THE MIGHTY MIAMI VANDALS

A Scrapbook of the Arizona 1950-51 Miami High School Championship Basketball Team
Edited by Wilfred "Sonny" Gomez Pena

In 1951 the Miami High School Vandals won 27 straight games, setting state and national records on their way to becoming the Arizona state champions! The Miami Vandals were rated by many sports writers of the day as the greatest high school basketball team ever to play in Arizona. Miami High School has produced 41 championship teams in nine different sports since its opening in 1916, but none has generated the same notoriety and sense of community pride as that produced by the amazing Vandals of 1950-51.

“We were 17 and 18 years old during that magical 1950-51 basketball season,” says Adolph “Fito” Trujillo. “We had a great coach, Ernest Kivisto, who motivated us to play at a level of excellence that basketball fans had never seen before in Arizona…Sonny Pena has captured the heart of our nationally recognized state championship team in this collection of articles that tell the story of the mighty Vandals of 1950-51. As I read these articles memories of my teammates who were instrumental in this great season flood my head.”

"Readers should know that Sonny Pena’s book is more than a collection of news clippings.” says historian Christine Marin. “Instead, it is a work of love for the game of basketball and an admiration for Coach Ernie Kivisto and his “dream team”. Pena’s book captures a time and place when a copper town came together in 1950-51 for the sake of basketball and good and decent play and to marvel at a coach whose team perfected and mastered the fast break on offense and the full court press on defense. Teachers, students, parents and local civic leaders through the state of Arizona supported the Vandals and their coach. If you listen closely, you can hear their cheering and shouts of excitement throughout the pages of The Mighty Miami Vandals: a Scrapbook of the Arizona 1950-51 Miami High School Championship Basketball Team."

$25

I AM APACHE

A novel by Tanya Landman

I AM APACHE is an engaging story written for young adults by Tanya Landman. Here we follow the story of Siki, a nineteenth-century Apache girl who describes the events of her teen years, from her young brother’s death during a Mexican raid, through her work to become a full-fledged warrior, to the death of her mentor. Siki describes relationships among her own people, including a rogue peer who leaves the tribe rather than submit to its code of honor and her own acceptance as a female warrior. She also skillfully weaves interactions between the Apache, Mexicans, and “White Eyes” into her story. With an eloquent voice and a dignified pace, Landman creates a credible and artistic story with excellent characterization and engaging psychological and sociopolitical questions. Although I AM APACHE has special appeal for historical and western fiction readers, this well-written novel also has much to offer those who are not genre readers.

$10.95

IDENTITY BY DESIGN

Edited By Emil Her Many Horses

IDENTITY BY DESIGN: Tradition, Change, And Celebration In Native Women’s Dresses showcases the collection of Native American dresses held by the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian. This book presents a fascinating array of Native women’s clothing from the Plains, Plateau and Great Basin regions of the United States and Canada, dating from the 1830s to the present. It includes dresses, shawls, moccasins, belts, bags and hair accessories. Striking photographs depict Native life, Native women and their attire. The beautiful creations in this book reveal the artistic vision of many individual makers, as well as different regional styles and tribal designs.

“When you wear your dress, you’re carrying the spirit of all the people who gave you the lessons of life, who made dresses before you,” says Keri Jhane Myers. “Through ceremony, a young woman can become a living representative of revered spirit beings, such as Changing Woman of the Apache, and White Buffalo Calf Woman of the Lakota, who were known to have brought the arts, sacred corn, beauty, compassion, healing, truth and ethics to the people through teachings and rituals.”

$20.00

RODEO 101: History of the Payson, Arizona Rodeo 1884-1984

by Jinx Pyle & Jayne Peace

RODEO 101 tells the story of the first 101 years of the Payson Rodeo. It is a fabulous book chock-full of facts and photos. I can’t describe it any better than the authors did, so I’ll just let them do the talking:

“Writing this book has been an education for both of us. Our research – which includes interviews with hundreds of people, the reading of countless old newspaper articles, books and old rodeo programs – completed a picture that neither one of us had ever seen. Our efforts took us into previously unexplored areas, such as the rodeo horse races. We knew that some good horses had run down Payson’s dusty main street. We did not know that some of those horses were the fastest short-distance horses in the world. We knew there was betting, but some of those cowboys would bet the ranch on a horse race. We knew from our ancestors that Payson’s rodeo started as an annual event in 1884. We did not realize the overwhelming evidence, both oral and written, that documents this truth! Still, those facts pale in comparison to what we learned to be the real story of the Payson Rodeo.”

Jinx & Jayne have not only uncovered and preserved the true history of the Payson Rodeo, but they have captured its changing spirit throughout the years, from the first rodeo held in the Mid-Town Pasture in 1884, to the present day. This book is a must-have for rodeo fans everywhere!

$25

PLEASANT VALLEY WAR by Jinx Pyle

The Pleasant Valley War, also known as the Graham Tewksbury Feud, was fought in the northern part of what is now Gila County, Arizona. “During the 1880s the entire north-central Arizona was under lead and smoke confrontation between the sheep raisers and the cowmen, the Hashknife Outfit and the homesteaders, the horse thieves and the Mormons, the cinch-ring artists and the ranchers. To add a little fuel to the fire, a few bronco Apaches could be counted on to keep everyone on their toes. Men rode with their rifles in hand, and in town the tie-down loops were clear on the tops of the six-gun hammers,” says author Jinx Pyle in his latest book Pleasant Valley War.

State historian, Marshall Trimble says “Jinx Pyle is a walking encyclopedia of information on events in Gila County, Arizona and now he’s written a history of the notorious Pleasant Valley War – one of the most complex and vile blood feuds in America’s history. But parts of the Pleasant Valley War have never been told and Jinx brings many new facts to light. Pyle’s history of the Pleasant Valley War is destined to become one of the definitive works on the subject.” This great book includes historic Pleasant Valley War maps and helpful GPS coordinates.

Jinx is a sixth generation descendant of Gila County cattle ranchers and a full-time student of Arizona history. He grew up on stories handed down about the Pleasant Valley War, having descended from the culture that spawned the fighting factions. He and his wife, Jayne, have written numerous books that document local history, including Rodeo 101, Mountain Cowboys, Cooking for Zane Grey Under the Tonto Rim, Calf Pies and Cow Fries and History of Gisela, Arizona.

$25

COOKING FOR ZANE GREY UNDER THE TONTO RIM by Jayne Peace Pyle

As the time for the dedication of Zane Grey’s cabin in Payson, Arizona on October 15th, 2005 grew near, Jayne Peace Pyle felt that the stories of the folks who settled under the Tonto Rim, and knew and worked for Zane Grey, needed to be told. Up until then, little had been mentioned about those mountain people who had guided and cooked for Grey on his famous bear and lion hunts.

Pyle had grown up hearing stories of the people and places of Gila County from her parents, grandparents and great-grandparents. In this wonderful cookbook, cum history book, Jayne combines history, genealogy and recipes to introduce to the world the people who lived Under the Tonto Rim in the 1920s. Jayne chose food as the cultural stimulus to further explore the practices and history of these early pioneer people. The result is a truly delightful history/cookbook that entertains and informs, even as it encourages the reader to experiment with the recipes and foods of the Gila county mountain people who guided Zane Grey and prepared his meals under the Tonto Rim.

$15

THE ROCKHOUND'S HANDBOOK by James R. Mitchell

ROCKHOUNDING is the popular term used to describe the hobby of collecting rocks and minerals. Beyond the possibility of making a startling new find or a valuable discovery, rockhounding offers people of all ages the unique opportunity to learn about the nature and history of our physical world, and to explore it in landscapes as diverse as the abundant rocks and minerals found there.

THE ROCKHOUND’S HANDBOOK by James R. Mitchell is a popular reference guide for rockhounds and collectors of rocks, minerals and fossils. This handy book includes sections on basic geology and mineral formation; how to find and identify minerals; field tools and techniques; finding gold and other heavy minerals; fossil formation and collecting; the legal aspects of collecting; specimen preparation and display; and the basics of lapidary and jewelry making. Illustrated throughout with photos, diagrams and charts, this book features an extensive glossary, lists of government agencies and museums, and much more. THE ROCKHOUND’S HANDBOOK is an indispensable how-to guide for beginners, as well as a handy reference guide for experienced rockhounds.

$15.95