Southwest Books of the Year
Special Mention
It is our custom, when a panelist is closely associated with a publication, to put that title in a special category. This year, we call your attention to the following publications that have been published by or contributed to by panel members.
Campaigns in the West: 1856-1861, The Journal and Letters of Colonel John Van Deusen Du Bois with pencil sketches by Joseph Heger and a new foreword by Durwood Ball.
Arizona Historical Society. 8 1/2 by 13 inch format. 121 pp. Includes a map of the military campaigns compiled by the editor, George P. Hammond, professor of history and director of the Bancroft Library at the University of California. $48.
In 1949, The Arizona (Pioneers') Historical Society and the famed Grabhorn Press of San Francisco, with funds provided by W.J. "Jack" Holliday, a wealthy Indianapolis Steel magnate, benefactor and a collector of Western Americana, produced 300 copies of this visually stunning, historical, valuable volume. Du Bois served with Company K in the First Regiment of Mounted Riflemen in New Mexico and Arizona. Private Heger served with the same. Ball, editor of the New Mexico Historical Review and an associate professor of history at the University of New Mexico, describes this volume as, "a rare gem for historians." It contains 13 previously unpublished Heger drawings. Panel member Bruce J. Dinges, Ph.D. is the Arizona Historical Society director of publications.
Getgo Guides
from the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum Press. $4.95.
To date there are three of these attractive, pocket-size, fold-up guides to "Hummingbirds of the West," "Venomous Creatures of the West," and "Outdoor Gizmos." The latter is a marvelous collection of things to make - sundials, compasses, scopes and gauges – using common objects found around the house. (Incidentally, your digital watch won't work here.) The photos for the hummers and venomous critters are superb. Everything is laminated for hard wear. Steven Phillips is director of the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum Press.
First Through the Canyon: The Secret Journals and Letters of the 1869 Crew Who Explored the Green and Colorado Rivers
by Michael P. Ghiglieri. Puma Press. 342 pp. $22.95, paper; $34.95, hardcover.
Richard Quartaroli wrote the foreword It was given a "Plus" designation by the panel and described as, "Well put together, accurate transcriptions, good biographical sketches." Exciting adventures of 11 men led by John Wesley Powell provide an insider's look. The river runners kept daily notes. There is also a section containing the ultimate fates.