Memoir of a 1950’s Yellowstone Horse Ranger
Bob Richard
Cody, WY: Elliot Rivers Publishing Co., 2018
The author, Bob Richard, has the distinction of being the first of the modern Yellowstone National Park horse patrol rangers, from 1957-1960. This marvelous booklet is a collection of photographic essays, with brilliant black and white images illustrating the professional and personal life of the YNP horse patrol ranger, including many shots of “Big Red,” his Morgan horse. Each section is introduced by a short text, with detailed captions accompanying each image. The photographs are mostly selections from the archives of the author’s father Jack Richard, of Cody, Wyoming, supplemented with a few of the author’s own. Besides being a nostalgic memoir, this work also doubles as a useful sampling of the extraordinary Jack Richard Photograph Collection of the Buffalo Bill Center of the West. It will doubtless be a desirable item to collectors of Yellowstone National Park history and photography.
Nathan E. Bender, Technical Services Librarian
Albany County Public Library
Blue Springs
John D. Nesbitt
CreateSpace, 2017
John Nesbitt has taken Wilf Kasmire, a modern-day Wyoming cowboy (cowboy part-time and seasonal jack of all trades) and put him into an unexpected mystery. I enjoyed Blue Springs, an adventure that reads like a country western song. Old pick-up trucks, small town bars, cold beer, trail horses, hard sweaty physical labor, campfire songs, memories of old girlfriends and hopes for new are all part of this cowboy’s search for Dawn, a missing ex-girlfriend. After she leaves Wilf’s single-wide without a trace, his gut instinct tells him to take on the searh when the police can’t. Dawn’s job-hopping history leads Wilf to the Blue Springs Guest Ranch where he is hired on as a ‘drain wrangler.’ Watch for western slang and a variety of jokes as you travel with a cowboy that is determined to do right by an old friend.
Nancy Venable, Extension and Volunteer Services Manager
Campbell County Public Library System