"Mark and John Bieter have filled a very great gap in Idaho history. The cultural, economic, artistic, and civic gifts given to Idaho by the Basque immigrants and their descendants are immense, and this interesting and well-researched history of their struggles and triumphs is essential for fully understanding and appreciating our Idaho heritage." —Governor Cecil Andrus, 1987-1995
 

“This study focuses on the tightrope the immigrants walked between assimilation and cultural preservation. The authors find a general pattern of behavior over the three generations under study. The first immigrants struggled to survive in their new environs, and many turned to sheepherding for subsistence. Later, Basques opened businesses and worked in local industries. The second generation began a more rapid assimilation, with greater access to education and middle-class jobs. These Basques came of age between the world wars, and the patriotic fervor of that era hastened their Americanization. The third generation, coming of age around the 1960s, generally celebrated selective elements of their grandparents’ culture and sought to revive the traditions through festivals, music, and even an exchange program between Boise State University and the Basque region of northern Spain. The authors have traced a story of accommodation and preservation that has, in their perception, a positive outcome. The Basques have maintained their distinctiveness far better than most immigrant groups. This book is well-researched and accessible, and tells a compelling story about a unique group.” —Richard D. Loosbrock, Journal of the West, Summer 2003
 

“Tinged with a wistful nostalgia, An Enduring Legacy is rich with stories and comments from several generations of Basques. Through these stories, the reader glimpses lives and families on the cusp of great changes as they arrive, eager yet bewildered in a land they thought was full of opportunity.” —C.M., Boise Weekly, July 2000