“Beyond the Missouri: The Story of the American West,” penned by Richard Etulain, professor emeritus of history at the University of New Mexico, and published by UNM Press, has been picked for the annual CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title list.
“Beyond the Missouri" is a narrative history of the American West ¬ spanning from North Dakota to Texas and west to the Pacific Ocean ¬ from prehistoric times to the present day. The story includes the histories of the diverse cultures in the western United States, including American Indians, Hispanics, Asian Americans and African Americans.
Etulain’s narrative emphasizes two themes in the geographically and culturally vast American west ¬ change and complexity. He looks at the Native American inhabitants in the area, the Spanish southwest, the colonial rivalries that developed, and the inclusion of mountain men, missionaries and the Oregon Trail as history advanced in the region.
Etulain goes on to discuss the Mormon push into the west, the mining boom and the development of ranching and farming in the area before examining the west in pre-World War One and Two and the Cold War era in history. He concludes his work with today’s continuing search for the American West.
This year’s CHOICE list is composed of more than 640 books, chosen for their excellence in scholarship, presentation and significance of their contributions to their author’s respective fields of study. The “Outstanding Academic Title” list makes up less than 3% of the more than 25,000 academic titles submitted to CHOICE during the year.
Media Contact: Benson Hendrix, (505) 277-1816; e-mail: bhendrix@unm.edu