Publisher's Synopsis
In a century-old edition of a British newspaper, a quaint narrative entitled "A visit to the Comstock" was prefaced by the following poem: "Paint me, Washoe, as you see it, Tinting with a truthful touch; Line it with a faithful pencil, Do not colour overmuch." Many writers through the decades have "coloured overmuch" in their descriptions of Nevada by using picturesque words and extreme language when discussing the paradoxical state. Idah Meacham Strobridge, often called "Nevada's first woman of letters," pointed out that images of Nevada frequently suggest a "mirage-land," a place where nothing is quite what it seems. Wilbur S. Shepperson's examination of such mirages -- imaginary, literary, historical, real -- is the subject of "Mirage-land: images of Nevada".;Shepperson explains the process of mirage building by introducing readers to details from myriad sources -- journals, diaries, historic newspapers, government reports, essays, magazines, novels, and even chamber of commerce promotional brochures. The well-known accents of John C. Fremont, Mark Twain, and Dan De Quille mingle with such little-known voices as Louise M. Palmer, Henry T. Williams, and George Wharton James among others. Some are kind assessments -- seeing in Nevada a "full-blown desert flower brilliant as a poppy" -- and some are derogatory, like the storyteller who wrote that "no portion of the earth is more lacquered with paltry, unimportant ugliness." While the exemplary voices may express paradox, self-contradiction, antithesis, even confusion, Shepperson arranges his examples in a way that shows readers an aggregate vision. For him, Nevada history and Nevada humanity together embrace the length of Highway 395, the width of Interstates 80 and 15, and the breadth of a good many gravel roads in between.;"Colouring overmuch" gave Nevada a single image that Shepperson pinpoints, leading to a specific sense of place that can be defined. It is the extreme paradox itself that finally describes the state best, a land "fiery hot and deadly weary" but with "greener fields ahead and a host of pretty butterflies." Throughout this book the examples themselves are colorful. In the end, however, "Mirage-land" draws a clear- sighted, wholly-integrated, black-and-white picture of the Nevada scene, the Silver State mirage.;"Dr. Wilbur S. Shepperson taught history at the University of Nevada, Reno, for forty years and served as chairman of the history department for a significant portion of his tenure. In 1987 he became the first recipient of the Grace A. Griffen Chair in History. Over the course of his long and highly productive career, Dr. Shepperson authored nine books and dozens of articles. In 1991 he was elected to the Nevada Writers Hall of Fame. An additional honour was bestowed in 1991 when he received the Distinguished Faculty Award from the University of Nevada.".
