Rating: 
Summary: The History Stories you didn't read in High School Textbooks
Review: This was my first Michener...always wanted to read this one, but the size was intimidating. Finally got around giving it a shot! Overall, I enjoyed the experience! Some great stories about the "regular folks" that made the American West great.... struggles between Native American tribes and the white folks, to cattle driving, farming, and more, the characters in this book come to life. It is like you are there in the old west, on your own ranch! Most of the stories are excellent. My favorites include "The Wagon and the Elephant," the story of a falsely accused outcast from the east who moves west to start over, and "The Cowboys," a story about driving cattle from Texas to Colorado for the purpose of starting a profitable ranch. I'll agree with many people's comments that the second chapter can probably be skipped without missing much. It reads more like a college geology textbook, talking about the land formation history. It is relevant to some things that happen later in the book, but you won't miss out. The real stories here are with the people. I will admit that through the last 1/3 or so, it was getting long. Of course, a book like this could probably be even longer, I'm sure there are hundreds of interesting stories that could be told! Give it a try. If a particular story doesn't catch your interest within a few pages, skip it and try the next. Just give yourself the chance to be taken back to another time and place.
Rating:
Summary: The History Stories you didn't read in High School Textbooks
Review: This was my first Michener...always wanted to read this one, but the size was intimidating. Finally got around giving it a shot! Overall, I enjoyed the experience! Some great stories about the "regular folks" that made the American West great.... struggles between Native American tribes and the white folks, to cattle driving, farming, and more, the characters in this book come to life. It is like you are there in the old west, on your own ranch! Most of the stories are excellent. My favorites include "The Wagon and the Elephant," the story of a falsely accused outcast from the east who moves west to start over, and "The Cowboys," a story about driving cattle from Texas to Colorado for the purpose of starting a profitable ranch. I'll agree with many people's comments that the second chapter can probably be skipped without missing much. It reads more like a college geology textbook, talking about the land formation history. It is relevant to some things that happen later in the book, but you won't miss out. The real stories here are with the people. I will admit that through the last 1/3 or so, it was getting long. Of course, a book like this could probably be even longer, I'm sure there are hundreds of interesting stories that could be told! Give it a try. If a particular story doesn't catch your interest within a few pages, skip it and try the next. Just give yourself the chance to be taken back to another time and place.
Rating: 
Summary: GOOD, BUT CERTAINLY NOT HIS BEST
Review: YES, I LEARNED A LOT AND FEEL BETTER ABOUT THE BOOK NOW THAT I AM FINISHED. I DO HOWEVER, FEEL THE BOOK DRAGGED AND WAS SOMEWHAT DRY. UNLIKE MANY OF THE OTHER REVIEWS I READ HERE, THIS WAS NOT ONE BOOK I COULDN'T PUT DOWN. I HAVE READ 8 MICHENER NOVELS AND CONSIDER HIS WORK TO BE AMONG THE BEST, BUT TO DATE THIS HAS BEEN THE WEAKEST. AS USUAL THERE ARE MANY INTERESTING HISTORICAL EVENTS THAT MICHENER PUTS IN PERSPECTIVE, IN AN EASY TO UNDERSTAND MANNER.
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