The Cowboy Boot: History, Art, Culture, Function (Cowboy ... (ISBN 1931153264)

Better to stick with Tyler Beard:
Whether you are a boot fan or just curious this is one book to avoid. The book shows little imagination nor depth of research. Once you've turned a few pages in the book you've seen them all. Tyler Beard has done three books on boots and each one shows an effort to get out and find the unusual and best examples of boot making. I would advise David R. Stoecklein to do the same.

THE BEST LITTLE BOOT BOOK IN THE WORLD:
Tyler Beard and Jim Arndt's third book in their trilogy on the subject of cowboy boots is a mini-masterpiece. Although I think you have to own all three books to get the complete picture on the history of the cowboy boot, the 300+ pairs in this little book alone will satisfy any and all cowboy & cowgirl boot dreams. See it to believe it. Wow. I was happy to find that Tyler now has his own website at tylerbeard.com where I was able to buy a first edition. But you can't beat Amazon for prices on current editions. For all you boot scooters out there like me, check out this boot website: www.dimlights.com Inside boot gossip...I read in a newspaper interview that Tyler Beard thinks the best cowboy boot store in the world is Back at The Ranch in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Great book. I just don't get the first two reviews:
Bootfan must have been expecting a picture book of newer type custom boots. That's fine, as he said, buy Tyler's books or better yet, Jennifer June's new book, "Cowboy Boots, The Art & Soul". As for Donna Foster...Huh? This book is not by Tyler Beard, she is confusing this with one of Tyler's books, it's not. Now for the book. I own all of Tyler Beard's books, Jennifer June's and Sharon DeLano's. I found this book to be in good company with them. I particularly liked the photos of the older antique boots (pre 1900s). I found the book to be well laid out and refreshingly different from the others. Mr. Stoecklein has chosen not to follow the "formula" for a Cowboy boot book that is quickly becoming predictable and redundant. Mr. Stoecklein touches on more than boots, he shares the life, the culture, the essence of living in the west through his photos of not only the boots, but the people who wear them. Many of the shots of the boots are not static arranged shots set up in a studio under controlled lighting conditions, they are instead "action" shots taken on the range, in the mud; real time photos of cowboys and cowgirls doing their jobs or just relaxing. Mr. Stoecklein is a photographer so to expect anything more than a photo book form him may be unfair. That being said, I enjoyed the text very much but would have liked to have seen more, especially of the history of not just boots, but of the west, the cattle drives, etc. Maybe even a little more insight into the life and personality of the cowboy, his day to day challenges and why he would have chosen the footwear that became the cowboy boot. In summary, the photos are very good but the text a little weak, at least for what I was looking for. All in all, I would recommend this book as a top shelf pick, in a niche genre with scarce but fierce competition.

Cowboy boot: History art Culture Function:
Not worth the money. Nice photos but many just different shots of the same people (probably friends of the author!) I have many cowboy boot books and this is the least worthwhile of my collection. Save your money.