Reviews & More
HDan Davidson, Director of the Museum of Northwest Colorado:
"In Nighthawk Rising, Diana Allen Kouris has painted a new masterpiece of what life was like in the remote, rugged, and yet beautiful Brown's Park. Through her years of tireless research, she has in another sense become a master restorationist - bringing back color and depth to a canvas once obscured by generations of smoke and grime of half-truths and misinterpretations regarding Ann Bassett and her family and their neighbors. Diana's own Brown's Park roots, combined with her love of its history and a talent for the written word, has gifted her with the unique ability to accomplish such a monumental task."
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HWild West (magazine) - Candy Moulton, author of 15 books including Roadside History of Colorado: Moving beyond the Legend: "Diana Kouris again takes on a subject tied to Brown's Park, Colorado, where she was reared, this time profiling one of the state's best-known women - "Queen Ann" Bassett. Much has been written about Bassett, but Kouris mined the archival documents, many never before used, to write this sympathetic but honest portrayal. Kouris relates an intimate story. She painstakingly dug into the archives, gleaned details long-buried within existing documents, and unearthed new sources. Nighthawk Rising reads like a novel, but every story in it is verifiable history."
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HCraig Press - Diane Prather: "I can't say enough about this book. It's superb, and I admire the author's extensive research and her gift for writing."
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HChronicle of the Old West - Phyllis Morreale-de la Garza: "A fascinating story. Diana's writing is filled with original detail and generates a feeling of respect and empathy for Queen Ann. A truly haunting story."
HD.L. Birchfield, author of Field of Honor:
"Riding the Edge of an Era is one of the most heartwarming and captivating books I've ever read. Diana Allen Kouris is a masterful storyteller with a wonderful story to tell."
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HMary E. Trimble, author of Tenderfoot:
"Riding the Edge of an Era: Growing up Cowboy on the Outlaw Trail is an extraordinary story written by a woman steeped in a western ranching environment."
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HThe Billings Gazette - Jana Nelson:
"The author is very eloquent in her writing and can paint a picture with her words when she describes the area where she grew up. The way she weaves the stories from the past into her family's experiences helps give the reader a genuine feel for the richness in history that accompanies life along the Outlaw Trail."
HWestern Horseman:
"Diana Kouris uses Brown's Park as the main character in her book deftly intertwining outlaws, lawmen, cowboys, and pioneer women with the Park's overall view of 'her' occupants. Diana gives us a rich, exciting history."
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HThe Denver Post:
"A passion drives Diana Kouris, a Brown's Park native who grew up in a house where Butch Cassidy stayed. She rode some of the same trails, ate in the same kitchen, and drank from the same springs. Kouris has written a definitive history of the area, The Romantic and Notorious History of Brown's Park. There is so much history and are so many interesting people that one could swear these were storybook characters."
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HRock Springs Daily Rocket-Miner:
"The author's dream has produced a most thorough and readable account of the valley. This factual chronicle reads like a novel with human emotion, tragedy, and triumph detailed with honesty and warmth."
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HDenver Westerner's Roundup - Ray E. Jenkins:
"Books on local history are most often deadly boring, but this book is a major exception. The author pulls the reader into the history of the people, and you develop a strong personal feeling about them and their hard lives. I feel strongly that this book should be brought to the attention of readers interested in the history of Colorado and the West."
INTERVIEWS WITH THE AUTHOR ABOUT NIGHTHAWK RISING
Wild West:
https://www.historynet.com/diana-kouris-she-knows-browns-park.htm
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Colorado Sun, Sunlit Interview:
https://coloradosun.com/2020/06/27/diana-allen-kouris-nighthawk-rising/