One Ranger: A Memoir

H. Joaquin Jackson was the in the last group of Texas Rangers to be sworn in by the legendary - some say infamous depending on ancestry - Homer P. Garrison Jr. in 1966 and the LAST of the "Garriaon" Texas Rangers to retire in 1993. Jackson's career stretched from enforcing the legal elections of La Raza Unida candidates in Zavala County in 1972 - don't we wish he had been there to enforce the ballot counting in the Lyndon Johnson Coke Stevenson 1948 Senatorial election - to training Afghan mujahedin in Brewster County. If anything, Jackson was a leader in moving the Texas Rangers - socially - from the 1880s to, at the very least, the 1950s. It is unknown at this time if the Texas Rangers have really be socialized into the 21st century or for that mater, Texas itself! I'm sure that literary reviewers will have a hay day with this book. It is not "high" east or left coast literature. It is not David McCullough's "John Adams", but it is a darn good read. Jackson wears his heart and his beliefs on his sleeve and backs down on neither. He is not the paragon of virtue and neither is his family. The stories of his parents bring up their family in dust bowl west Texas - dry land farmers during the week and honkey tonk habitues on Saturday night along with all the country singers and illegal whiskey sellers. His own children grew up into two totally opposite men. The oldest is serving life in a New Mexico prison for a double homicide while the youngest is a decorated Border Patrol Officer on the Rio Grande. Throughout the book is written with the "I was there and did my job" approach. Jackson doesn't shrink from the spot light but he always gives credit to superiors, peer and subordinates where credit is due. He doesn't shirk from calling an idiot and idiot and has many paragraphs set aside to superiors who were especially idiotic. If the book lacks for anything it is an index. I really had to search to confirmI read the LBJ/Stevenson citation here! Grab this book and read it. You'll get some insight into how the Texas Rangers operated in a critical transition period - Ann Richard's governorship. You'll come away with an appreciation for those who serve us in law enforcement. And you'll learn one heck of a lot about H. Joaquin Jackson - especially how a white bread west Texas boy got the name Joaquin.

My wife and I know Joaquin & Shirley Jackson as NRA friends. That said, I have rarely read anyone's memoirs where the truth about a "real man" matches what is present when met in person. It happens in Joaquin Jackson's One Ranger. I'm in my 77th year and have collected Ranger books since the late 1930s. With all my reading over sixty years about Rangers, this is the first one that left me with the feeling "That's what it takes and that's what it is like." Few are gifted to be a great Ranger and even fewer to write meaningfully about it. I can guarantee any reader you won't be able to put it down this book. You will have been entertained royally. One Ranger makes it evident what's wrong with our present system of law enforcement - it takes giants and they are in short supply.

One Ranger is the well-told Memoir of H. Joaquin Jackson. Having been on the other side of the law, (I was a marijuana smuggler), I anticipated a book that would tell how the cops are the good guys and all the crooks are evil and how the Texas Rangers are far superior to any cop on the planet. While an element of pride does creep into this work in places, it is offset by an honest and frank view of the world from Jackson's eyes. He peers into the gray areas in his life and that of others and talks of racial prejudice, greed, pride and even contempt for the law. Of the fears and doubts he felt. He addresses flawed policies on the war on drugs and border related issues with courage and conviction. He also does a good job of painting the world from which he comes-a world he loves dearly-perhaps more than his own life. Almost to a fault. For those that love Texas and the border regions you will find interesting history and perspective woven into the stories and accurate and colorful portrayals of the land and the people that make this country what it is. He shows us how flawed people can be good people, a lesson all of us need to learn. He stares into what certainly is his biggest personal nightmare and takes the reader with him-a nightmare that will continue to haunt him for the rest of his life-the fact that his son, a son bearing his name, would grow up to kill another human and be sentenced to prison for murder. I couldn't help but share in the pain and doubts he lives with. Why did this happen? Being the eldest son of an equally dynamic and successful man, and also bearing the name of my own father (don means "sir" in Spanish), I think I understand. The only thing I have to say publicly is this: the grace of God is greater than all of this. And sometimes a man must die (figuratively or literally) to overcome the curse into which he is born. I want Mr. Jackson to know that hope remains for his son and that sometimes God takes a person from the lowest of places and raises him up to do his will. This is an exceptional book. Buy it and read it. You will profit from the experience.

If you are interested in reading about fighting crime before the days of computers and "polical correctness" ruined law enforcement --- you need to read this book. B. Foster Florida

Having read "One Ranger" I have to say that if you are fortunate enough to live in southwest Texas or have even heard of Texas, get your hands on this book! There seems to always be places and newsworthy occasions you've only heard or read about - at least there are for me. Well, Mr. Jackson was most likely there as a Texas Ranger. He relates many memorable times throughout his career and also hints at some that there wasn't room for in this book. I do not know if there will be additional books, but I certainly hope so. I feel sure that anyone who reads "One Ranger" will hope for further books to come. The book is very well written, and is illustrated with a number of photographs of places, people, and things I'm sure you will recognize. There is much history and action in the book. If you haven't even heard of Texas, well I'm sorry. We look forward to seeing you because after you read this book, you might just change your mind about where to live! Disclaimer: I am not related to anyone in the book nor the publisher, and have never met Mr. Jackson. I recognize him if I see him.