BIRTH OF AMERICA BOOKS (tm)
PONDER THE PATH
REAL PEOPLE, TRUE STORIES
HISTORICALLY ACCURATE AND FUN TO READ
(They're written like novels with dialogue based on journals,
diaries and newspapers)
HISTORY AS IT HAPPENSä IN HIGH ACTION AMERICAN HISTORY BOOKS
PONDER THE PATH REVIEWS
"PONDER THE PATH is a stirring
narrative of the westward expansion of the United States between 1808 and
1830.The authors Wiles & Brown have combined history and excitement to
bring one of America's most important but least understood eras to life."
"Rich in fascinating
detail of its real people, this book embroils them in crucial national and
international conflicts that start fist fights around campfires and pistol
duels in Congress."
Read on for more:
FOR THE BOOKSHELF
Reviewed by Bill Scurlock
Of Muzzleloader Magazine
Ponder the Path By Gary Wiles and Delores Brown
279 pages. Nonfiction.
softcover. $12.95
ALTHOUGH THEY SELDOM get
the credit in mainstream history texts, the mountain men of the early 19th
century opened the way west for America's "manifest destiny." In
their quest for beaver, trappers explored the West all the way to California
and Washington, mapping the unknown territory and establishing the routes used
by later travelers on the Oregon and California Trails.
Ponder the Path by Gary Wiles and Delores Brown is a highly
readable account of the Sublette family and their contributions to the opening
of the West. William and Milton Sublette were key figures in the beaver trade,
and in being the first person to pull wagons to the Continental Divide, William
actually opened what was to become the OregonTrail. Ponder the Path reveals that William Sublette was inspired
at an early age by his grandfather to become an explorer and lead the nation
westward.
Following the early adult
life of William Sublette in Ponder the Path also means following the struggles of the Rocky Mountain fur
trade in the 1820s. This book is filled with heroic and famous characters like
Ashley, Henry, Clyman, Jed Smith and Glass, but it also includes nearly 150
other actual characters from the early 19th century. Wiles and Brown made great
effort to present an accurate portrayal of the people and the times. In
researching Ponder
the Path. the
authors consulted 151 books, drove 10,000 miles to germane sites and took 1600
research photographs.
Although my current
historical interests lie farther to the east, my first love was the Western
mountain man and I still enjoy good books on the subject.
Ponder the Path is inspiring, informative and just plain good reading.
Contact Gary Wiles and
Delores Brown, c/o Birth of America Books, P.O. Box 7008, Hemet, CA 92545;
(951) 765-0950
___________________________________________________
PONDER THE PATH is a
stirring narrative of the westward expansion of the United States between 1808
and 1830.
The authors Wiles &
Brown have combined history and excitement to bring one of America's most
important but least understood eras to life.
Told through the real life
Sublettes and other legendary men of this inspiring age, this book is as well
written and factual as anything one can find on this subject. Page after page,
real history unfolds as you follow men destined to lead America to greatness.
Rich in fascinating detail
of its real people, this book embroils them in crucial national and
international conflicts that start fist fights around campfires and pistol
duels in Congress.
Sketches of the Absaroka,
Apache, Arikara, Blackfeet, Commanche, Mandans, Mojave, Pawnee and Sioux are
insightful and intriguing.
PONDER THE PATH is the
kind of living history book most people wish they had in school!
Ray Glazner
Simi Valley, California's
Ray Glazner is a distinguished educator, historian, author, historical
re-enactor and consultant to local, state and national museums as well as the
entertainment industry.
THE MUSEUM OF THE FUR
TRADE QUARTERLY
Vol. 33, No. 1 ISSN
0027-4135 Spring 1997
PONDER THE PATH, by Gary
H. Wiles, B.A., J.D. and Delores M. Brown. Revised Second Edition, Copyright
1996. 279 pages incl. general map and 35 chapters covering period Spring 1808
to Oct. 1830, and index with 173 persons, 29 tribes and 13 fur companies.
Softbound $12.95 plus $1.00 shipping. Photosensitive, P.O. Box 7008, Hemet, CA
92545. (951) 765-0950
We think our readers will
like this new edition of PONDER THE PATH. It has a 159-volume bibliography and
a table of contents with built-in chronology.
The book begins with the
Sublette family in Kentucky in 1808 and ends with events in 1830. Every page is
headed by a subtitle and the Sublettes appear countless times throughout the
narrative.
The speech of the main
characters comes from letters, journals and diaries. Talk for the illiterate
subjects has been developed from books and newspapers of the period. All this
certainly provides a more true record than previous works when authors have
substituted their own impressions of what was said.-C.E.H.
The reviewer Dr. Charles
E. Hanson Jr., author and historian who served as the Director of the Musem of
the Fur Trade at Chadron, Nebraska for over 30 years.
Click below for Ponder The Path's
Back Cover.......... Table of Contents..........Reader Letters.........Rendezvous Legacy
Find Out # Of Chapters In Your State.....About Us
Read Chapter 6 JACKSON'S THUNDER
Read Chapter 18 SOUTH PASS AND BACK
Read Chapter 20 HENRY'S FORK RENDEZVOUS
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