P. A. RITZER took to the road and spent four years traveling through Kansas, Colorado, and especially Texas — from Amarillo to San Antonio — researching primary and secondary sources, as well as the land itself and the people who live on it, to inform his crafting of Seven Ox Seven: A Story of Some Ways in the West.

Ritzer's own western odyssey lends a certain authenticity to Seven Ox Seven. He knows the day-to-day journey into the unknown, the nights in darkened campsites, the concern about provisions, the seeking for that which may not be attained. In addition to his extensive research, Ritzer brings to his story a background in history (Gonzaga University (BA)), and theology (Harvard University, University of Notre Dame (MA)) and over ten years instructing in those subjects.