Between the Nebraska border and Osage County, Oklahoma, are the Flint Hills of Kansas, and growing on those hills the last of the tallgrass prairie that once ranged from Canada to Texas, and on those fields of bluestem, cattle graze—and tending the cattle, someone like Jim Hoy, whose people have ranched there from, well, not quite time immemorial, but pretty darn close. Hoy has always called the Flint Hills home and over the decades he has made a study of them—their tough terrain and quiet beauty, their distinctive folk life and cattle culture—and marshaled his observations to bring the Flint Hills home to readers in a singular way. These essays are Hoy’s Flint Hills, combining family lore and anecdotes of ranching life with reflections on the region’s rich history and nature. Whether it’s weaning calves or shoeing horses, checking in on a local legend or a night of high school basketball in nearby Cassoday, encountering a coyote or a badger or surveying what’s happened to the tallgrass prairie over time, summoning cowboy traditions or parsing the place’s plant life or rock formations, he has something to say—and you can bet it’s well worth hearing. With his keen eye, understated wit, and store of knowledge, Hoy makes his Flint Hills come alive, and in the telling, live on.

"Peggy of the Flint Hills" was a beloved Topeka newspaper columnist, dispensing common sense and uncommon insight six days a week for 55 years. But her true masterwork was this little memoir, now seeing publication for the first time - a breathtakingly rich recollection of her childhood in the Ozark foothills and her young adulthood in the Kansas Flint Hills. With a full heart and a matchless memory, Peggy writes of the people and places that shaped her, offering readers a crystalline window into a long-gone world.

The Flint Hills are America's last tallgrass prairie, a green enclave set in the midst of the farmland of eastern Kansas. Known as the home of the Big Beef Steer, these rugged hills have produced exemplary cowboys—both the ranch and rodeo varieties—whose hard work has given them plenty of material for equally good stories. Jim Hoy grew up in the Flint Hills on a ranch at Cassoday that's been in his family for five generations and boasts roots "as deep as those of bluestem grass in black-soil bottomland." He now draws on this area's rich cowboy lore—as well as on his own experience working cattle, breaking horses, and rodeoing—to write a folk history of the Flint Hills spanning a century and a half. Hoy blends history, folklore, and memoir to conjure for readers the tallgrass prairies of his boyhood in a book that richly recalls the ranching life and the people who lived it. Here are cowboys and outlaws, rodeo stars and runaway horses, ordinary folks and the stuff of legends. Hoy introduces readers to the likes of Lou Hart, a top hand with the Crocker Brothers from 1906 to1910, whose poetic paean to ranch life circulated orally for fifty years before seeing print. And he tracks down the legend of Bud Gillette, considered by his neighbors the world's fastest man until he fell in with an unscrupulous promoter. He even unravels the mystery of a lone grave supposed to be that of the first cowboy in the Flint Hills. Hoy also explains why a good horse makes up for having to work with exasperating cattle—and why not all horses are created (or trained) equal. And he traces Flint Hills cattle culture from the days of the trail drive through the railroad years to today's trucking era, with most railroad stockyards torn down and only one section house left standing. Writes Hoy, "I feed on the stories of the Hills and the characters who tell them as the cattle feed on the grasses." His love of the land shines throughout a book so real that readers will swear they hear the click of horseshoes on flint rock with every turn of the page.

The Kansas Flint Hills stretch across a dozen counties in the eastern half of the Sunflower State. The region boasts rolling hills covered in native grasses, including the tallgrass varieties unique to the area. Dubbed the "Great American Desert" by pioneers facing the prairie's vastness, the rich grassland became home to settlers pursuing ranching and farming enterprises. Images of America: Flint Hills presents over 200 historic images from a half-dozen counties in the region. Included are vintage photographs from the Native Stone Scenic Byway and the Flint Hills Scenic Byway that transverse the district. Also included are views of Council Grove, the last place that travelers could purchase supplies before leaving on the Santa Fe Trail. The Davis Ranch, which encompassed all of what is now the Tallgrass Prairie Preserve, is seen in historic images never published before. The volume concludes with photographs of Flint Hills cowboys at work and at play.

An "analysis of deeper meaning behind the string of deaths of unarmed citizens like Michael Brown, Eric Garner, and Freddie Gray, providing ... [commentary] on the intersection of race and class in America today"--

She loves the land. Mattie Evans grew up in the Flint Hills of Kansas. Although her family has lost their ranch, she still calls this land home. A skilled young veterinarian, she struggles to gain the confidence of the local ranchers. Fortunately, her best friend and staunchest supporter is John McCray, owner of the Lightning M Ranch. They both love the ranch, and can’t imagine living anywhere but in the Flint Hills. He’s haunted by it. Gil McCray, John’s estranged son, is a pro football player living in California. The ranch is where his mother died and where every aspect of the tallgrass prairie stirs unwanted memories of his older brother’s fatal accident. Gil decides leaving the ranch is the best solution for his ailing father and his own ailing heart. But he doesn’t count on falling in love. Falling in love isn’t an option. Or is it? When Mattie is called in to save a horse injured in a terrible accident, she finds herself unwillingly tossed into the middle of a family conflict. Secret pain, secret passions, and secret agendas play out against the beautiful landscapes as love leads to some unexpected conclusions about forgiveness and renewal.

A reminder of relationships, more than skin deep. An examination of the complexities of those we love and care for. This book is a love letter to the people we carry in our hearts.

"The papers in this volume illustrate unique, but often overlooked, geologic events of the last 300 million years. Rock outcrops and landscapes, ranging in age from Upper Pennsylvanian through the Anthropocene, are presented that address the following themes: cyclothems, a Permian salt giant, Midcontinent kimberlite intrusions, and Midcontinent glaciation"--

"Alcoholism and addiction have probably touched everyone in America. In that sense, Mike Matson's story is one for us all. Matson tells his personal story with humanity, humor, and real introspection. His story is one that inspires us toward an understanding of self." Kevin Willmott, Academy Award winning screenwriter of BlacKkKlansman. "By navigating us through his own early adult conscience, Mike Matson provides a roadmap for those with loved ones suffering with addiction. His own addiction-related behaviors and choices are guideposts and landmarks, offering friends and families of the addict a place to start." Linda Richey Graves, former First Lady of the state of Kansas "If we were to choose someone to become an addict, Mike Matson would be my choice. I know that sounds strange, but his skill to recall his past and describe it is invaluable. His service is to explore the addict's journey, detail by detail, however unpleasant. He's cut open a vein to give us a gift." Bill Kurtis, Television journalist, producer, and documentarian "Matson's naked accounting of his early adult life drug me into his story in a way that few books have. He not only involved me in his early life but caused me to think about mine more deeply than I have in years." Jake Huyett, Founding partner, Jones-Huyett Partners marketing/brand strategy firm "Mike Matson's exquisite, meticulous, and sometimes painful details, sculpt his story of addiction with vulnerability, courage, and humor. Matson transports the reader back in time to the 1970s with the aroma of Love's Baby Soft, feathered hair, and 'The Hustle.'" Michel' Cole, Kansas Corporate Communications Executive Emeritus "With humor, self-awareness, and a deep sense of the spirit and faith that ultimately saved him, Mike Matson shares the harrowing story of how his youthful success in broadcasting was intertwined with a growing alcohol dependency that nearly ruined his life. If your dreams and hunger have ever taken you down a destructive path-or if you know someone like that-Mike's story is sure to connect." Alex Heard, Author, Editorial Director of Outside magazine, former editor of Wired and The New York Times Magazine "Courtesy Boy does a courtesy for all of us. Matson's gift of storytelling coupled with incredible vulnerability, brings to life how addiction develops and takes hold. He gives voice to the type of unspoken feelings and experiences that dictate our lives." Ed O'Malley, President & CEO, Kansas Leadership Center