Though far from a nomad herself, she travels incessantly in her mind, often joining these peoples, whose lives are so close to the land and who move with the rhythm of the seasons and the animals they herd. She includes cowboys in this list because, although she lives in the heart of cowboy country, she acknowledges that cattle drives from the Mexican border to Montana are a thing of the past. Her grandfather was a newspaperman born in Montana, and she loves big open spaces and wilderness. But as these cultures lose their traditional ways of life, others lose something precious as well. With the loss of people who herd cows across the grasslands, reindeer across the tundra, or camels across the desert, comes the loss of romance.
Books are nearly always better historical references than the Internet.
Hartnagel-Taylor A history of rodeo clowns, a beautiful book. The Cowboy Life by Michelle Morris Not to be missed by any cowboy-lover. You will laugh. A New History of the American West by Richard White A book that avoids the ideological in favor of accurate history and facts that present their own picture of the west. A view into the world of the rodeo bullrider.