The Essential J. Frank Dobie

Book excerpt: "Steven L. Davis has combed through the works of this renowned Texas author, gathering together in one volume Dobie's most vital writings. He then meticulously edited Dobie's stories and essays to "prune away some of the brushy undergrowth" and bring Dobie's folksy, erudite voice bounding back to life. The result is The Essential J. Frank Dobie, a treasury that introduces new readers to Dobie--and reminds older ones that Dobie produced some of the most fascinating, best-informed writing about Texas. Dobie bore eloquent witness to the passing of ancient pastoral lifeways and he captured priceless social history, collecting vanishing folklore and vibrant human stories overlooked by historians of the era. Davis, a Dobie biographer, searched for the stories only Dobie could tell--those enriched by his matchless personal adventures. Dobie rode twisting mountain trails throughout remote Mexico in search of lost mines. He helped inspire Big Bend National Park and led efforts to save the Texas Longhorn from extinction. During World War II, he dodged German V-1 bombs in England and later saw the Nazi death camps and toured Hitler's chancellery. Believing that "Texas Needs Brains," Dobie was decades ahead of his time in championing civil rights and protecting the environment"--