Catfish at the Pump: Humor and the Frontier

by Roger Welsch, Linda K. Welsch

Overview

Were our forefathers liars? "You bet they were, " says Roger Welsch, "and damned fine ones at that." From yellowed newspapers, magazines, and forgotten Nebraska Federal Writers' Project files, well-known folklorist and humorist Welsch has produced a book to be treasured. Here are jokes, anecdotes, legends, tall tales, and lugubriously funny poems about the things that preoccupied the pioneer plainsman: weather extremes; soil quality; food and whiskey; an arkload of animals, including grasshoppers, bed bugs, hoop snakes, the ubiquitous mule, and some mighty big fish.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780803297128
Publisher:	Nebraska Paperback
Publication date:	09/01/1986
Pages:	152
Product dimensions:	5.25(w) x 8.00(h) x 0.38(d)

Editorial Reviews

"This entertaining and worthwhile book will be of particular interest to those who are interested in plains pioneers, especially if they have a feel for the humorous aspects of rural life. However, even the humorless will profit from reading it because it contributes significantly to our understanding of pioneer life."—North Dakota History

North Dakota History

"The book is more than a collection of good tales and jokes; it is, in fact, a serious study about humor. . . . well documented and well written."—Nebraska History

Nebraska History

"Welsch's. . .review and analysis of frontier humor is refreshing . . . another gap has been filled on the fascinating subject."—Journal of the West

Journal of the West