The mid-1950s were good years for the buzzards in Arizona, when the Southwest saw its worst drought in centuries. It was not a good time for an upstart cowboy to try to make a go of ranching.
Transfixed by the rodeo at Madison Square Garden, young John Duncklee decided to forego an Ivy League education and instead worked his way through the University of Arizona as a horse wrangler. After serving in the navy, he returned to Arizona to lease the O Bar J Ranch on the bajada of the Sierrita Mountains southwest of Tucson.
His account of those years is both a testament to determination and a window on modern-day ranch life under adverse conditions. Good years for the buzzards? John Duncklee will tell you, "They turned out to be good years, too, for the kid from New York."
Good Years for the Buzzards tells the tale of the birth of a cowman and his struggle to maintain his herd during a drought of historical proportions. John's storytelling prose lets you taste the dust! Fill up your canteen and sit down for a read that brings ranching to life.
Here's what people are sayin' about "Buzzards."
... reminiscent of the popular classics by Ben K. Green, Will James and Robert Sharp. This book was difficult to set down. I read it through in one sitting. A book sure to be enjoyed by everyone who reads it. - Keith Fessenden, P.M., Denver Westerners Roundup
Duncklee's humorous prose style and his gift for narrative make this a memorable reading experience. Recommended for both its portrait of modern ranching under adverse conditions and its record of the determined, tenacious men and women who 'fought it out.'" -- Roundup Magazine
Duncklee is a cross between veterinarian James Herriot and cowboy Will James... His book is sad, funny, entertaining. Everything you'd want to know about the sometimes gruesome, sometimes beautiful business of small-time ranching.-- Arizona Daily Star
See for yourself! Order Good Years for the Buzzards today!
John Duncklee has pursued a varied life, working as a cowboy, sailor, university professor, mesquite furniture designer and writer.
Email John at jpduncklee@earthlink.net
Ride back to the corral or order Good Years for the Buzzards.
© 1998 - John Duncklee. All rights reserved.
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