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CORVALLIS - The Oregon State University Press has published a new book called "Oregon's Promise: An Interpretive History" that provides a concise general history of the state - the first new historical overview in the last quarter century.

Written by David Peterson del Mar, "Oregon's Promise" explores familiar people and events as well as some neglected segments of history.

The book spans the period from the region's earliest inhabitants to the present, said Tom Booth, marketing manager for the OSU Press. The final chapter, "A Polarized State, 1975-2003," provides the latest addition to Oregon's history and looks at issues of spotted owls, population diversification, the environment, homosexual rights, and class differences.

"More so than previous histories, the book is concerned with the events that most profoundly affected the everyday lives of ordinary Oregonians," Booth said. "In many ways, it serves as a people's history of Oregon."

Oregon's history also comes alive through a series of mini-biographies that illustrate the people, events and issues of the time. In addition to familiar names such as Tom McCall, John McLoughlin, Abigail Scott Duniway and Glenn Jackson, there are other "neglected" stories that help illuminate Oregon's fascinating past, Booth said. Punctuating the description of the Lewis and Clark expedition is a brief biography of Watkuweis, an elderly Nez Perce woman who helped convince her people to peacefully welcome the explorers. Ing Hay was a Chinese immigrant who settled in John Day in the late 1800s and opened a successful business. Pat Koehler was an 18-year-old college student at the outbreak of World War II who decided she wanted to contribute to the war effort, and took a job as an electrician's helper at a shipyard. Peterson del Mar has taught numerous courses on Oregon and Pacific Northwest history at a variety of colleges and universities in the region. The Portland author also wrote "What Trouble I Have Seen: A History of Violence against Wives," published by the Harvard University Press, and "Beaten Down: A History of Interpersonal Violence in the West," published by the University of Washington Press.

"Oregon's Promise" is available at many bookstores, or can be ordered by calling 1-800-426-3797. The 320-page paperback sells for $19.95.