The idea of Texas was forged in the crucible of frontier warfare between 1822 and 1865, when Anglo-Americans adapted to mounted combat north of the Rio Grande. This cavalry-centric arena, which had long been the domain of Plains Indians and the Spanish Empire, compelled an adaptive martial tradition that shaped early Lone Star society. Beginning with initial tactical innovation in Spanish Tejas and culminating with massive mobilization for the Civil War, Texas society developed a distinctive way of war defined by armed horsemanship, volunteer militancy, and short-term mobilization as it grappled with both tribal and international opponents. Drawing upon military reports, participants' memoirs, and government documents, cavalry officer Nathan A. Jennings analyzes the evolution of Texan militarism from tribal clashes of colonial Tejas, territorial wars of the Texas Republic, the Mexican-American War, border conflicts of antebellum Texas, and the cataclysmic Civil War. In each conflict Texan volunteers answered the call to arms with marked enthusiasm for mounted combat. Riding for the Lone Star explores this societal passion--with emphasis on the historic rise of the Texas Rangers--through unflinching examination of territorial competition with Comanches, Mexicans, and Unionists. Even as statesmen Stephen F. Austin and Sam Houston emerged as influential strategic leaders, captains like Edward Burleson, John Coffee Hays, and John Salmon Ford attained fame for tactical success.

Aaron Turner is a tall redheaded fifty-three year old minister and Lieutenant Colonel in the Texas militia. Duty calls him to participate in both the Cherokee and Wichita Wars. He and his family struggle to survive the financial panic of 1837, Indian raids, a whooping cough epidemic and scorching drought. He responds with optimism, determination and innovation. When money is scarce, they gather and sell wild horses. When food is scarce, they travel to the dangerous Comancheria to hunt buffalo. As the Mexican-American War erupts, Aaron is commissioned Colonel of Scouts and leads a regiment that will play a significant role in the conflict in a faraway land. Will the time come when the old warrior will lay down his saber? Will he hang up his guns in peace at last? RIDE FOR THE LONE STAR, the fourth volume in the Western Quest Series, follows Aaron Turner, his family and friends, through the turbulent days of the Republic of Texas, culminating in the annexation of Texas by the United States and the Mexican-American War. STEPHEN L. TURNER was born a fifth generation Texan, sixth generation Arkansan, and eighth generation American. His youth was steeped in the history and culture of his heritage. A graduate of Texas Tech School of Medicine, he has worked as a pediatrician in rural Plainview, Texas since 1984. He is married with two married children. His other time is spent on their panhandle ranch, raising horses and hunting. His other novels in the Western Quest Series to date are OUT OF THE WILDERNESS, ON THE CAMINO REAL and UNDER TROUBLED SKIES, all from Sunstone Press.

"The Lone Star Ranger" is a 1915 Western novel by American author Zane Grey. Set in Texas, the story revolves around the exploits of a band of Texas Rangers and Buck Duane, an outlaw on a quest for redemption. A classic example of Western fiction, "The Lone Star Ranger" would make for a worthy addition to any bookshelf and is not to be missed by lovers of the genre. Pearl Zane Grey (1872 - 1939) was an American writer most famous for his adventure novels of the Western genre. Other notable works by this author include: "Riders of the Purple Sage" (1912), "The Last Trail" (1906), and "The Lone Star Ranger" (1915). Grey continues to be widely read, and his novels and short stories have been adapted for the screen more than a hundred times. Many vintage books such as this are becoming increasingly scarce and expensive. We are republishing this volume now in an affordable, modern, high-quality edition complete with a specially commissioned new introduction and biography of the author.

Riding 2,000 miles on horseback from Montana to New Mexico sounds like a crazy but thrilling dream or pure hardship and exhaustion. According to Bernice Ende, the trip was all that and more. Since swinging her leg over the saddle for that first long ride in 2005 (at the age of 50), Ende has logged more than 29,000 miles in the saddle, crisscrossing North America on horseback - alone. More than once she has traversed the Great Plains, the Southwest deserts, the Cascade Range, and the Rocky Mountains. Along the way, she discovered a sense of community and love of place that unites people wherever they live. From 2014-2016, she was the first person to ride coast to coast and back again in one trek, winning acclaim from the international Long Riders' Guild and awe from the people she met along the way. Bernice Ende's memoirs are illuminated by accompanying maps of her routes and photos from her journeys, capturing the instant friends she meets along the way, and her ongoing encounters with harsh weather, wildlife, hard work, mosquitoes, tricky route-finding, and the occasional worn out horseshoe. Ende reveals her inner struggles and triumphs - testing the limits of physical and mental stamina, coping with inescapable solitude, and the rewards of living life her own way, as she says, "in her own skin." Saddle up and come along for the journey of a lifetime.

NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD FINALIST • The Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Looming Tower—and a Texas native—takes us on a journey through the most controversial state in America. • “Beautifully written…. Essential reading [for] anyone who wants to understand how one state changed the trajectory of the country.” —NPR Texas is a red state, but the cities are blue and among the most diverse in the nation. Oil is still king, but Texas now leads California in technology exports. Low taxes and minimal regulation have produced extraordinary growth, but also striking income disparities. Texas looks a lot like the America that Donald Trump wants to create. Bringing together the historical and the contemporary, the political and the personal, Texas native Lawrence Wright gives us a colorful, wide-ranging portrait of a state that not only reflects our country as it is, but as it may become—and shows how the battle for Texas’s soul encompasses us all.

Two classic novels of the frontier, by Zane Grey, one of America's most celebrated Western storytellers The Lone Star Ranger Buck Duane, gunfighter, was offered a pardon by Captain Mac Kelly of the Texas Rangers, on one condition: Take down the local Chelsedine gang. Many had died trying, but it was Duane's only shot at freedom. When Duane teamed up with the Rangers for a final showdown against the ruthless rustlers, he discovered a secret that could destroy them all. The Mysterious Rider His name is Hell Bent Wade, a wandering gunfighter and a good man, though one with a violent temper. But it isn't until he arrives at the Bellhounds Ranch, where Bill Bellhounds is about to marry off his foster daughter Columbine to Jack, a cowardly drunkard, gambler, and thief, that Wade reveals the full range of his righteous fury. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

In 1982, at the age of just twenty-three, Elspeth Beard left behind her family and friends in London and set off on a 35,000-mile solo adventure around the world on her motorbike. This is the story of a unique and life-changing adventure.