Shooting a mule (and other stories)

Abstract

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] Shooting A Mule (and other stories) is a book-length collection of short historical fiction, centering around visual representations, photographs, and ephemera from American equestrian culture during the late 19th century through the mid 20th century. It includes stories featuring P.T. Barnum, Roy Rogers, Lucille Mulhall, Eben Byers, Fred W. Loring, and other notable historical figures. The fiction is preceded by a critical introduction discussing the development of late 19th century American attitudes toward industrialization and the eventual loss of the horse as a prime mover, through the developing genre of the road novel. It contains close readings of fiction by Maria Louise Pool, Isa Carrington Cabell, Booth Tarkington, Sinclair Lewis, Julian Street, and Jesse Beery, which help to place the fiction that follows in its historical context.