WinSpr2014Roundup

Wyoming Library Roundup • Winter/Spring 2014
LIBRARYWYOMING ROUNDUP winter/spring 2014

literacy & authors

LIBRARY
Literacy in Wyoming....... 4
Wyoming Reads...................... 8
Library Snapshot Day......12
Wyoming librarian author
Tamsen Hert.................................14
Steve Rsaza.....................................16
Darcy Lipp-Accord............18
Writing What He Knows
Steven W. Horn......................20
Wyoming’s Natural Wonders
Bill Sniffin..........................................23
The History of
The “Hitch”.....................................26
Wyoming Book Reviews
Bookshelf...........................................28
First Lady Carol Mead’s
Wyoming Firsts.......................34
table of contents
WYOMING ROUNDUP winter/spring 2014

12
23
8
The Wyoming State Library is sponsoring and
coordinating the first One Book Wyoming program
featuring the novella Spirit of Steamboat by Wyoming
author Craig Johnson.
Johnson says, “In ten years of writing I have never
received an honor that compares
with being chosen as the
inaugural One Book Wyoming
author. Spirit of Steamboat was
conceived as a love letter to the
state, but I never conceived that it
might be graced by being selected
for this wonderful program.”
The intent behind One Book
programs is to create community-
wide unity through the reading
of a single book. Libraries across
the state will host events to inspire
conversation, including book
discussions, cultural programs
and guest appearances by Craig
Johnson. The State Library and
libraries across the state are encouraging residents to
READ IT, DISCUSS IT, and PASS IT ON.
Craig Johnson is the author of eight novels in the Walt
Longmire mystery series, which has garnered popular and
critical acclaim. The Cold Dish was a Dilys Award finalist
and the French edition won Le Prix du Polar Nouvel
Observateur/BibliObs. Death Without Company, the
Wyoming State Historical Association’s Book of the Year,
won France’s Le Prix 813. Another Man’s Moccasins was the
Western Writers of America’s Spur
Award winner and the Mountains
& Plains Independent Booksellers’
Book of the Year, and The Dark
Horse, the fifth in the series, was a
Publishers Weekly Best Book of the
Year. Junkyard Dogs won the Watson
Award for a mystery novel with the
best sidekick, and Hell Is Empty,
selected by Library Journal as the
Best Mystery of the Year, was a New
York Times best seller, as was As
the Crow Flies. The Walt Longmire
series is the basis for the hit A&E
drama, Longmire, starring Robert
Taylor, Lou Diamond Phillips, and
Katee Sackoff. Johnson lives in
Ucross, Wyoming, population twenty-five.
For more information, visit onebookwyoming.com.
All of Wyoming Reads
Spirit of Steamboat
Senators John Barrasso and Mike Enzi talk with Wyoming author
Craig Johnson at a One Book Wyoming event in Washington, D.C.
Top photo: A presentation at Wyoming Reads with First Lady Carol
Mead and John Jorgensen. Middle: Snapshot Day photo from 2013.
Bottom: Devil’s Tower from Wyoming’s 7 Greatest Natural Wonders.

Wyoming Library Roundup • Winter/Spring 2014Wyoming Library Roundup • Winter/Spring 2014

Official publication of the
Wyoming State Library,
the Wyoming Library Association,
and the Wyoming Center for the Book
Volume 57, Number 1, Winter/Spring 2014
ISSN: 0043-9738
Tina Lyles-Worthman
Editor
Rachel Girt
Writer
Wyoming State Library
Publications and Marketing Office
2800 Central Avenue, Cheyenne, WY 82002
307/777-6338
Cover Photo:
Riley Cody, son of Jen Cody, taken on
Wyoming Libraries Snapshot Day
at the Niobrara County Library
Wyoming Library Roundup is a publication of the
Wyoming State Library, the Wyoming Library Associa-
tion and the Wyoming Center for the Book. All rights
reserved. Contents of this magazine may not be repro-
duced without the express permission of the publishers.
E-mail us at tina.worthman@wyo.gov
The Wyoming Library Roundup is produced in part with Library Services and Technology Act federal funds
awarded to the Wyoming State Library program from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
3
LIBRARY
Carol Mead
First Lady of Wyoming
As First Lady, I have an opportunity to champion issues across
the state; to heighten awareness and to educate our citizenry on
topics that affect us all. I have chosen children’s issues as one such
issue because the Governor and I feel that children are our greatest
asset in the state. To the extent that we can foster their happy and
healthy upbringings, we ensure a successful future for them and,
in turn, for Wyoming.
A main focus of my children’s issues initiative has been early
childhood literacy. I believe literacy is critical to a happy, healthy
life – for children and adults! Families who spent time reading
together each day promote social and emotional well-being in
their kids through parent-child bonding. They also encourage
literacy by laying the foundation for intellectual curiosity, a
trait that prepares kids for success in school. And of course,
we know that literacy is the backbone to lifelong learning.
Parents who model reading in their own lives – whether it’s
the newspaper each morning, a sports magazine on Saturday
afternoon, or a novel as a way to wind down in the evening – demonstrate
the countless ways in which we can find great pleasure in the written word.
As a mother of two teenage kids, I have fond memories of snuggling in close with my kids to enjoy a
good book. We began reading to our daughter when she was an infant. I can recall her listening to our
voices as a newborn, beginning to see the pictures as an older baby, and, finally, learning to read the words
herself as a young child. The kids and I loved the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. Even though they could read
themselves, we found such fun in reading them together, as a family.
As First Lady, I have had the delightful opportunity to read to kids all over the state in their daycares,
schools, and local libraries. I never get tired of the stories, illustrations, and the joy of sharing a funny or
surprising ending. As part of my initiative, I also encourage parents and kids to read together at home for
at least 20 minutes each day, and have worked with the University of Wyoming College of Education to
establish a statewide literacy research center and clinic. Together with a coalition of community partners,
I also launched Eat. Read. Grow., a Cheyenne-based program that provides families with an opportunity
to spend quality time together over a meal and encourages them to read together at home by providing a
free age-appropriate book to each child who attends. And this fall, I released my children’s book, Wyoming
Firsts, a whimsical trip through some of Wyoming’s better and lesser known moments in history, illustrated
by Wyoming high school students.
I invite you to curl up with this issue and learn a little more about literacy programs in Wyoming and
some of our talented authors who keep us learning, entertained, and turning the page.
The company started with
a mission to help children
discover the riches trapped
between the pages of a book.
Now that same company,
Weston Woods, continues
its mission with BookFlix,
a database available to
Wyoming residents through
the Wyoming State Library.
Weston Woods Studios is
the principal innovator of the
translation of picture books
into audiovisual media.
Bookflix brings alive the
pages of a book by making
animated adaptations of
some of children’s best-loved
books. This program targets
beginning readers.
Since BookFlix is designed
with a non-fiction and fiction
book about a similar subject
together, there is an even
greater potential for learning
for those early readers.
Wyoming residents have free
access to these “book flicks”
with a library card and pin
number from their local
library. You can find it at:
goWYLD.net


4 5
“The Governor and I believe that
children are our greatest asset in the
state,” Mead said. “To the extent that
we can foster their happy and healthy
upbringings, we ensure a successful
future for them and, in turn, for
Wyoming. I believe literacy is critical to
a happy, healthy childhood.”
That is why supporting efforts to start
the Literacy Research Center and Clinic
appealed to her.
“Families who spend time reading
together each day promote social and
emotional well-being in their kids
through parent-child bonding. They
also encourage literacy by laying the
foundation for intellectual curiosity, a
trait that prepares kids for success in
school. And of course, we know that
literacy is the backbone to lifelong
learning.”
Right after the governor took office,
Dr. Kay Persichitte, who served as dean
of the College of Education until late
2013, and UW Foundation President
Ben Blalock discussed with the First
Lady over coffee her general interest in
literacy.
She was so enthusiastic about the
potential for the center to improve
literacy outcomes across the state that
she adopted literacy as one of her
primary agenda, explained Persichitte.
She added that Literacy Research Center
and Clinic was so fortunate to gain her
support.
Mead said she didn’t hesitate to join
them when they invited her to serve as
spokeswoman for a campaign to raise
money to establish a statewide literacy
center and clinic. That is how the
First Lady became involved in hosting
community literacy forums in 2013 to
cultivate conversations about literacy
resources and needs throughout the
state.
Community Forums
The first community forum was held
in Laramie at the Albany County
Library, in partnership with the
university’s libraries on March 8, 2013.
During the forum, Mead led discussions
about local literacy initiatives and
highlighted efforts to create the Literacy
Research Center and Clinic.
“For example, we learned about a
program that encourages teen moms to
read to their babies,” Mead said. “What
a resource! I’d love to see a program like
that in every community in Wyoming.”
Attendees at the Laramie community
literacy forum also learned more about
Raising Readers in Wyoming, a program
that provides books to children from
birth to age five at their well-child visits
in clinics in all 23 counties in the state,
she said. “We discussed the importance
of continued and enhanced funding for
that program as it faces increased costs
in the books it purchases.”
So far forums with the First Lady have
been held in Laramie and Jackson.
From these forums, Persichitte
explained that, ”We have learned
that in most communities, even our
smallest ones, there are multiple groups,
organizations and activities already
happening around literacy but they lack
any community sharing or knowledge of
each other’s work in most cases.”
The forums are intended to bring these
interested folks together to collaborate
and to learn about future opportunities
with the center, Persichitte said.
She called the involvement of the
libraries in the community literacy
forums as “awesome.” “Libraries can
and should play a central role in literacy
efforts in communities and we hope
they will take advantage of the Literacy
Research Center and Clinic as one more
Literacy in Wyoming
“The Governor and I
believe that children
are our greatest asset
in the state.”
~First Lady Carol Mead
Believing in the importance of reading, Wyoming’s First Lady Carol Mead hosted
community forums to help launch support for the University of Wyoming Literacy Research
Center and Clinic.
The UW Literacy Research Center and Clinic aims to become the epicenter of literacy
knowledge in Wyoming, offering professional development for teachers, literacy education
for pre-service teachers and graduate students, research on literacy education, and service
as a statewide clinical resource. When completed in 2014, the clinic will be housed on the
university campus.
4
First Lady Carol Mead reads to children at the
First Light Child Care Center in Sheridan at a
Raising Readers media event to acknowledge and
celebrate a gift from Emit Technologies in support
of Raising Readers programs.


76
resource on their lists!”
Growing literacy in Wyoming
A center focused on literacy is needed
to provide a centralized resource
of expertise for all levels and types
of organizations in the state and to
offer some specialized training and
diagnostics that are not available in
most rural areas, Persichitte said.
“UW and the College of Education
have a valuable resource available in our
faculty and the Literacy Research Center
and Clinic offers us a chance to share
that and to connect the research of our
faculty more directly with children and
teachers in Wyoming,” she added.
Persichitte stressed that literacy is very
important.
“Any individual’s ability to read, write,
and speak either opens educational and
employment opportunities for them or
it closes those opportunity doors. This
is true from pre-school ages through our
adulthood.”
She views literacy as the primary
path for personal independence and
economic vitality. “Our reading and
writing skills are the foundation from
which we develop our understanding
and knowledge to become productive
citizens.”
The idea for the center germinated
with the first Wyoming Excellence
Chair in Literacy Education, Dr. Jim
Baumann, who came to Persichitte with
an idea to connect the research and
teaching in literacy to improved literacy
outcomes for children in Wyoming
through an outreach center.
The early idea was that the center
would focus on providing current
K-12 teachers with up-to-date teaching
strategies around reading and writing
and offer the specialized expertise and
experience of the College of Education’s
faculty to children who had unique
literacy needs, she said.
“This concept has evolved over the last
four years to target children from birth
through high school and all the people
who work with these children in the
areas of literacy, in school settings and
outside of school settings,” Persichitte
said.
Two current Wyoming Excellence
Chairs in Higher Education Endowed
Chairs in Literacy Education have been
established at UW with funding from
the Legislature, Dr. George Kamberelis
and Dr. Victoria Ridgeway Gillis will
provide the leadership for this work
and will co-direct the center when it
opens. Additionally, more than 15 other
UW faculty members in the College
of Education and other academic units
have expertise and interest in literacy
education.
Services and support through the
center may include these programs: K-6,
6-12, or K-12 Reading Endorsement
for in-service teachers; Master’s degree
in Curriculum and Instruction with an
emphasis in Literacy Education; and
Ph.D. in Literacy Education.
Persichitte said that the role of the
center in helping teachers/students with
literacy programs will be focused on
the following three elements: having
professional development to raise
support instructional practices of K-12
teachers; supporting improved literacy
practices of early childhood personnel;
and offering expertise, resources, and
referrals for children with special needs
related to literacy.
So far the center has developed strong
partnerships, including First Lady
Carol Mead, the Child Development
Center of Natrona County in Casper,
the Teton Literacy Center and Systems
of Education in Jackson, the Wyoming
Department of Family Services, the
Laramie community, and school
districts in Sweetwater, Lincoln,
Laramie, and Weston counties.
The estimated costs of $3.8 million
have been funded with private
donations and matched by state
appropriations. So far private donations
have included: Thea Stidum, Mickey
and Jeanne Klein, Don and Betty
Walters, Bill and Nancy Pettus, Doug
and Susan Samuelson, and Doug
Reeves. The campaign also has received
gifts from the Joe and Arlene Watt
Foundation, the John P. Ellbogen
Foundation, the Mary H. Storer
Foundation, the Charles D. Trover
Family Foundation, and the Andrew
Allen Charitable Foundation.
When complete, the center will be
housed in an estimated 5,780 square
feet on the first floor of the UW College
of Education Annex Building in a
space completely redesigned to support
tutoring, research, and family literacy
activities.
The center’s plans include: a family
literacy area; six diagnostic and
tutorial rooms digitally connected
to a centralized server to provide
video, audio and computer data; two
large seminar spaces with distance
technology; graduate student research
space; and offices for Gillis and
Kamberelis
The primary goals of all research
will be to develop more effective ways
to help children become competent,
strategic readers and writers and to help
children’s teachers and parents become
more effective in supporting their
literacy development.
To reach its goals, the center will have
video teleconferencing technology to
enable audio and video contact with
children, teachers, administrators,
parents and community agencies across
the state, Persichitte said. “Specialized
diagnostic and research technologies
will also be housed in the center for
the individual cases where distance
technologies do not offer the best
access.”
First Lady’s reading initiatives
The development of the center
represents a major step forward in
children’s issues, which is the First
Lady’s primary area of focus. Within
that broad area of interest, she has been
working to promote the arts among
young people, encourage healthy
lifestyles among kids, and advance early
childhood literacy.
Over the last several years, Mead has
read to children all over the state at their
schools and libraries, urged parents to
read to their children for at least 20
minutes every day, and worked with
UW to establish the Literacy Research
Center and Clinic. Her literacy
initiatives grow every year.
Last summer, she worked with a
coalition of Wyoming businesses, non-
profits, and state agencies to implement
a new Cheyenne-based program called
“Eat. Read. Grow.” The program is
modeled after programs elsewhere
that provide a meal, a bag of groceries,
information about family resources and
a children’s book to families.
In November 2013, the First Lady
released Wyoming Firsts: A Children’s
Book, which is a whimsical trip through
some of Wyoming’s most memorable
moments for children and parents to
enjoy together. Thanks to generous
corporate sponsors, the books will be
distributed to first graders in Wyoming.
The book contains poems written by
Mead describing each Wyoming first,
as well as colorful illustrations by 15
Wyoming high school artists. Each
illustration also contains a hidden bison
for children to find.
“I believe that literacy is the backbone
of lifelong learning. When a child learns
to read proficiently at grade level, he can
overcome personal obstacles, become
a productive member of society, and
educate himself for a lifetime.”
6 Wyoming Library Roundup • Winter/Spring 2014

Mrs. Mead reads to children at the Natrona
County Library in Casper as part of Wyo-
ming Reads, a statewide reading event aimed
at first graders.


Thanks to over 1,500 volunteers and the
fundraising efforts of the Sue Jorgensen Library
Foundation, first-graders across Wyoming will
receive two free books during this year’s Wyoming
Reads celebrations.
Last year, an estimated 7,800 hardback books
were given to first-graders in all 23 counties. The
foundation estimates that over 8,000 books will
be distributed during this year’s Wyoming Reads
celebration scheduled for May 13.
At the time of her death in 1996, the Jorgenson
family had five young children, some of whom
attended a small school, the Woods Learning
Center, in Casper. “I wanted to do something to
help the children remember their mother other
than just being sad of having lost her,” recalled John
Wyoming Reads
Wyoming Reads, a program of the Sue Jorgenson
Library Foundation, has grown from one family’s efforts
to honor the memory of their mother, Dr. Sue Jorgensen,
who was dedicated to children’s literacy efforts.

98
A first grader in Crook County enjoys reading
Mr. Pusskins, one of the book selections for the
2013 Wyoming Reads celebration.
Opposite page: The group of Crook County first
graders at the 2013 Wyoming Reads event.


1110
Jorgenson, the father.
Because of her passion for reading
and small children, the family created
the foundation dedicated to children’s
literacy efforts with its first goal
focused on buying a book for every
child that attended Woods Learning
Center. The school librarian helped,
selecting the books, and the school
invited the family to attend the
celebration to distribute the books,
Jorgenson said.
After the successful event, a
small group of teachers, a school
administrator, and community
representatives became determined
to find funding to expand the idea to
all of Natrona County with the focus
on first grade. By 1999, the program,
Casper Cares, Casper Reads, started
distributing books.
Seven years later, the foundation
developed an annual drive to raise
enough money to give every first
grade child in Wyoming a book
to encourage early enthusiasm for
reading. The Wyoming Reads program
has been held every May since then.
“One of the beauties of this
program is that it’s across the board,”
Jorgenson said. “There’s no poverty
line because every first-grader receives
a hardback book to take home.”
The foundation encourages
communities to hold their celebration
on the same day. Since 2006,
governors have issued a proclamation
declaring Wyoming Literacy Day to
fall in conjunction with this valuable
statewide celebration. Last year on
May 15, thirty-five celebrations were
held around the state with some
communities working together to host
joint events with statewide and local
celebrity readers such as Secretary
of State Max Maxfield, who is the
honorary chair of the event and First
Lady Carol Mead.
Determining the location and the
specific details of the event is up to
each community, Jorgensen explained.
The foundation focuses on raising
over $125,000 for the celebration
and the books. “We wanted to make
it very hard for communities to not
participate so we provide the funding
for the books, book bags, and book
plates.”
Contributors to this year’s statewide
celebration include the McMurry
Foundation, Tonkin Foundation,
Rocky Mountain Power Foundation,
Flying V Foundation, Casper Rotary
Club, Natrona County Recreation
Joint Powers Board, Wyoming State
Library, Friends of the Natrona
County Library, Casper Kiwanis Club,
Wyoming Community Foundation,
Century Link, and numerous
individuals.
Each fall, a committee of parents,
teachers, and librarians present books
that they want to have considered for
the next year’s Wyoming Reads. The
committee reduces the list to six book
titles. Then sample sets are distributed
to the community contacts in January
so the children can determine which
books they want to receive.
“The Wyoming State Library stepped
up and has been just an amazing
partner, handling the orders for us and
the shipping and handling,” Jorgenson
said.
This year the books include: The
Day the Crayons
Quit by Drew
Daywalt,
Goldilocks and the
Three Dinosaurs
as retold by Mo
Willems, When a
Dragon Moves In
by Jodi Moore,
See What a Seal
Can Do by Chris
Butterworth,
Brave Young Knight by
Karen Kingsbury and Too
Tall Houses by Gianna
Marino.
This year each student
will also receive a copy of
the book Wyoming Firsts
written by Wyoming First
Lady Carol Mead and
illustrated by high school
students in the state.
For some, this book is the
first one they have owned,
Jorgenson said, so part of
the efforts include putting
a bookplate on the inside
cover with the child’s name
on it and giving the child
a bag of goodies collected
from local sponsors. “We
want to make it special for
them.”
A combination of civic
leaders, public libraries and
school districts organize
each community’s celebration, which
involves many members of the
community and schools in order to
make it happen.
Last year, the Casper event attracted
over 1,100 children who were
divided into three groups with some
of them attending an event inside
the Nicolaysen Art Museum, others
enjoying a program on the museum’s
patio and the final group at the library,
Jorgenson said.
Every year Jorgenson narrates a
play at the Casper event dedicated to
“Good Queen Sue,” a fictional heroine
based on his late wife, Sue. The tale
involves a Grinch, who cannot read,
and Good Queen Sue’s efforts to help
him. With magic and help from the
audience filled with excited children,
the Grinch learns to read and receives
a book from Good Queen Sue.
Jorgenson explained that the fairytale
is a fun way to encourage students
to read. In the end, he entices the
audience to proclaim, “I promise to
read every day this summer.”
The success of the Casper event
caught the interest of a former
Casper resident, living in Klamath
Falls, Oregon, who contacted the
foundation about starting a similar
program several years ago. Since
then, the Oregon program has spread
to about a dozen communities in
Oregon, distributing over 3,000
books.
The idea also has caught on in
Minnesota. Ten years ago the
program spread to a suburb of
Minnesota. Jorgenson said that the
event distributed books to about 750
children in one school district there.
Jorgenson continues to lead the
efforts of the foundation, relying on
key volunteers, existing sponsors and
community contacts to help. He calls
it “my labor of love.”
“We are helping develop a love of
reading,” said Jorgenson. “It is so
heartwarming when we hear from
high school students who still have
their Wyoming Reads book on their
shelf.”
He estimates that over 100,000
books have been distributed over
the years through the celebrations in
Wyoming, Oregon and Minnesota.
In Wyoming, Jorgenson gives
credit for its success to the estimated
1,500 volunteers who help with their
community’s celebration, the generous
sponsors and the libraries.
“The involvement of local libraries is
critical to the celebration in Wyoming.
So many of our community contacts
are librarians, who have such passion
for this program, and they want the
children in their communities to get
books.”
A volunteer reading to first graders at a
Wyoming Reads event in 2011.
A first grader in
Crook County
enjoys lunch while
reading her book
selection for the
2013 Wyoming
Reads celebration.


151312
The concept of collecting library
statistics is not a new one. The
Wyoming State Library has collected
annual library data for many years, and
it used to collect one-day statistics on
past Snapshot Days, said Susan Mark,
the state’s statistics librarian.
However, the Snapshot Day data,
while valuable, did not convey the
emotional human perspective and was
a lot of work for the libraries, Mark
explained. “The images and stories are
more powerful tools in showing how
libraries change lives. Instead of just
numbers, we are showing the faces of
kids enjoying the library.”
The idea for Snapshot Day began as
a New Jersey initiative before being
picked up by the American Library
Association and other states. Wyoming
made the switch in 2010.
Now in its fourth year, the Wyoming
Snapshot Day, a
program of the State
Library and the
Wyoming Library
Association, is
popular with libraries
across the state, as
well as patrons.
On Oct. 15, 2013,
70 public, academic,
school and special
libraries across
the state gathered
information,
producing more
than 700 photos
and numerous
stories to be used
in a presentation
for the 2014 legislative reception
and the State Library’s promotional
efforts. The individual libraries use the
material for advocacy efforts in their
communities.
While the libraries collect the
information, Mark posts the photos and
stories the State Library’s social media
outlets, Facebook, Pinterest and Flickr,
in real time.
Mark attributes the success of
Snapshot Day to the individual
libraries, which develop creative ways
to obtain input. Participation in
the program is voluntary with some
libraries pushing it more than others.
She just asks for at least one photo or
completed comment form from each
library.
Libraries understand that the photos
and stories gathered are great advocacy
tools, she explained. “It is actually
pretty easy to get them involved.”
Some hold special programs that day
while others seek snapshots of regular
daily activities. This year libraries in
Carbon County, Converse County and
Ten Sleep Branch Library used white
board word balloons where patrons
would write down what the library
means to them and then the library
photographed them holding the quote.
Paintbrush Elementary School in
Gillette had students create posters and
took pictures of them in lieu of
written
comments.
“It really depends on
what the libraries want
to do,” said Mark, who
is always excited to
see the final results.
Her favorite photos
include excited little
children posing
with local firemen
in full gear and a
child in Niobrara
County holding
his library card
grinning from
ear to ear.
(See front
cover of
Wyoming
Library
Roundup
magazine.)
She also liked photos submitted
by the Wyoming Medium Correctional
Institution. “They were so excited to
participate. Library services are so
important there.”
Take a picture...
it lasts longer!
Wyoming Libraries’
Snapshot Day
With libraries across the state
participating, Wyoming Snapshot Day
goes beyond mere statistics and collects
powerful visuals and moving testimonials from patrons to
show how libraries change lives.
Above: Accessing WYLD at Colter Elemen-
tary in Jackson.
Right: A woman enjoying her library on
Wyoming Libraries’ Snapshot Day.
Top: A mother reads to her children at the Laramie County
Library in Cheyenne.
Above: Two students enjoying the cafe at the University of
Wyoming Coe Library.
Left: A student at the Gillette College Library.


14

15
To acknowledge the 125th
anniversary of the University of
Wyoming, Tamsen Hert and Rick
Ewig worked together to develop a
beautiful pictorial book documenting
the history of the state’s only four-year
public institution of higher education.
Containing more than 200 vintage
images, The University of Wyoming is
part of Arcadia Publishing’s “Campus
History Series.” The book received
honorable mention by the Wyoming
State Historical Society in 2013.
With access and experience diving
into historical collections, both
Hert, who heads the Emmett
D. Chisum Special Collections
at the UW Libraries, and
Ewig, associate director of the
American Heritage Center, had
perfect backgrounds for this
daunting project. Both also are
officers of the Wyoming State
Historical Society.
Since 1994, Hert’s
major responsibility has
been the oversight of the
Grace Raymond Hebard
Collection, which is
considered to be the most
comprehensive collection
of published material about Wyoming.
This resource includes all fiction and
nonfiction books about Wyoming,
maps, university, state and federal
documents pertinent to Wyoming,
games, audio and video materials,
newspapers, and stereo views.
During her research for the book,
Hert discovered gems like the Fossil
Fields Expedition led by Wilbur
H. Knight in 1899. “This was a
major expedition through Wyoming
gathering fossils for a good deal of the
summer. There is even a publication
that was issued about the venture,
published by the Union Pacific
Railroad.”
The process for identifying potential
material included scouring the
university’s photo archives located
at the American Heritage Center.
“First we identified the photographs
that we thought would be good
representations of UW’s history
and then researched the topic in the
available resources including the
earlier histories, campus newspaper
and other pertinent publications,”
Hert explained.
At first, the authors considered a
chronological approach to organizing
the information but as they delved
into the resources certain phrases
caught their attention. The final
chapters are organized based on
themes: Free Tuition and Equal
Admission; Dinosaurs to Gold
Ones; Home on the Range; Prepare
for Complete Living; Roaming the
University; On the Heights; Your
University Stands Steadfast in War and
Peace; and Wyoming’s University.
Hert explained that the book focuses
on certain aspects that were very
important to UW’s history as a land
grant university. “We also felt it was
important to discuss several of the
personalities throughout the history of
the institution.”
The numerous historical photos in
the book presented an initial challenge
for Hert, a noted historian and writer.
“Writing captions to tell the story
of each photograph is much more
difficult than a 5,000 word article,”
she said. “We had to do a lot of
editing to meet the word requirement
of the publisher.”
In addition to this book, Hert has
written several articles about the
cultural history of Yellowstone and
Grand Teton National Parks and has
a chapter on Yellowstone’s Roosevelt
Lodge in a forthcoming book. Hert is
also currently working on a history of
all the Yellowstone’s hotels, lodges and
camps with Lee H. Whittlesey.
Tamsen Hert and Rick Ewig sign copies of
University of Wyoming at the UW Union.
wyoming librarian-authortamsen hert
Telling UW’s History


Inspired by his faith, background
and even day-to-day experiences, Steve
Rzasa creates whole new worlds in his
spare time.
Rzasa is the technical services
librarian for the Johnson County
Library in Buffalo, processing new
fiction, handling audio visuals and
promoting the library.
Marcher Lord Press, a small
independent press focused on
Christian speculative fiction,
published his first book, The World
Reclaimed, in October 2009, followed
by The World Unleashed and Broken
Sight. His next series included
Crosswind and Sandstorm, followed
most recently by the series Quantum
Mortis: A Man Disrupted and
accompanied by the novella Quantum
Mortis: Gravity Kills, both co-written
with Vox Day.
His work schedule gives him the
flexibility to write, but Rzasa said that
he learned to write things pretty fast
from his journalism days, using the
pressures of deadline to spur him. He
worked for seven years as a reporter
and assistance editor at
weekly newspapers in Maine
and then moved to Buffalo
to serve as editor of the
weekly newspaper before
joining the library staff.
He also pointed out that,
“I’m grateful to have co-
workers and bosses who are
very supportive and let me
indulge in my hobby.”
Rzasa’s science fiction
books involve a Christian
element into the storyline,
which is why he found
Marcher Lord Press as
a good fit for his first
three series. Soon his
Quantum Mortis series
will be transferred over
and continued by the publishing arm
of Alpenwolf, a small, international
game-development firm.
In The World Reclaimed, his first
novel, all religious materials have been
outlawed. The story revolves around
Baden a teenager finding a bible in
the wreckage of the spaceship in deep
space and his experiences reading it,
sharing it with others and avoiding the
secret police who want to stop him.
“Readers of fiction can still have a
good story that includes elements
of what you believe, Rzasa said,
explaining his inclusion of Christian
elements. He tries to show the impact
that Christians with a strong faith
have on others and how others impact
them.
“I think that it is important to
include characters in the book that
have a mix of different religions from
Christians to Muslims,” he added.
For his Crosswind series, the world
of Perch, a city located on a mountain
top, stemmed from Rzasa’s ideas to
create a steampunk-like novel with
a mixture of the Wild West and
technology like planes and trains.
But the actual description of the city
came from playing with his sons on
a huge snow pile, deposited by the
city trucks on the baseball field, with
the highest peak being around ten
feet. From that experience, the city of
Perch rose from his quick sketch of the
ravines and valleys created by the snow
plows.
One of the main characters in the
Crosswind series, Winchell Sark, is a
reporter. Rzasa said that he built the
character from his own journalism
experiences, reflecting on the
atmosphere and camaraderie found in
small town papers.
The idea for his most recent series,
Quantum Mortis, came from a
collaboration with author Vox Day,
who wanted to write a science fiction
murder mystery with Rzasa.
At first, Rzasa was not sure about
co-authoring a book, but, today, he
is happy that he did it. He is in the
process of writing the third book in
the series with Day.
wyoming librarian-authorsteve rzasa
Faith Impacts Writing
16

17
Wyoming librarian and author, Steve
Rzasa, impersonating Superman.


Concerned about the disappearance
of traditional agriculture values, Darcy
Lipp-Acord undertook a written
journey examining stories of her
ancestors and comparing those to her
more modern but still agriculture-
based lifestyle.
The resulting book, Circling Back
Home: a Plainswoman’s Journey, is a
collection of nonfiction essays where
Lipp-Acord explores how to balance
her reverence for the land in today’s
world.
Lipp-Acord is the granddaughter
of German-Russian immigrants
who settled on a farm in north
central South Dakota where three
generations of her family have
lived. Her husband’s job managing
a ranch led Lipp-Acord and her
family to northeastern Wyoming.
Today she works as the youth services
coordinator at the Campbell County
Public Library while raising her six
children on the ranch.
While Lipp-Accord has always
written in one form or another, she
never expected to write a book. “I
have been writing for most of my
life to express myself and what was
happening around me. The fact that
some of my personal essays have
become a book is secondary, though
very cool.”
Some of her essays have appeared
in anthologies, including Woven
on the Wind, Crazy Woman Creek,
and My Heart’s First Steps, but the
rest remained unfinished stories until
Lipp-Acord decided to write a book
about her journey to honor values of
her past.
The book developed through a ten-
year process before being published
by the South Dakota State Historical
Society Press last year. “I was working,
raising kids and writing when I could.
The book evolved as I was living my
life,” she explained.
The initial essays for the book were
written in the years after her father
died, she said. “I was trying to
commemorate values and a lifestyle
that I felt was passing away. Now I
don’t think that it is passing away
as much as it doesn’t get a lot of
attention.”
Today’s fast society, based in
technology and focused on immediate
news bytes and imagines, concerned
Lipp-Acord, who recognized its
impact on her and how it countered
the culture that she grew up in, which
was very tied to the land.
“I’m afraid that if we lose those
values and a slower way of looking at
things we will lose our connection to
one another and lose that connection
to the earth,” she said, explaining her
desire to preserve those values.
An important subtheme for the book
is the role of women in agriculture,
said Lipp-Acord, who has five
daughters and a son. “Plenty of books
are about cowboys and some about
farmers but not many are about the
ranch women who just keep things
going and the values that they have in
raising families and supporting that
lifestyle.”
For her children, she hopes that
the book gives them a sense of their
history, why the values of land
spirituality are important and a sense
of pride in their female ancestors
and their
achievements.
“Loving your
family and
raising a
family is an
achievement
that has
value and
meaning.”
With her
first book
published,
Lipp-
Accord
is now
working
to finish
her next project, a nonfiction
manuscript that delves into the
history of the ranch that her husband
manages and explores the lives of
the former ranch managers and their
families.
wyoming librarian-authordarcy lipp-accord
Honoring Her Values
18 19
Darcy Lipp-Accord at a reading of
her book, Circling Back Home.


2120

Initially encouraged by a school
librarian, Steven W. Horn, now with
his second novel published, never
abandoned his dream to write fiction.
Horn, who lives in Wyoming, released
his techno-thriller and first in the Sam
Dawson mystery series, The Pumpkin
Eater, in October 2013 and his debut
novel Another Man’s Life in 2012.
These are his first fiction works to be
published, but his nonfiction work has
been featured in many scientific and
technical publications over the years.
An award-winning scholar, Horn retired
a few years ago from the University
of Wyoming after serving as Dean of
the College of Agriculture and later as
professor of animal science.
A love affair with fiction
Horn remembers very fondly the
importance that libraries played in
his life and career. “I was absolutely
mesmerized as a young boy growing
up in eastern Iowa by the library, my
sanctuary.”
So it was fitting that Horn’s first words
of encouragement to continue writing
came from the school librarian, who
also was his freshman English teacher.
“The teacher gave me a lot of positive
feedback and would bring me books
or call my attention to books that she
thought would interest me.”
That interest, though, was put on hold
for many years. Being drafted to serve
in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam
War and many years pursuing graduate
degrees in the sciences didn’t leave
much time for creative writing. Time
spent in libraries focused on rooting
through card catalogs, researching his
dissertation, rather than on literary
works.
Upon entering the professional
workforce, Horn felt that something
was missing. He returned to the library,
reading the classics on his lunch hour
while working in downtown Denver.
“My heroes were Hemingway, Faulkner,
Sinclair Lewis, Jack London, even
Roosevelt as he was such a prolific
writer. I became really interested again
in literature and in writing.”
He started writing his first novel in the
early 1980s, while working in Colorado.
Over the years, Horn worked for the
Colorado Department of Natural
Resources, served as the director of
the state conservation board and then
was appointed by the governor as the
commissioner of agriculture.
Horn explains that his work was very
satisfying. “But I really felt that my
true calling was in the area of literature
and writing. So I started writing about
the experiences that I had in Colorado
and continued that when I came to
Wyoming to work at the university.”
As the College of Agriculture
Dean, Horn, laughs, “I had a captive
audience.”
Horn would add creative writing
elements to internal newsletters and
magazines to help get his message out.
“If I could put out that information in
a more entertaining way, perhaps they
would retain that information longer or
it might spur them to action.”
Positive feedback on his articles
reinforced Horn’s need to write
fiction. In the wee hours of the
morning, between 4 -6 a.m., before
heading to the classroom, he worked
on the drafts of both his published
novels and several more.
Upon retiring from the
university, Horn has become a
full-time writer, publishing two
novels over the last couple of
years.
Drawing from life
experiences
Even while writing fiction,
Horn writes from what he
knows, drawing heavily from
his diverse background as a
decorated Vietnam veteran,
places he has lived, his
passion for agriculture and
his distinguished academic
career.
“Spending as much time
as I did in rural areas like
Colorado and Wyoming
created a scenery palette for me, as a
writer,” Horn said, explaining how
characters in his books end up living
in these states, plus Iowa where he was
born. “You pick up all sorts of things
from those experiences that you catalog
away and to someday write a story
about.”
His debut novel Another Man’s Life
draws heavily on Horn’s experience as
a veteran. The novel follows a Vietnam
veteran as a young soldier, middle-aged
father and later a husband as he deals
with the guilt from wartime atrocities
that still threaten innocent lives more
than three decades later.
Through this novel, Horn emphasizes
the devastating ongoing impact war
has on veterans and advocates for the
public to be more understanding. “War
steals your innocence. It stays with you
forever.”
Writing the novel was very therapeutic
for Horn, allowing him to talk about
Vietnam openly. “The modus operandi
for most Vietnam veterans is to not talk
about it. I felt the
THEPUMPKINEATER
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STEVEN W. HORN drawsupon an eclectic array of careerexperiences in crafting hisstories. From high-ranking po-litical appointee and interna-tional diplomat to the highestlevel of academic achievement,his unique background pro-vides grist for the writing mill.A decorated Vietnam veteranand award-winning scholar,Horn writes from experience.Another Man’s Life, his high-ly acclaimed first novel, hasbeen nominated for numerousawards. He lives in Wyoming.
Cover Design by Tina Lyles-Worthman
Cover art courtesy of istockphoto
Author photo courtesy of M. Spearman
PRAISE FOR
The Pumpkin Eater“Sam Dawson, one of the more likable characters to debut this year,
is an RV driving photog with a shotgun-riding bloodhound named
Elle. Not exactly ten-feet-tall or bulletproof, Sam is one of the guys
who breaks cases the old fashioned way—knocking on one more
door, checking one more photograph… Climb in with Sam and Elle
but hang on tight because you’re in for a bumpy and breathless ride.”
-CRAIG JOHNSON,
New York Times bestselling author of the Walt Longmire Mysteries,
the basis for A&E’s hit series Longmire.
“The story reads beautifully, great characterization and scenes.
Your writing skills are at their best.”
-PETER R. DECkER,author of Saving the West
www.granitepeakpress.com 9 780983 589419
52695>
ISBN 978-0-9835894-1-9
$26.95
STEVENW.hORN
THEPUMPKIN EATER
STEVEN W. hORN
A Sam Dawson Mystery
Writing What He Knows
Steven Horn’s Love Affair with Fiction

20
Steven Horn with his two hunting dogs.


22 23
Wyoming’s
Natural Wonders
Upon the advice of his first editor, Bill Sniffin added a personal touch to
his columns, helping him develop a relationship with his readers that has
lasted for over 40 years in newspapers and evolved into writing books.
Bill Sniffin Publishes His Top Picks
In 2013, Sniffin released the book
Wyoming’s 7 Greatest Natural Wonders
+ 33 Other Fascinating Places, which
was based on one of his newspaper
columns written in 2007. He has also
written and published three additional
books.
Sniffin readily admits his long
fascination with Wyoming, which
brought him to the Cowboy State to
become the publisher of the Lander
Wyoming State Journal in the early
1970s. Later, he used his love of
Wyoming to help promote the state by
serving on numerous travel industry-
related boards including the Wyoming
Tourism Commission and operating
tourism-related businesses, including
three tourist magazines.
A dedicated writer, Sniffin never
gave up writing, even while running
numerous business ventures from
owning several newspapers to starting
a public relations firm. His popular
Steven Horn with fellow Wyoming
authors, Phil Roberts, Kathleen O’Neal
Gear and Michael Gear.
same way. Many of my co-workers never
knew I was a veteran.”
Vietnam is so different than other
conflicts faced by this country, Horn
explained. “There was a certain amount
of guilt, a certain amount of shame the
American public placed upon returning
Vietnam veterans. It was the first war
that we basically lost. The American
public took it out on the returning
vets, turning their back on us. They
discriminated against us. We couldn’t
get jobs. It was a really a tough time.”
Even though only five chapters have
flashbacks to the Vietnam War, Horn
said the book allowed him to talk
about things that “I needed to get
off my chest” and still does through
conversations with local book clubs,
which invite the author to join them for
discussion.
Sam Dawson Mystery Series
In his latest novel, The Pumpkin Eater,
Horn introduces Sam Dawson, a former
governor’s press secretary and current
professional photographer, whose
sidekick is a dog named Elle.
Sam’s curiosity and passion for finding
the truth launches him into trying to
solve mass murders of young women
during the 1920s and a secret organized
effort to control the genetic make-up of
people.
This techno-thriller exposes this
country’s involvement in the eugenics
movement in the early part of the
twentieth century. In writing about
these crimes, Horn hopes that mistakes
such as these are not forgotten.
“Remembering the forgotten errors of
history cannot correct the past. Rather,
it may prevent flawed decisions in the
future.”
Sam seeks justice for those who
cannot, an admirable trait that
continually places him in danger.
However, even Horn admits the
character is a bit flawed, being divorced,
having bad luck with women, and
roaming around with a camera and
a bloodhound as his only faithful
companions.
“Readers identify with Sam because
he magnifies the frailties most of us
experience,” Horn said.
The popularity of Sam, who is more of
an antihero, initially caught the author
by surprise and then captured Horn’s
imagination of what future mysteries
Sam and Elle would stumble upon.
In between his trips to promote the
new novel, Horn is working on his next
Sam Dawson mystery.
Bill Sniffin photographing one of
Wyoming’s natural wonders.


131212
24

25Wyoming Library Roundup • Winter/Spring 2014Wyoming Library Roundup • Winter/Spring 2014

newspaper column has run for 40
years with the last ten as a statewide
column.
One day, while searching for an idea
for his column, Sniffin wondered what
the seven greatest natural wonders of
Wyoming would be, so he reached out
to his network of friends asking them
for input. Sniffin was flooded with
over 50 ideas.
Riffling through the ideas, Sniffin
included some of them and arbitrarily
chose the rest. “I picked them and just
let the chips fall where they may.”
Everyone agreed on the first two
wonders being Yellowstone National
Park and its neighbor Grand Tetons/
Jackson area. For the third, Sniffin
picked Devils Tower as the first natural
monument in the world.
The Red Desert, one of Sniffin’s
favorite places, landed the fourth
spot for its uniqueness. Thermopolis
Hot Springs took the fifth spot as the
world’s largest mineral hot spring.
Sniffin spent a lot of time agonizing
over the last two choices. Should he
include a mountain range, a river
system or another choice? For the sixth
spot, he finally settled on the North
Platte River System, which makes
up five reservoirs and travels a vast
distance through the state.
He selected South Pass as the seventh
wonder, because of its profound
impact on the development of the
nation and allowing emigrants to pass
through the gap in the mountains to
extend our country to the Pacific.
Once published, his column
generated a wave of response from his
readers. Ever the entrepreneur, Sniffin
saw an opportunity to turn his idea
into a Wyoming coffee table book
about the seven natural wonders and
include additional natural wonders in
the state.
Sniffin had the perfect background
to carry this idea to fruition. He
has published millions of tourist
magazines over the years. Moreover,
his extensive journalism career has
included publishing, writing, editing,
graphics and photography.
At first Sniffin thought the book
would just include his favorite color
slides from living in the state for 42
years, as well as photos from Scott
Copeland of Lander and Randy
Wagner of Cheyenne. However, as
word of the project spread, more
photographers across the state became
involved.
“My joke is that I kept pulling my
pictures out and putting theirs in and,
before I was done, I had 30 other
photographers involved,” Sniffin said.
“I was just stunned at the quality of
the photography.”
To show off the stunning
photography, Sniffin also wanted to
make the book gigantic, in a landscape
shape until he spoke with his local
librarian Barbara Oakleaf in Lander.
“She said definitely don’t do that
great big one because it’s just so
cumbersome,” Sniffin said, noting
how helpful her advice was. “She also
recommended that the book be more
vertical instead of horizontal to fit into
the shelves.”
Sniffin relented on the size and
instead included 14 foldouts to
showcase the stunning photography.
Beyond 130 photos, the book also
has seven chapters written by people
who have strong ties to those natural
wonders, including U.S. Senator Mike
Enzi, an avid fisherman, who writes
about the North Platte.
So far the book has been a success,
selling out its first run of 10,000
and now well into its second. The
book is available in stores across
the state as well as on the website
wyomingwonders.com.
In contemplating his next book
venture, Sniffin is working on a couple
ideas, another coffee table book or a
more serious book.
Photo of the Red Canyon from Sniffin’s book,
Wyoming’s 7 Greatest Natural Wonders.


26

27
The flames of the 2010 fire that
destroyed the Hitching Post Inn ignited
Sue Castaneda’s efforts to record this
iconic establishment’s impact on the
Cheyenne community and the rest of
the state.
At first Castaneda, who works for the
Wyoming Department of State Parks
and Cultural Resources, just sought
historical photos for an exhibit at the
Wyoming State Museum but then she
decided to undertake writing a book
upon the advice of a museum curator.
After an extensive process of
interviewing people and digging
through historical records and photos,
she finished compiling material for the
book The Hitching Post Inn: Wyoming’s
Second Capitol in 2012. Funds and
support for publishing the book came
from the Wyoming Lodging and
Restaurant Association Education
Foundation, the Wyoming State
Archives and a grant from the Wyoming
Historical Society.
The book, done in a limited release,
is still available. Funds raised by its
sale go to the Wyoming Lodging and
Restaurant Association Education
Foundation, which helps high school
students enter into the hospitality
industry.
Dating back to its start as the Lincoln
Auto Court in 1927 under Pete Smith,
the Hitching Post Inn had a long history
of family ownership and dedication
to the hospitality industry. When
Pete’s son Harry P. Smith took over, he
transformed the Lincoln Auto Court’s
rustic cabins into a major tourist stop
off the Lincolnway west of Cheyenne.
Harry renamed the hotel the Hitching
Post Inn, which became a charter
member of Best Western in 1946.
The book accounts how Harry’s son,
Paul Smith, grew up with the hotel,
starting as a bell hop at nine-years-old
and later taking over the reins from his
father in 1982. Paul ran the hotel until
his death in 2006.
Over the years, the hotel was well-
known for being the home away from
home for many Wyoming legislators,
as well as hosting U.S. Presidents and
many music acts playing at Cheyenne
Frontier Days.
Many people had a personal
connection to the hotel, and in many
ways it was the “center of the universe”
in Cheyenne, Castaneda explained.
When it burned down, “everybody
could suddenly remember every way in
which that place had played some part
in their lives, whether it was as a job or
experience.”
Castaneda’s memories included
having her wedding reception there as
well as listening to musician Michael
Degreve play on weekends. However,
her favorite memory stemmed from
working at the Cheyenne Animal
Shelter when Paul Smith was the
honorary chairman for the capital
campaign to raise funds for a new
center.
“What a treat to be able to work
with him on that, because people
loved and respected him so much that
they would do what he believed in,”
she said, noting his generosity the
community.
The book is full of photos, many of
them from the personal collection of
Paul Smith, donated for the project
by his niece, Stephanie Smith, who
inherited his photos and scrapbooks.
Stephanie also donated the famous
collection of campaign buttons and
photos of the visiting presidents,
which used to hang in the hotel’s
Presidential Room, to the Wyoming
State Museum.
Castaneda relied on many personal
recollections to tell the story of the
“Hitch,” as many locals called it. One
evening, she even met with
many banquet waitresses
recording their memories
as they looked at old
photos. “I just let them
talk and recorded them
remembering things and
playing off of each other.”
Castaneda’s process is to
transcribe the interviews
and then put them down
on paper. So for the
most part, the stories about the Hitch
are told by the people themselves. She
also relied on old speeches written by
Paul, old travel articles and segments in
older books that mentioned the lives of
the Smith family. It was not hard finding people willing
to talk about the Hitching Post, she
laughed. One interview usually led
to a contact for another interview.
“You could keep going with this book
forever with people’s recollections and
how it affected their lives.”
“The Hitching Post just affected
people like nothing else in this town
probably ever will. Nothing will bring
us together like the Hitching Post
because no corporation is ever going
to treat the community the way family
can.”
“theHitch”
The History
of...
Top: The Smith Family - Harry P.
Smith, his wife Mildred and their children
Evelynn and Paul. Above: One of the guest
rooms at the Hitching Post Inn.
Musician Michael Degreve and author Sue Cas-
taneda. Degreve entertained crowds in the lobby
of the Hitch six nights a week for thirty years.


2928

bookshelfFORWYOMING’SREADERS
Rough Breaks: A Wyoming High Country Memoir
By Laurie Wagner Buyer
2013. Publisher: University of Oklahoma Press. 246 p.
Laurie, a part-time journalist in her late twenties, lives in an isolated care-
taker’s cabin with her boyfriend Bill in the mountains of western Wyoming.
Their relationship had become very strained by the time Laurie met Mick
Buyer, owner of the O Bar Y cattle ranch a few miles down the mountain.
While those few miles are through hard terrain, they are nothing compared
to the ‘rough breaks’ Laurie consequently brings into her life. As she seeks
happiness by moving to the ranch full-time as a hired hand, she must also
meet nature’s grueling challenges in the work, come to terms with leaving
Bill, and begin a relationship with Mick. Laurie’s inner conflicts threaten to
overwhelm her as they involve Mick’s marriage, his wife Margie living on the
ranch, Laurie and Margie’s friendship, and Bill’s brooding unhappiness about
Laurie’s new position. A vital key to this human mixture is the ranch and the
power of the love that Mick has for working the land and the ranching way
of life. Laurie came to his ranch to lighten his workload; now, if she stays
and his wife leaves, he will lose the ranch and himself. There are many rough
breaks in this book for everyone that is involved. Laurie owns them all as her
ranching challenges reach beyond haying and calving, becoming very fundamentally personal and life altering.
Nancy Venable, Director
Big Horn County Library, Basin
The Pumpkin Eater
By Steven W. Horn
2013. Publisher: Granite Peak Press. 260 p.
The Pumpkin Eater is a novel written by Cheyenne author Steven Horn.
This story takes you on a journey as the character Sam Dawson uncovers hor-
rible secrets of the past. Sam starts his journey by simply taking pictured of
tombstones when he discovers eerie similarities in the epitaphs on the tomb-
stones as well as the grounds keeper at the cemetery.
The story unfolds as Sam Dawson uncovers one secret after another and one
more person that is involved in this coverup from past. This story is often
hard to read because of the details of what has happened in the past and yet is
so intriguing with the details of the past. The suspense is nonstop as the story
unfolds. The reader gets drawn in immediately by the character of Sam Daw-
son that Horn creates and the reader is never bored as the story keeps wrapping
around and around. The book gives you just enough science to understand the
complicated genetics of this story and just enough feel good stuff to make the
characters likeable. As the story develops you are not sure who is the good guy
and who is a suspect, but through it all you know Sam Dawson is the good
guy and you can’t stop wanting him to find justice for the young girls that were murdered.
This book is a book that you will want to read from page one to the end in a short period of time and it doesn’t disap-
point.
Lori Lewis, Assistant Manager, Circulation Services/Reader’s Advisory Librarian
Laramie County Library System, Cheyenne
Francis and Eddie
By Brad Herzog, illustrated by Zak Pullen
2013. Why Not Books Press. 32 p.
Call me prejudiced, but the illustrations by award-winning Zak Pullen of Casper make
Brad Herzog’s new nonfiction children’s book Francis and Eddie a stand-out.
It’s an inspiring true story about two underdogs – golfer and caddie – who shock the golf
world in 1913. Francis Ouimet is passionate about the game and has won a state amateur
championship, but he’s only twenty years old, self-taught, and not in the right social class
for the country club. He worked as a caddie himself, and his father worked as a gardener
for wealthy club members. Eddie Lowery is only ten years old and four feet tall, but has
plenty of determination and spunk to caddy. He had to skip school and avoid a truant of-
ficer to attend the championship game, plus knows more about golf than most adults. And
together, they win the U.S. Open.
Teamwork is emphasized by author Herzog, and Pullen’s expressive artwork captures
Francis and Eddie’s bond beautifully. Eddie was convinced Francis could win, and this
confidence was just what Francis needed to play against a five-time British Open winner,
endure the rain, and prove to his skeptical father that golf could indeed achieve a better life
for him.
This book is a fine centennial commemoration for the game of golf and the U.S. Open.
It’s also a heartwarming story of friendship and perseverance for underdogs everywhere.
Holly Baker, Children’s Services Director
Park County Library, Cody
Hitching Post Inn: Wyoming’s Second Capitol
by Sue Castaneda
2012. Publisher: Wyoming State Historical Society. 144 p.
The Hitching Post Inn: Wyoming’s Second Capitol is the story of the historic and
beloved Wyoming landmark in Cheyenne. This fascinating and enjoyable book was
compiled and edited by Sue Castaneda for the Wyoming State Archives, in collabora-
tion with the Wyoming Lodging and Restaurant Association Education Foundation.
As many Wyoming residents, I have warm memories of the Hitching Post and was
deeply saddened by the 2010 fire which destroyed the main portion of the hotel.
Through this book, Ms. Castaneda provides a rich, retrospective look at the Hitching
Post’s iconic history and that of the Smith family who owned and ran the hotel, until
the death of Paul Smith in 2006.
The hotel was dubbed “Wyoming’s Second Capital” as a result of its longtime role
as second home for Wyoming legislators and lobbyists. For years, the hotel provided
an “after hours” venue for legislators and lobbyists to meet and confer in a relaxed and friendly setting, thus fostering a unique sense of
camaraderie amongst lawmakers – regardless of political party (only in Wyoming!). This book is full of historical tidbits (The Hitching
Post was the first motel in the state to install air-conditioning) and fond, affectionate remembrances by those who knew the Hitching Post
best – longtime employees, Smith family friends, and Wyoming legislatures and lobbyists who called “The Hitch” their second home during
legislative sessions. Accompanying all of this are pages of marvelous pictures of The Hitching Post through the years, including famous visi-
tors, such as Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush. I highly recommend this lovely book to all!
Karen Kitchens, Intellectual Property/Documents Librarian
Wyoming State Library, Cheyenne
.


3130

Boleto
by Alyson Hagy
2012. Publisher: Graywolf Press. 272 p.
Boleto, by University of Wyoming professor and novelist, Alyson Hagy, is the story of
modern-day cowboy Will Testerman, who is trying to find his place in the world. The
novel starts with Testerman’s purchase of a beautiful filly that he hopes will be his “ticket”
to bigger and better things.
Will is from Lost Cabin, Wyoming – Hagy’s fictional version of the town. His father is
stressed out about money, trying to keep a ranch afloat by working at the local printing
press. His mother, a teacher, is in remission from cancer. Will has returned from a bad
experience in Texas, where he worked for a wealthy family that shows horses. Unfazed
and determined, Will has plans to take his new horse to a polo ranch in California. In the
meantime, he’s thoughtful, methodical and patient with the filly.
The world of horses and their owners is rough and in stark contrast to Hagy’s seemingly
gentle and gifted cowboy; there’s a delicate and sometimes precarious balance for Will as he
moves between arenas. Hagy creates an enchanting scene between Will and two young girls
visiting a dude ranch who explain to Will that horses have secrets, but later young Argen-
tinian boys show Will there are some secrets he can’t handle.
Hagy’s prose is as graceful as the horses she writes about, with breathtaking images ranging from the Wyoming landscape to a luxuri-
ous polo ranch. A wonderful novel, especially for anyone who loves reading about horses.
Kelly Cooper, Librarian
Wyoming Life Resource Center, Lander
bookshelf
Passage to Wonderland:
Rephotographing Joseph Stimson’s Views of
the Cody Road to Yellowstone National Park
By Michael A. Amundson
2013. Publisher: University Press of Colorado. 156 p.
Joseph Stimson is one of Wyoming’s most prolific and important photog-
raphers, having produced more than 7,500 images during his lifetime that
provided a visual record of life, nature, and industry of Wyoming and the
American West. In July of 1903, the Cody Road opened. Soon after, while on
an expedition commissioned by the State of Wyoming to photograph all of
Wyoming’s counties and Yellowstone, Joseph Stimson traveled this road that
goes west from Cody through the east entrance to Yellowstone National Park
and makes its way to Yellowstone Lake.
In Passage to Wonderland, Amundson takes the reader on the same road trip to
discover this specific collection of Stimson photographs. Part of this discovery is the author’s rephotography of the Stimson images. Amund-
son painstakingly retraces and locates where the images were taken and recreates the same photographs in color. In the first fifty pages,
the author provides a good context of the book, history of Joseph Stimson and the Cody Road, as well as the methods the author used
in conducting research. What follows in the next ninety pages are the photographs and rephotographs. Amundson provides side-by-side
comparisons of the photographs which illustrate then and now. The author also gives the reader some commentary to point out the history
of the place and, more importantly, the context of the effects that human action has had, as well as how nature has changed the place over
time. The last twenty-six pages include a short section on Stimson’s return to Cody in 1910, an afterward, a select bibliography, and a useful
index.
As an amateur photographer with an interest in history, this reviewer enjoyed the author’s insights into Stimson’s photography. The
Wyoming history, coupled with the photography, gives the reader a glimpse of the Old West. Amundson provides GPS coordinates for each
photograph that will be useful to anyone wanting to experience these places first-hand. While Passage to Wonderland could almost be con-
sidered a coffee table book, the author’s textual commentary makes it much more. This book has broad appeal and would be an excellent
choice for anyone with an interest in history, photography, Wyoming, and certainly Yellowstone National Park.
Thomas Ivie, Digital Initiatives Librarian
Sandstorm
By Steve Rsaza
2013. Publisher: Marcher Lord Press. 331 p.
Sandstorm by Steve Rzasa is Indiana Jones in Dinotopia with a steam punk bent
and Old Testament in the background. It’s a light-hearted romp. I loved it.
Winchell and Copernicus Sark along with Winch’s wife Lysanne and Cope’s
intrepid girlfriend, Daisy, fend off religious fanatics and armed ruffians with brawn
and wit in the service of a dear friend.
There is a refreshing equality between the sexes. Lysanne studies unarmed resis-
tance. Both women are adept with weapons. Daisy is a heck of an aeroplane pilot
and endurocycle driver.
The Sark brothers contrast nicely. Cope is impetuous and resourceful. Winch, the
more thoughtful, is guided by his strong faith in The Allfather.
In a world populated by dromornis and gigantoraptors our heroes embark via
dirigible upon a quest for the Alter-face – an unholy relic several parties are willing
to die for. The adventure takes them across desert sands and into catacombs beneath
the City of El Brazo.
Beyond their own boundless ingenuity, the four protagonists are aided by artifacts
from the past, a Sark ancestor, solid esprit de corps and a library book.
I also like that there are a great many new words to look up in this novel. I learned
the meaning of guayabera. I am glad this is the second Sark Brothers tale as that
implies there is a first for me to read. Perhaps there will even be a third.
Virginia Livingston
Park County Library, Cody
University of Wyoming
by Rick Ewig and Tamsen Hert
2012, Published by: Arcadia Publishing, 127 p.
Shortly after the university was founded in 1886 the Laramie Sentinel reported that education at
the new university “would be polytechnic in character, in short that it would turn out a class of stu-
dents who, when they graduate will know how to do something, something the world wants done”.
As the only four-year public university in Wyoming, the University of Wyoming holds a special
place in the hearts of many Wyomingites. And this book will appeal to all of them. In this slim
volume there are fascinating historic photographs, maps and documents on every page. The text
integrates well with the photos and both take you on a wild ride of discovery through the 125 year
history of the university. Not only do you learn the history of the buildings on campus, the athletic
teams and the various academic departments but you can also follow the careers of famous students
and faculty members such as Grace Raymond Hebard, Milward Simpson and Samuel H. “Doc”
Knight. I especially enjoyed learning about the daily lives and living conditions of the early female
students and the rough and ready cowboy/cowgirl students in the photos of the early geology expeditions to the wilds of Wyoming.
Elaine Jones Hayes, Assistant Manager Reference Services, Special Collections Librarian
Laramie County Library System, Cheyenne


3332

The Improbable Pioneer:
The Letters of Edith S. Holden Healy 1911-1950
By Cathy Healy
2013. Publisher: Washakie Museum and Cultural Center. 396 p.
What happens when a thirty-something East Coast socialite musician from the early 1900’s
marries a sheep rancher from Wyoming? A lot of letters home about life on the range, that’s
what. An Improbable Pioneer is a collection of letters from Edith Healy, written to her mother
and friends back in Boston, that shares a slice of life in Wyoming. From the honeymoon trip
across the United States to life on the plains, Edith found no shortage of amusing topics to
report on. She wrote copiously, sharing about her first night in a sheep wagon (including how
many layers of clothes she wore to stay warm) to the big Fourth of July party hosted by one
of the local ranches. Between personal notes to family and friends, readers get a sense of the
sort of woman it took to tame the wild Wyoming landscape. Edith’s charm and strength shine
though her recollection of events. These letters are a delightful glimpse into the daily life of a
woman who fearlessly traded a life of relative comfort to join the man she loved in the middle
of a vast wilderness. The accompanying photographs and commentary from Cathy Healy
(Edith’s granddaughter) make this book a delightful read as well as an insightful history lesson.
This is a window into history that readers should look through.
Sara Diane Doyle, Public Relations and Information Manager
Converse County Library, Douglas
Circling Back Home
by Darcy Lipp-Accord
2011. Publisher: Camel Press. 280 pages.
Darcy Lipp-Acord’s Circling Back Home is a beautifully written memoir of the West. After
leaving a prairie small town for college and bigger dreams, she fell in love with the cowboy
who became her “forever.” With him, she finds herself tied to the life more than the land.
The roof over her head, the yard where her children play lasts only as long as each job does.
Still, she plants her garden and hopes to be there for harvest. It’s a life that brings struggles,
but one she sees as the best for those she loves. Family is her touchstone – her husband, her
six children, including the son they feared they would lose. Even her doubts in the years she
was “just” a housewife brought her to a deeper understanding of and a feeling of connection
to the long line of women who came before her. The bigger dreams she had as a young girl
pale in comparison with the meaning and joy she found in the life she built. She writes about
feeling guilty for stealing time from the “shoulds” to set her story down at her writing desk,
but it’s fortunate she did. This book is a valuable insight into one woman’s experience of the
West and an inspiring read.
Susan Mark, Statistics Librarian
bookshelf
Wyoming Firsts
By Carol Mead
2013. 32 p.
“The greatest miracle of success in life will not be that one has finished, it will
be that one had the courage to begin. “ I remember hearing this quote for the
first time sitting at a graduation ceremony for a friend. She was the first child in
a string of siblings to graduate with a Bachelor’s Degree. She was the first child
in her family to break the tradition of entering the workforce at the age of 17.
For the first time in her life she believed victory was held in the palm of her
hand, walking off of the university auditorium stage with a diploma embraced
tightly against her heart. Emotion tied to feeling amazing is breathtaking when
it happens for the first time. “Wyoming Firsts: A Children’s Book” authored by
Carol Mead, First Lady of Wyoming brought back childhood memories of feel-
ing awe-inspired with passion for my native state of Wyoming by recalling time
spent with family and friends as we traveled those long, stretched out roads and
visited those breathtaking landmarks of state history considered a “first” to the state.
I had the opportunity to attend the Legislative Luncheon last October at the Wyoming Library Association State Conference in Chey-
enne at Little America. Carol Mead was a guest speaker. She explained the reason for writing Wyoming Firsts: A Children’s Book was
to promote literacy efforts in education while at the same time sharing historic “first” events of Wyoming history through poetry and
artwork illustrated by 15 Wyoming high school students. Ten thousand copies of the book have been printed through corporate spon-
sors at the cost of $43,500 and will be gifted to first grade students beginning January 2014. “This initiative has encompassed early
childhood literacy, promotion of the arts and promotion of healthy lifestyle for kids,” said Mead to the room of librarians. Although
the book will not be placed on sale for the general public, she anticipates that copies will be distributed to libraries in Wyoming.
My intention was to read Wyoming Firsts: A Children’s Book aloud to my first grade classes. Sometimes good intentions can turn out
like assumptions. I assumed thirty minutes would be enough time to read, discuss and gaze upon the illustrations. I was wrong. First
grade students enjoy rhyming verse; however, the vocabulary in the book stopped us from turning the pages together quickly enough to
be finished in our thirty minutes. Instead of reading the book, I started talking about the meaning of the words and role playing terms
such as bailiff, justice of the peace, territory, jury, igneous stone and appointed. A library classroom full of loud, joyful first graders pre-
tending to be the first justice of the peace and speaking the words, “I now pronounce you husband and wife” can become still and quiet
in an instant while pretending to be igneous stone standing tall at Devil’s Tower (1906) the first national monument.
Discussions that followed the role playing about success and courage made me smile several times as I listened to the connections
being made from the book to my students’ first experiences at historic “first” places in Wyoming such as Yellowstone (1872) the first
national park, spending summers hiking in the Shoshone (1891) the first national forest, visiting Jackson Hole where the first all-wom-
an city council was elected in 1920 and hiking to Wapiti Ranger Station the first U.S. Forest Ranger Station (1903) west of Cody. My
student’s first experiences were like mine as their young minds spilled memories aloud for all of us in the library to hear. We questioned
how scary being first becomes. We determined trying and doing our best is smart. We taught ourselves we have to have the courage to
begin. All this wonderful wisdom and knowledge from first grade students still takes my breath away time and time again like it was
my first time in the classroom.
CUTE CONENCTIONS FROM FIRST GRADE STUDENTS WHILE READING “WYOMING FIRSTS: A CHILDREN’S
BOOK”
“Grandpa has a dog named Jackson.” ~Reading about Jackson Hole and the first all-woman elected city council in 1920.
“My birthday is September 30th.” ~ Reading about the Wyoming Territory being the first to let women vote in 1869.
“Hey! My cousin walked there!” ~Reading about Wapiti Ranger Station being the oldest ranger station in the United States.
“Wyoming has lots of pretty horses.” ~Referring to EVERY illustration with a horse.
“Those really old fashioned pictures could have been bigger to see.” ~Referring to the historic photos included on each page.
“Girls always get their way. I don’t want to be guilty there.” ~Reading about the first all-female jury in Laramie in 1870.
Laura Miller, K-12 Librarian
Wright Junior Senior High School, Wright


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Cheyenne, WY
Permit. No. 7
Wyoming State Library
2800 Central Avenue
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wyominglibraries.com/roundup
The Wyoming Library Roundup is a quarterly publication of the Wyoming State Library, the Wyoming
Library Association and the Wyoming Center for the Book. If you would like to continue to be on our
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their name added or you would like your name removed from our mailing list, please send your request to:
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Library
First Lady Carol Mead has authored a book with
illustrations by Wyoming students. Wyoming Firsts:
A Children’s Book is a whimsical trip though some of
Wyoming’s better
known and lesser known
historical moments.
The First Lady focuses
on children’s issues
including early literacy
and is especially pleased
this book will be
distributed to elementary
schools and libraries
throughout Wyoming.
“This was such an
exciting project because
it was an opportunity
to celebrate Wyoming’s
history and all of
the remarkable ways
Wyoming has led the way.
I hope the book will also
encourage parents and children to read together,” Mrs.
Mead said. “I want to thank all of the talented young
artists who submitted drawings. It was an honor and a
pleasure to work with these students and their teachers.”
Wyoming Firsts features the work of 15 high school artists.
Several corporate donors funded the project. “I am deeply
grateful for the support of these companies. Their funding
will allow us to make the
book widely available to
early elementary school
children. These partners
share my belief in the value
of reading to children every
day,” Mrs. Mead said.
The donors are: Anadarko
Petroleum Corporation,
Arch Coal, Inc., Devon
Energy Corporation, FMC
Corporation, Marathon Oil
Corporation, TransCanada
Corporation, and Union
Pacific Railroad.
The First Lady is
distributing copies
of Wyoming Firsts to county
and school libraries across
the state, as well as to children. She hopes to visit many
communities in person over the coming months to read
with children receiving the book.
First Lady Collaborates with Students on Book of Wyoming Firsts
WYOMING ROUNDUP
First Lady Carol Mead reading Wyoming Firsts to students at the Capitol
during Dr. Seuss’ birthday events.

WinSpr2014Roundup

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