Bookshelf

Inquiries about any of these titles should be directed to the book publisher, not ARIZONA HIGHWAYS.

CO BAR: BILL OWEN DEPICTS THE HISTORIC BABBITT RANCH. By Marshall Trimble. Foreword by John G. Babbitt. Northland Press, P.O. Box N, Flagstaff, AZ 86002. 1982. 107 p. $37.50, hardcover. Native Arizonans Bill Owen and Marshall Trimble combine their special talents to portray the famed Babbitt ranch on the Colorado Plateau in northern Arizona. Historian Trimble traces the achievements of the five Babbitt brothers and the history of their huge spread-the last vestige of the open frontier-that once covered 3 million acres in three states. He reveals that the old-time cowboy is not dead; he is alive and well and working on the CO Bar! Artist Owen depicts candidly and accurately, traditional cowboys as they go about their work on the CO Bar, so named in honor of the Cincinnati, Ohio, hometown of the Babbitt family. The 30 color and 15 black-and-white reproductions leave no doubt that the Babbitts chose one of the most beautiful and productive areas in the Southwest for their highly successful enterprises. Despite the steep price tag, this volume will have great appeal to Western history and art devotees.

LEE'S FERRY: A CROSSING ON THE COLORADO. By Evelyn Brack Measeles. Pruett Publishing Company, 2928 Pearl Street., Boulder, CO 80301. 1981. 130 р. $12.95, hardcover; $6.95, softcover. Lees Ferry-the location and the facility and Lee himself have continued to pique curiosity depite their remoteness in time and place. From an extensive number of sources Measeles has amassed data on those who explored, lived, and worked in the Lees Ferry vicinity. She devotes most of her text and historic photos to the major figures of John D. and Emma Lee, John Wesley Powell, Robert Stanton, Jacob Hamblin, and the Johnson family, plus visitors such as Zane Grey and Buffalo Bill Cody. Although her publication is marred by several careless errors, the author's research, notes, bibliography, and index are good. She has provided us with an in-depth study of a historic and lovely crossroads in northern Arizona and of the people who passed that way.

BETWEEN SACRED MOUNTAINS: STORIES AND LESSONS FROM THE LAND. By Rock Point Community School. Rock Point Books, Rock Point Community School, Chinle, AZ 86503. 1982. 288 р. $30.00, hardcover; $18.00, softcover; plus $2.00 shipping. Diné Bikéyah-Navajo Country-is the subject of a handsome publication by Rock Point Community School at Chinle, Arizona. It is a history of the land: forests, canyons, desert, plants, animals, and most of all, its people. Here, in legend and fact, are stories of the prehistoric Anasazi, hunting and gathering traditions, origins of the Navajo people, and clan structure. Discussed at length are Spanish and Mexican exploration and colonization, Navajo-Anglo and Navajo-Hopi conflicts, old and new lifeways, agricultural and livestock practices, mineral resources and problems, and the hope of the Navajo Nation: its educated young people. Originally this book was commissioned as a text for high school and college students. It has a far wider audience. The text, some of it bilingual; excellent black-and-white photographs; diagrams; line drawings; and bibliography provide a wealth of information about the Navajo as they see themselves and as they want others to know them. For anyone seeking to learn about the Diné, this is a fine place to start.

COLORADO RIVER CONTROVERSIES. By Robert Brewster Stanton. Westwater Books, P.O. Box 365, Boulder City, NV 89005. 1982. (Reprint) 261 p. $12.95, softcover. The author, quite knowledgeable about the Colorado River, its rapids, and its gorges, brought together much evidence, including his own interview with James White, to disprove White's story of being the first man to float successfully down the Colorado. However, Stanton overlooked some documents and misinterpreted others. In his zeal to set the record straight about "The Affair at Separation Rapids," Stanton placed blame on John Wesley Powell and exonerated the Howland brothers and William Dunn, who had abandoned Powell's 1869 expedition on the Colorado. Stanton presented accounts intended to support the trio and refute Powell, who was also known to have manipulated facts. Even Julius Stone's strange foreword and James Chalfont's preface contained erroneous and controversial statements. In a new appendix, commentaries by Martin Anderson and the late Otis (Dock) Marston point out errors by Stanton, Stone, and Chalfont. This reproduction of the original 1932 edition brings back into print an important book on Colorado River history.

A VOICE IN HER TRIBE: A NAVAJO WOMAN'S OWN STORY. By Irene Stewart. Edited by Doris Dawdy. Ballena Press, 381 First Street, Suite 5033, Los Altos, CA 94022. 1980. 93 p. $5.95, softcover. Living in both the Navajo and Anglo worlds since childhood, Mrs. Stewart has had a number of unusual experiences. She attended school at Fort Defiance, Haskell, and Albuquerque Indian School until completing high school. As a divorced mother of four sons, she held a variety of jobs on and off the reservation. She became involved in politics, served as secretary of the Chinle, Arizona, chapter of the Navajo Tribal Council, and became a respected leader. Mary Shepardson's introduction and appendix supply added information about the author and the Chinle area. Black-and-white photos give us views of Mrs. Stewart, her second husband, and Navajo life. Irene Stewart's personal reminiscences and discussions of Navajo lifeways, traditions, and politics allow us a rare insight into what has been a sometimes difficult but always full, challenging, and rewarding life in two very different cultures.