The working cowhand of old was a dusty laborer, but today's rodeo performers can hone their skills before small-town crowds and be stars in urban coliseums. Historian Kristine Fredriksson follows the evolution of rodeo from the range to Buffalo Bill's Wild West to the extravaganzas in modern times. How an ordinary, low-paying job became an entertainment that attracts thousands of spectators is a lesson in American culture and a story that will appeal to anyone who spells western with a capital W.