Bible in Pocket, Gun in Hand: The Story of Frontier Religion (Bison Books)

"'The Story of Frontier Religion' could have been told in a great many ways, many of them dull. Here, however, interpretative matter has been kept to a minimum and source material selected with an unerring sense of humor. . . . There are chapters on the styles of preaching and of praying, the phenomena of revivalism, the church as a disciplinary force, frauds and 'bad men' who preached, scoffers and trouble-makers, the fiercely jocular competition among the various sects, and the hard lot of circuit ministers."--Virginia Kirkus' Bulletin. "This is an admirable piece of research, unpedantic but authentic, packed with entertaining anecdotes (some of them hilarious) based on obscure pastoral autobiographies, the diaries of early missionaries, the minutes of church court trials, and other curious source materials. . . . A unique book."--Chicago Sunday Tribune. Ross Phares has written widely for magazines and is the author of several books.