Lone Star Pasts: Memory and History in Texas (review)

2??8Book Reviews453 in particular. Lasdy, the coverage ofparticular topics does not necessarily comport with chapter tides, which makes the book somewhat difficult to navigate. On the whole, however, it is an informative work on an intriguing figure in Texas history. Texas State University-San ManosJody Edward Ginn Lone StarPasts: Memory and History in Texas. Edited by Gregg Cantrell and Elizabeth Hayes Turner. (College Station: Texas A&M University Press, 2007. Pp. 312. Illustrations, color plates, notes, index. ISBN 978-1-58544-563-9. $19.95, clodi.) Texans are a people with a strong sense ofidentity. Lone StarPasts: Memory and History in Texas takes a look at the ways in which Texans' collective memories ofpast events have helped shape that identity. This edited collection by Gregg Cantrell and Elizabeth Hayes Turner contributes to a growing body ofhistorical scholarship that deals with die concept of collective memory and the way groups use the past in order to assert their identity,justify or attack power relationships in society, and promote contemporary social and political agendas. As with any edited collection, the chapters of die book represent a variety of perspectives and concerns. Among the most interesting of die essays are those that look at the way past generations have used memory to promote their own agendas and, conversely, the ways in which those agendas shaped their own views of Texas history. Gregg Cantrell's contribution illuminates the way in which Progressive Era Texans took a renewed interest in Texas Revolutionary-era leaders, propping them up as entrepreneurial, risk-taking icons who represented Progressive values. Similarly, Walter Buenger examines the way diat both the Texas Ku Klux Klan of the 1920s and the anti-Klan forces of the era used collective memory in order to further their own agendas. Several contributions to the collection focus on group identity within Texas, demonstrating that there is no one unified Texan memory of past events. Selections on African American memories of Emancipation and of the Civil Rights Era, by Elizabeth Hayes Turner and Yvonne Davis Frear, respectively, show how Texan African Americans forged effective "counter-memories" (p. 167) to diat of dominant white society but also have faced internal generational divisions in the way they remember historical events. Other groups have given attention as well. Andres Tijerina writes on the need to give more attention to Tejano contributions to the Texas past, and Kelly McMichael discusses the efforts ofwhite Texas women to shape societal values by erecting Confederate monuments throughout the state after the Civil War. Lasdy, a number of die chapters examine the way that professional historians and other custodians ofthe past succeed or fail in shaping collective memory. Laura Lyons McLemore's chapter on die impact ofearly historians on Texas memory finds that professional historians had very litde influence on Texans' view ofdieir own past. Ricky Floyd Dobbs notes a similar lack ofinfluence in modern Texas as he laments the fading interest in Lyndon BainesJohnson, despite attempts to keep his memory alive. Several chapters evaluate some of die ways in which historians deal with the 454Southwestern Historical QuarterlyApril past.James E. Crisp argues that historians should not attempt to erase embarrassing depictions ofdie past from the historical record—that there is much to learn from those very depictions about the society that initially accepted them. Don Graham makes a case for artistic license in historical movies, arguing that the obsession with historical accuracy in the 2004 film The Alamo robbed it of its impact. The selections in LoneStarPastsare diverse, and its contents will appeal to various audiences. It is an important contribution to the study ofcollective memory in general, and for those interested in die topic, the editors and other contributors, including Randolph B. Campbell who writes the conclusion to die book, do an excellentjob offamiliarizing the reader with the literature on the subject and placing Texas within the context of that literature. For historians and others charged with preserving and shaping memories ofthe past, the collection is also instructive. Finally, Lone Star Pasts will appeal to readers interested in Texas history who want to think about the Texas past in a fresh way. Texas State University-San MarcosAngela F. Murphy Salado, Texas: Frontier College Town...