transports one to another time and place and allows one the opportunity to be inspired by another's personal journey through life.

This book deserves a buckle.
**For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?** "Kip" Stratton has written a winner of a book, here.I felt it appropriate to begin this review with that familiar biblical quote, although "Chasing The Rodeo" is about the search for soul as well as about its diminution.What I mean by "soul" in this context is that which makes us part of society as well as unique individuals within it.Stratton's father, whom he never met, was a bull rider.Stratton's literal search for his father is overlaid onto his broader search for the soul of the rodeo and the American West.

As this book makes clear, the towns that hold rodeos provide an essential part of its unique character. Moving the National Finals Rodeo from Oklahoma, which is steeped in Rodeo tradition, to Las Vegas is symbolic of the sacrifce of soul for that most America of obsessions, making money.Character is also lost when things are made safe and sanitary, and when elements that are foreign are incorporated into a thing in order to make it "accessible" to a wider audience.Early in the book, Stratton frets about being "a generic, white bread American" but learns that the "Kicker Culture" is as much a part of him as it is of the Rodeo.I grew up in a small town in North Texas and will tell you that the "Kicker Culture" ain't pretty and it ain't sanitary or even safe, but it is genuine.There are parts of it that should be eschewed entirely, but never "prettied up."

Stratton obviously spent a great deal of time researching this book.It is chock-full of the people and places that make up this sport and their history.At the same time, he does not blink from calling racism what it is or identifying as bovine scat some of the aspects of recent Rodeo venues. He may offend some folks in doing so.But to be less than honest in his assessment of these things would certainly diminish the soul of the book.

A classic American tale
In these fractious times, it is a joy to come across a book that embraces something as distinctly American as the rodeo.W.K. Stratton has delivered a handsomely-rendered treasure for every man who ever wanted to be a cowboy and every woman who ever wanted to be a cowboy's sweetheart.He traces the origins of rodeoing, takes us to this wild sport's biggest events, and introduces us to the kind of outsized characters it is hard to believe still exist.So here's to Freckles Brown, the rodeo clown who rode the fiercest bull in captivity, and to Jesse Bail, the spiritual descendant of Larry Mahan and Ty Murray and all the great rodeo riders who preceded him.And here's to Stratton himself, the son of a rodeo bum, who weaves the search for traces of his father into the larger tale he is telling without ever getting thrown by it.He stayed in the saddle, and by doing so, he has given readers a chance for the ride of their lives. ... Read more

Book Description
"Heart pounding, blood pumping, the cowboy nods, chute gate opens, and his world begins. Eight seconds of adrenaline rush. Eight seconds of gripping, pulling, and holding on. The animal under him bucks and twists attempting to dislodge the cowboy's seat but the rider sticks like glue. The buzzer sounds, the cowboy dismounts, tips his hat to a cheering crowd, and nods at his proud fellow riders. Just another day at the office."--from Ropes, Reins, and Rawhide

Melody Groves, a native New Mexican and former bull rider, examines the sport of rodeo, from a brief history of the ranch-based competition to the rodeos of today and what each event demands. One of the first topics she addresses is the treatment of the animals. As she points out, without the bulls or horses, there wouldn't be a rodeo. For that reason, the stock contractors, chute workers, cowboys, and all the arena workers respect the animals and take precautions against their injuries.Groves writes for the rodeo novice, explaining the workings and workers (stock handlers, veterinarians, clowns, "pick up" men, event judges, etc.) seen in the arena and behind the scenes. She then describes the rodeo events: bull riding, saddle bronc riding, bareback riding, steer wrestling, team roping, tie-down roping, and barrel racing. Interviews with rodeo legends in every event round out the "feel" for this breathtaking sport. Over ninety photos depict what is described in the text to more fully explain the rodeo, with its ropes, reins, and rawhide.

The workings, workers, and animals of the heartstopping world of rodeo. ... Read more

Book Description

Customer Reviews (6)

True stories of rodeo life
I was blown away by this book for 2 reasons: 1. I have rodeoed before and knew exactly what these guys (and families) go through; and 2) Dirk Johnson did not sugar coat anything, he did not make them out to be something they're not, nor did he "sell out" their stories as real life stories are done so many times in the entertainment industry.It's great to see that people actually take an interest in their lifestyle, profession, job or whatever you choose to call it.I highly recommend this book for the person who doesn't know the 1st thing about rodeo or for a veteran of the sport/profession.

TRUE TO LIFE
A BOOK FOR THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN BEHIND THE CHUTES AND THOSE WHO LONG TO

if you want to know why...
I became intrigued with rodeo, 10/93, while dating a PRCA steerwrestler.PRCA cowboys earn less than you or I, get injured beyond repair, with no health insurance to pay the bills...heck..they often die doing what theylove.I wanted to know "why" they pursue this lifestyle.So...Isearched for anything I could find to get a better understanding. Ihappened upon Dirk Johnson doing a local TV interview, prior to the GrandNationals (10/95), and wrote down the name of his book.It's out of print,but, if you can get a copy it's worth it. I now know more about"why" they do what they do, and I've also had the opportunity tochat with the some of the cowboys Dirk followed for his book.They arewonderful and so is this book.I've read it several times, and if I couldjust get it back from my friend MB, I'll read it again!

Gripping realistic
This book to me tells of real life, real heartache and real people who struggle in a very competitive and low paying sport. There is no second best in my opion only that gold buckle

A great book for anyone interested in rodeo.
I really enjoyed this book.It gave an incredably detailed portayal ofthe modern cowboy and didn't glorify the job in the slightest.The authorsimply tells the truth of the log drives and injuries and costs ofcompeting in professional rodeo. Anyone who's interested in professionalrodeo will feel a little like a cowboy after reading this book.If youwant the stark reality of rodeo life, nothing shows it better. I loved howthe author focused on the lives of more than one cowboy and didn't leaveany detail out.The reader feels like he knows every person involved bythe end. ... Read more

Product Description
Manuals for the Do-it-yourselfer. All Haynes manuals explain how to carry out routine maintenance, restoration and servicing of cars and motorcycles, and are aimed primarily at the Do-it-yourselfer ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

rodeo manual
thank you the manual came in great condition and when promised. :) great seller

Usually helpful, though not always
This manual has guided me through a number of repairs over the past few years, however it is certainly _not_ a replacement for a factory service manual.The underlying problem with this manual is that it tries to cover too many different vehicles, and while it attempts to address the nuances of each model, it invariably leaves quite a bit to be desired.

I have a 1991 Isuzu Rodeo 3.1L V6, a model which is not covered too well. The pictures in the manual don't usually help, since they are irrelevant to my vehicle.Especially with regard to the engine.My particular year's engine might as well not exist according to this manual.Just recently my water pump went out on me, and replacing it was entirely different from that described in this manual.The picture of the 3.1L engine in the Haynes Manual was not mine!(this is just one example of when i've been let down).

Though an experienced DIYer or mechanic will know how to fix most things in his car, this manual was little help aside of general auto repair information.Indeed, I learned a lot simply by "flying blind" into much of my auto repair, making the manual irrelevant.

The conclusion: Call Isuzu (Helm publications, I think) and order their service manual, which I haven't done yet, but I plan on doing.I'm pretty sure that will be vehicle specific and should be much more detailed/helpful for your particular vehicle.When you call, they might ask you for 2 different versions UCR or UCR/S.I *think* the standard ROdeo is the UCR version, UCR/S I believe is for the Rodeo Sport (amigo?)].

Fairly thorough, lacks diagrams...
Has good instructions, but doesn't cover all information ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

rodeo riders
The Saddle Club: Carole, Stevie and Lisa take a trip out West to visit their friend Kate, a championship rider, whose parents run a dude ranch.Trouble is brewing in the form of a rival dude ranch which is stealing away business from the Bar None, Kate's family's ranch.When they impulsively register for a barrel racing contest, they hope to win, even though they are amateurs, but more importantly, they hope to garner positive publicity for the ranch.A nice change from the English riding themed books in the series.

The Bar None Riders!?
I have read other books in the series where the saddle club visited Kate and Christene, and they were fine. Enjoyable, quite actually. This one was far from it. The whole book seemed to keep riders thinking that western was so much better than english. Horseback riding descrimination. To tell you the truth, those silly dusters they adored so much over their english 'togs' are enough to make any person look like they're a real dude. (Even though I am an English rider) They kept saying how the rodeo was so much more fun compared to any other show they'd ever seen! To tell you the truth, I found most of the book quite boring. The English competitions were a lot more exciting in my opinion, and another thing to point out, when they went to English horse shows they didn't say, "Wow. Isn't this the best competition than any we've ever seen?" I found myself skimming listlessly over paragraphs trying to finish this horrid book. Then, at the end, when the girls were finally back in Pine Hollow, they were saying, "Don't you wish you were back at the bar none?" "Yeah, much more exciting than this place." Well, whoop de doo. At this point, they could just pack their bags, move back out west, change their club name to the bar none riders and compete in more of those stupid rodeo competitions for all I care. Just don't expect me to pick up another book again in the series if they did that. There was some saddle club mischief that was non-descriminal, but it wasn't enough to keep this book from going down the toilet. I hope the next one I read is about Pine Hollow, but of course, it isn't NEARLY as exciting as their beloved "Bar None". Well, I'm sorry but I did not like this book. Most people think that english riders are snots that look down on western riders. After reading this book, they should reconfigure that fact! I am insulted that they would want to trash the riding that I love most in this book. Especially coming from the saddle club!Mrs. Bryant, whom I've come to respect through some of the better ones, can just shove this one up her ass.

Love Rodeo? READ IT!
It was an excellent book--and educational. I ride English, and I knew just about nothing about Western Rider. If anyone asked me about Western riding before this book, I'd just say, "WEstern? Oh yeah, the one with the horn." I knew nothing at all about Rodeo before this. It gives plenty of information about Cowgirl Barrel Racing, Bronco Riding, Calf Roping, and Steer Wrestling.
It was an excellent book, and I HIGHLY recomend it--especially to people who love rodeo!

Real good
I liked this one because it involved barrel racing and rodeo. It was definately exciting.The only thing that I read that was odd was that the bronc riders had to stay on for 10 seconds instead of 8? What's the deal with that? Oh well. I guess it's no big deal. It was still a great book.

READ THIS!
This book was fantastic! I love any kind of riding, especially western. My friends and I, who ride any type of riding, even created a club called the Stirrup Stars! Anyway, this book was funny, plus it made you feel as if youwere really there at the rodeo! A highly recommended book for allhorse-lovers. ... Read more

Book Description

Amazon.com
Probably no other black cowboy has been as celebrated as Bill Pickett. A rodeo star, he has been honored with a postage stamp and has been the subject of a handful of books, including Bill Pickett, Bulldogger: The Biography of a Black Cowboy and Guts: Legendary Black Rodeo Cowboy Bill Pickett. Add to that list the children's book Bill Pickett: Rodeo Ridin' Cowboy by Andrea Pinkney. No matter how you feel about rodeo, it's hard not to admire Pickett, who was known to bring an unruly steer to its knees by taking a bite out of the animal's upper lip.Book Description

Customer Reviews (1)

Great Book
This is a great book especially if your doing a cowboy theme.My students loved the book!! ... Read more

Amazon.com
Not since Truman Capote's In Cold Blood has a writer so humanely evoked the complicated, harrowing lives of violent convicts. At turns haunting and inspiring, God of the Rodeo is novelist-journalist Daniel Bergner's riveting account of a year spent visiting the maximum-security prison at Angola, Louisiana, also known as "the last slave plantation." Initially there to report on the prison's annual four-weekend rodeo in October 1996 for Harper's, he was able to extend his stay for a full year when he was granted complete, unsupervised access to the seven prisoners with whom he became most closely acquainted.

In God of the Rodeo, he introduces readers to rodeo champion Johnny Brooks, a 41-year-old "lifer" incarcerated for a murder he committed at the age of 18, who is engaged to marry a civilian woman he met at the rodeo. He's also the most promising candidate for parole. There's Terry Hawkins, a man who tries to seek salvation for the violent murder of his boss, the grotesque details of which haunt him, and Danny Fabre, plagued with comically large ears he desperately wants corrected by plastic surgery almost as much as he wishes to learn to read past the 6th-grade level.Perhaps the most striking figure is the stern, spiritual warden, Burl Cain, a self-proclaimed prophet who genuinely believes in redemption for even the most violent offenders.

Written with the eloquence of a poet and the perceptive eyes of a painter, Bergner's extremely well wrought, unforgettable book offers a rare glimpse into the hearts and souls of men who commit violence, finding hope and courage where few dare to look, without ever losing sight of the horrific crimes that landed them in America's most isolated prison. --Kera BolonikBook Description
Never before had Daniel Bergner seen a spectacle as bizarre as the one he had come to watch that Sunday in October. Murderers, rapists, and armed robbers were competing in the annual rodeo at Angola, the grim maximum-security penitentiary in Louisiana. The convicts, sentenced to life without parole, were thrown, trampled, and gored by bucking bulls and broncos before thousands of cheering spectators. But amid the brutality of this gladiatorial spectacle Bergner caught surprising glimpses of exaltation, hints of triumphant skill.

The incongruity of seeing hope where one would expect only hopelessness, self-control in men who were there because they'd had none, sparked an urgent quest in him. Having gained unlimited and unmonitored access, Bergner spent an unflinching year inside the harsh world of Angola. He forged relationships with seven prisoners who left an indelible impression on him. There's Johnny Brooks, seemingly a latter-day Stepin Fetchit, who, while washing the warden's car, longs to be a cowboy and to marry a woman he meets on the rodeo grounds. Then there's Danny Fabre, locked up for viciously beating a woman to death, now struggling to bring his reading skills up to a sixth-grade level. And Terry Hawkins, haunted nightly by the ghost of his victim, a ghost he tries in vain to exorcise in a prison church that echoes with the cries of convicts talking in tongues.

Looming front and center is Warden Burl Cain, the larger-than-life ruler of Angola who quotes both Jesus and Attila the Hun, declares himself a prophet, and declaims that redemption is possible for even the most depraved criminal. Cain welcomes Bergner in, and so begins a journey that takes the author deep into a forgotten world and forces him to question his most closely held beliefs. The climax of his story is as unexpected as it is wrenching.
        
Rendered in luminous prose, God of the Rodeo is an exploration of the human spirit, yielding in the process a searing portrait of a place that will be impossible to forget and a group of men, guilty of unimaginable crimes, desperately seeking a moment of grace.


From the Hardcover edition. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (21)

A First Hand View into Angola Prison
Bergner's inside look reads more like an expose than a historical account, not surprising when one takes into consideration his background as a journalist. This account, however, it must be noted takes into account an extensive history of Angola State Prison. Bergner spent time there performing the work of a sociologist: observing, writing, detailing, getting to know the inmates on a personal basis; and even sometimes getting caught in the political tides of the prison administration. This work is as much designed for the general reader who seeks an understanding of the life of a prisoner as much as it is for the student of criminal justice or political science who seeks a knowledge base in prison life. Bergner's talents are clearly on display in this sociological masterpiece that clearly details the emotions of prison life. The graphic behavior exhibited by the characters in this work only serve to intensify the reality of prison life and drive home the point that Bergner makes, chiefly being that Angola State Prison, much like any other prison, is a world apart from normal society. This work is an inside view of that other world. It shocks just the same as Jonathan Kozol's Savage Inequalities.

great material, poorly done
The narrative jumps around, unfocused and unsure of itself, and never truly captures the convicts. No dramatic tension and anti-climactic.

Bull-riding behind bars
This book is only incidentally about rodeo, and even less about God. Yes, Bergner uses a prison rodeo as the structural device to build this account of prison life around. But it's not any kind of rodeo you would see authorized by the PRCA. The events are more treacherous, and the men who participate have no experience. They are a spectacle for a crowd of people looking for the same kind of thrills that drew ancient Romans to the Coliseum.

The book is chiefly about the daily lives of several of the prisoners who happen to participate in this spectacle, as Bergner follows them over the period of a year at Louisiana's maximum security prison, Angola. Bergner is permitted to talk to them one-on-one, with no guards present, by an unusual warden with a reputation for his "humane" philosophy of incarceration and his efforts at rehabilitation. The interviews, as a result, or more than usually candid. One prisoner even fantasizes aloud to Bergner about escaping and taking revenge on the people who put him there.

Not all the prisoners Bergner introduces us to are reprehensible. Most, in fact, seem decent enough blokes, and he has to keep reminding us (and himself) that all of them are serving time for violent, awful crimes. Most are black men, reflecting the racial (im)balance of the prison population. And most struggle daily to maintain a sense of self-worth that society and the judicial and penal systems have denied them. One man becomes active in the prison's chapter of Toastmasters. Another attends church services for a time. One holds out the hope that his teenage son will find a way to be proud of him. One romances a woman with two children who eventually marries him in a prison ceremony.

Unexpectedly, in the middle of the narrative, the prison warden begins to pressure Bergner for editorial privileges. He wants only good publicity and perhaps suspects that Bergner has uncovered some shady dealings involving labor provided by prisoners to business associates. What starts as a congenial relationship between the two men turns sour, and Bergner has to take his case to a sympathetic state prison commissioner, who reinstates his privileges, no strings attached.

The book ends as it begins with the annual rodeo. By now we know how the hope of winning a buckle feeds the participants' desire to compete and succeed. We also see the shabby futility of the event and regret ever yearning along with them for a moment of personal glory.

I recommend this book to anyone who has the slightest interest in what happens to men who are sent to prison. Bergner has written a fascinating account of lives spent year after year behind bars. As a companion volume, I would recommend Ted Conover's "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing," which gives an account of prison life told from the point of view of the men and women who work as guards.

Carpetbagger Journalism
A New York Yankee flies down to Louisiana for a couple of weekends to report "the truth" as he sees it. At the same time, he's on areligious journey. The problem with this book, much like James Agee's"Let Us Know Praise Famous Men," is that the author allows thestory to be about him writing the story. Who cares? A journalist in aLouisiana prison. That's not fodder for interesting reading. There are over5,100 men currently in Angola. Surely, there had to be more interestingstories there than Bergner's. It's as if Bergner already had the storywritten before even visiting the prsion. He just plugged in some names and(voila!) he has a book.

It's a shame this book is so weak. There is agreat deal of potential, but Bergner doesn't follow through. Moreimportantly, he has a wonderful opportunity to teach his readers a thing ortwo about the condition of the Louisiana State Penitentiary and themenincarcerated there, but instead he chooses to write a Hollywood story,Bayou Style.

If you thought the movies The Big Easy and Forest Gump weregreat films, than this is the book for you. Otherwise, steer clear of thistawdry fluff. On an aesthetic note, the book looks really great on the tankof your toilet.

Disappointing
The positive reviews I have read here are mystifying. Bergner is a talented writer, for sure, but I really felt as if he mailed in this book more than anything. It sure didn't seem like he spent a year at Angolaprison or even in the vicinity. Seemed more to me as if he flew down thereevery once in awhile to see what's up. The book starts off GREAT, the firstthird, and then proceeds to fall apart with the not-so-interesting detailsof his fight with warden Cain to retain his access. Once he wins that fightit's as if the author has lost his steam. The charcters, even warden Cain,don't seem to come to life and their story, the one he tells, just isn't socompelling. I just came away feeling that the author was worn out. Too bad,too. I had high hopes for this one. Want to read a book that DOES make thiskind of access work? Try Pete Early's The Hot House, about his two or threeyears inside of Leavenworth. ... Read more

Book Description