The Earth Is All That Lasts: A Few Things I Hated To Leave Out Of My Book But Did
“In writing a book of nonfiction, an author must constantly make hard choices on what information to include and exclude. A book can have only so many pages, and a reader will navigate only so many “side trips” in a narrative (what book reviewers refer to as “tangential material”) before putting the book down never to be retrieved. In writing my dual biography of the great Lakota leaders Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull, I was faced with an abundance of primary source material, and there were numerous things – fascinating vignettes, great quotes, rare photos – that I decided to leave behind, that simply didn’t work. This presentation will give a few examples and my reasons for not including them in the finished manuscript.”
-Mark Lee Gardner
A native of Missouri, Gardner has authored award-winning books on Billy the Kid and Pat Garrett, Jesse James, and Theodore Roosevelt. He’s written for National Geographic History, American Heritage, the Los Angeles Times, and numerous other print and online publications. He’s also appeared on PBS’s American Experience, as well as on the History Channel, AMC, the Travel Channel, and on NPR. Gardner holds an MA in American Studies from the University of Wyoming and lives with his family at the foot of Pikes Peak.
Sign up for a discussion of Mark Gardner’s book “The Earth Is All That Lasts” and listen to Mark talk about the heroic and tragic lives of Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull in the grand narrative of the Sioux Nation on August 22 at 6:30pm in the Carriage House. Books will be available for purchase at the talk. Alternatively, you are welcome to purchase and read Gardner’s book ahead of time and come ready for discussion and questions.
