Indian Crafts and Lore by Ben Hunt

By now it's pretty obvious that I like collecting (among other things) old books I used to pour over and over as a youngin'. Here's another that's considered by some to be a classic.

Way back when, I'd got to the library and check out Ben Hunt's craft book, and try to reproduce what he illustrated so colorfully. This old paperback copy I bought with Junior in mind. Now he's eagerly soaking up the pages just like I did!

Crazy Horse

What do you do in your sleeping bag at late at night when you can't get to sleep? The same thing you'd do at home. Bring along a book to read!

I like to read something about the place I may be travelling through. And whenever I travel up through the northwestern Nebraska - Wyoming - South Dakota region, I bring along this worn, dog-eared book by Nebraska author Mari Sandoz: Crazy Horse, The Strange Man of the Ogalalas, given to me long ago by my Grandma E.

Mari Sandoz didn't just pen her work, she researched this biographical novel thoroughly, interviewing the actual eye witnesses of the events. She never fell into the stiff confines of depicting a romantic West. And part of her writing process was to locate herself in the actual locations and reading the manuscripts to herself. She did not take the easy road to her writing.

Crazy Horse was written as from the Native perspective (even mimicing the Lakota style speech) and published in the 1940's, when such personal accounts were unheard of. I've read many of Mari's books such as Old Jules, These Were the Sioux, Cheyenne Autumn... This one without a doubt is the absolute best.

Golden Book of Camping & Camp Crafts

*sigh* Just where was this book hiding when I was 10 years old? Perhaps some kid never returned his borrowed copy back to the library before I ever got a hint at it. This book has just about everything of it's day, profusely illustrated in 100% glorious color. There's even several pages of how to make your own canvas tent... hmmmmm....

I guess I'll just have to start catching up on what I missed out ;)

Vintage Cub Scout Handbooks

Vintage Boy Scout Handbook

What a prize this was when I got my hands on a second-hand copy when I was a kid! It's probably one of the top five things I'd have to point my finger of blame on for fueling a young boy's ideas of outdoor adventure!

Teepee Days

Teepee Days, Tales of the Plains is a collection of Native American stories aimed at young readers but just as entertaining to the older set, composed of a wide mix of historical figures, hero stories and legends, and folklore published in 1941. I also especially like the graceful but bold illustrative style. I came across this copy on Ebay.