Cowboy Dictionary: The Official Companion to the Spirit Animal Series

Spirit Animal

by Barbara Neville

A companion volume to Barbara Neville's Spirit Animal series. The books are written in cowboy vernacular. To assist those who may not have watched enough Western movies, I have created a word list.
1 Cowboy This informal dictionary of cowboy vernacular, Spanish expressions, Brit idiosyncrasies, Hawaiian pidgin, fingerspelling and other regional planet dialects as appropriate to the character (plus the cast of characters, gadgets, a crude MadDog town map, outfits, planets and story settings as described below) is compiled from Barbara Neville’s Spirit Animal book series. There have been some variations in the terms included in the cowboy dictionary over the course of the first nine books. While much, if not all, of the vernacular is easily understood by many of us, we don’t want to leave anyone out, including those who speak English as a second language, non-Spanish speakers, or people who have never lived around Hawaiian pidgin.
The vernacular list has grown with each book. And the characters are bound to invent new and amazing variations on the English language as their stories play out, but as of book nine (Warriors’ Woman) this tiny tome should suffice.
2 Cast of such a list did not appear in the books until “Broken Warrior”, the ninth book.
The first book doesn’t contain all of the characters as many of them are met along the trail. Each has their own story and only a few attain inclusion into the clan. This list provides an easy reference to the background stories and Injin name variations of each of the main clan members.
Hoss, neither a human nor a gadget, but a pivotal cast member, is included in this list.
3 Various includes the main gadgets in the books.
4 A hand drawn map of MadDog town, provenance unknown.
5 A list of ranches, and businesses that figure prominently in the series.
6 Some visited, some important in character histories. They all play a part in the story.
7 Home or Spoiler alert! A list of the settings of the various books.

ebook

Published August 11, 2016

About the author

2015 NaNoWriMo winner and prolific author; rustic western visionary Barbara Neville is an Arizona rancher and outdoorswoman, who writes what she knows. Her future worlds and historic past are set firmly in a longstanding tradition of caring for the land while living off of it. Cowhand, rancher, adventurer, prospector, artist and author of numerous books in the Spirit Animal series featuring Annie Many Horses. Neville writes of a speculative future, and the historic past, based on her real life experience. Her cats attend her writing sessions, preferring to lay on the keyboard. She ranches with goats, horses, guineas, peafowl, chickens, turkeys and Pyrenees livestock guardian dogs. Her dogs, goats and horses have fictional counterparts who appear in the pages of her books. She has led an unusual life of adventure, much of it off-grid.
Barb is descended from a long line of adventurous folk. Cowboys, ranchers, prospectors, settlers, homesteaders and more. She carries on the long tradition of taking the road less traveled. Her fictional world draws heavily on her own life and the people, places and experiences of previous generations.
Barb has been a rancher, horse trainer, cowhand, prospector, construction laborer, tree planter and a deckhand on Alaskan fishing boats. She has lived at various remote locations around the West.
She grew up an Air Force brat, living in such exotic locations as Spain and Hawaii. Thus she learned Spanish and Hawaiian Pidgin.
A one day round trip to the bottom of the Grand Canyon and back afoot, and many mountain ski touring and snowshoe and hiking backpack weeks pepper her history. Surfing and snorkeling were her hobbies in Hawaii. A wilderness adventurer in many climes, she raises goats, makes her own cheese & rides the world's greatest horses one of whom made the cover of 'On the Rocks'.