Interesting Take on Grant and the Western Theater
937088
I think the book is better than the other review gave it credit for. I will agree that he does go out of his way to discredit Grant's drinking. But on the whole these are pretty informative books not as dry as the other review says they are. The two new editions by the University of Nebraska Press have great introductions by Grimsley and Simpson. Simpson gives more credit to Williams than the review here gives. These introductions are excellent. But the volumes are not always about Grant. The Kentucky Invasion is covered in the second volume as is the battle of Murfreesboro. I recommend these books to anyone interested in Grant and/or the Western Theater of the Civil War.
3365304
West does a very good job of analyzing the course of battle and tactics. He shows lessons learned and the merits of the actors.
4610879
I just finished this most interesting biography of Wyatt Earp and I found myself both fascinated and a bit skeptical.  I was fascinated by the life of Wyatt Earp as it was written by a man who interviewed him over a period of time.  I was impressed with the research that the author, Stuart Lake, appeared to have put into his project.  He had interviewed a number of surviving witnesses to the life of Earp.  He also had a number of newspaper accounts and appears to have located a number of valuable documents in the course of his research.  The book wasted little time in getting to Wyatt's career in law enforcement in the American West.  The bulk, and I mean just about ALL, of the book is spent on his career in Wichta and Dodge City, Kansas as well as Tombstone, Arizona.  The many famous (and not so famous) outlaws and lawmen of the Old West move in and out of the story on a regular basis.  Stuart lists an almost endless number of feats of daring by Wyatt Earp in the process of making his case for Earp as the greatest of all men of the American West.  Many of the events are depicted in great and compelling detail.  Many of the parties are quoted, presumeably, from the memory of Earp himself.  There is never a dull moment in the life of our hero, especially considering that all this action took place over a relatively short period of time.  The book, at times, reads like a well-researched dime novel.  For a chance to re-live the wild, wild West, it has little competition.
As for my skepticism, I came away wondering first of all; did all this really happen?  Perhaps it did but our hero (and I am not trying to be facetious, Wyatt Earp truly is a hero) does it all seemingly with one hand tied behind his back.  My other reservation has to do with the politics of the times and places.  There are only good guys and bad guys and no exploration as to the motivations of either side except for good and evil.  I found myself wondering if I were the only source of information about the events of my time and I had to relate to the world in 50 years or so the events I had witnessed.  Take the Invasion of Iraq, the presidential election of 2000, or the impeachment of President Clinton.  I certainly could make a claim as to who was the "bad guy" and who was the "good guy" while somneone else of a different political persuasion could make the opposite claim.  There is no one to speak for the opposing view in this book.  The author quotes frequently from the Tombstone "Nugget" but always prefacing the unreliability of the source.  I found myself wondering if there might not have been something of another side to the events in Tombstone.  The labor strife in mining communities of those days was very significant; just study the history of Butte, MT.  Is it possible that Earp supported the powers that be and the miners looked for support from wherever they could get it?  Maybe not, but it would have been helpful if the author tried to give a bit of an impartial look at the motives of the opposing side in Tombstone.  That said, and realizing that this is about Wyatt Earp, not the miners, this is a book well worth the time of any fan of the American West.
4730163
I have been a student of Western history for many years. I find it somewhat difficult to criticize someone who obviously has a very strong similar interest and love of the Old West. But here are my thoughts.

I believe the author has accurately portrayed the big picture. This includes re-exposing the many fabrications about the Old West. These started in the 19th Century with contemporary dime novels and other books.  Then it continued in the 20th Century and to the present with Hollywood movies, radio and television.

This book does cover some material I have not seen previously.  The author also makes a case for lessons from the past that are applicable to today's society.

The book is apparently self-published.  So I imagine resources were limited.  The English and editing are a complete embarrassment. Bad grammar, spelling errors and missing words abound.  Numerous photos and other exhibits are not labeled, mislabeled or unreadable.  The most flagrant error is an almost full-page photo of what is purported to be "Tom Smith, Marshall of Abilene". It is actually a photo of Wyatt Earp who is covered many chapters earlier.  (I have seen this photo numerous times before, including in a book by Bob Boze Bell.)

Overall I enjoyed the book.  But even with limited resources it would appear that most of the errors could have been eliminated with the helpful editing of a friend or two.  This would have made the book much more readable, enjoyable and credible.
2121338
Paul David Nelson does seem to make a solid living at chronicling the lives of secondary figures of the American Revolution. Yet one can not ignore his works. There are few biographers with his skill and ability.

Nelson's look at the life of James Grant proves useful and readable. Grant remains one of those obscure English figures who popped up all over North America in the 18th century. A proud son of Scotland, Grant worked his way up the military ladder after service in Europe. During the French and Indian war, Grant would lead one failed mission at Fort Duquesne (which would lead to his capture), a more succesful one in South Carolina against the Creeks, and spend time in the islands. From 1763 until 1771, Grant served as an able governor of East Florida. After his service in Saint Augustine, Grant headed to England where he served in Parliment before serving as a major general in the American Revolution. While retaining a low opinion of the militia, Grant did see some success as one of his friend William Howe's chief tactical officers, planning the battles of Brooklyn and White Plains though he never quite was able to land the knockout blow. Having said that, Grant's star rose after Henry Clinton's fell with Howe (for a detailed analysis of the odd relationship of Howe and Clinton, see Wilcox's classic "Portrait of a General"). After Howe was recalled, Grant did excellent work for his cause at St. Lucia.

The only real problem is the book seems a bit too short at points. The Florida years for example seem rather rushed. Otherwise, Nelson shows how a Scottish second son could rise to prominence in 18th century England. Nelson is able to catch Grant's personality to some extent. This obese soldier liked the high life and could be stubborn and somewhat cantakerous yet still something of a social creature. Nelson also did a great deal of work with the primary sources. While Grant may be more than a bit obscure, he does come to life in this excellent, though short, biography.
1878576
Nice job going back and forth from 1880s to present day. This is about a part of western history I know very little about so it was intriguing.
3597
I enjoyed the book thoroughly. The interaction between Grant and his superiors and his subordinates I thought was an interesting study of the behavior of men in general and Grant himself. I also found the first person account of so many historical events we hear in the third person from history books valuable. I enjoyed seeing that Grant while ambitious and interested in his career felt that what he was working for was bigger than himself and he was not paralyzed by how he would be perceived if he failed. I also appreciated that he though maybe not the greatest military genius of the civil war or even the North was able through determination, belief in himself and what he was doing and giving it his best in spite of receiving harsh criticism at times, was able to accomplish his end when people who possibly possessed a greater genius could not.
3853739
Orrin Sackett's treacherous wife sends Tell Sackett on a false rescue mission. He and three of his drifter friends pursue the elusive Apache to save Orrin's kidnapped child.
This is a basic white men vs. Apache tale. There are plot twists the reader can easily see coming. The action is fast and violent. The writing is colorful. Tell Sackett's first person narrative rambles in places, but that adds to the Western aura. One can almost visualize Tell weaving engrossing tales to listeners around a crackling campfire. There is irony in men facing suffering and death because of loneliness and a woman's deceit. The "Lonely Men" of the title refers to the four men who band together because they have nothing else of meaning in their lives. The Apaches are portrayed as fierce killers, but also as honorable men who respect a worthy enemy.
Louis L'Amour instills new life into the familiar elements of the Western story. His novels and stories stress character and atmosphere over the routine plot elements of "a man, a horse, and a gun." As with many of his novels, this book serves the purpose of good, lightweight reading. It doesn't require in-depth analysis to get the point. Enjoy the ride. ;-)
1033726
This is a great book on Grant the warrior and grant the president.  It also presents the relationships developed in the Texas campaign of the 1840's and how they were revisited in the war between the states.
2796545
It was a very interesting read especially if you enjoy the on the scene facts that Grant lays out about engaging the enemy. He describes in detail the movement of both his army and the enemies army! Long read, but very informative.
2685431
Great personal writtings of U.S. Grant's recollections of a historical time of the  United States
3406664
BEST SHOT IN THE WEST: The Adventures of Nat Love is a comic book based on Nat Love's autobiography and framed by letters sent to his publisher.  And Love certainly has a story to tell.  He grew up in slavery and then became one of the Wild West's most famous cowboys  - and the most famous black cowboy - due to his tremendous talents with horses and guns.

I grew up on tales of cowboys and enjoyed reading once more about the hard life those men lived.  (There is one particularly memorable scene involving an unfortunate stampede.)  Love's life was further complicated by the color of his skin.  Patricia C. McKissack and Fredrick L. McKissack Jr. don't sugarcoat the truth of history, but they do keep it appropriate for kids as young as elementary.

To me, what ages BEST SHOT IN THE WEST up is the sophistication of the art style.  Randy DuBurke's illustrations reminded me of Dave McKean.  Humans are often grayscale against full color landscapes.  It's great art, but the people are muted, with little emphasis on their expressions.  I did like that most of BEST SHOT IN THE WEST's action scenes allowed the art to carry the narrative, making good use of the medium.  At the same time, the action wasn't always easy to follow.  DuBurke tends to cut to different scenes instead of letting a single one play out over several panels.

BEST SHOT IN THE WEST will appeal to those looking to learn more about African-American (or just plain American) history as well as fans of action-adventure tales.  Nat Love's story sometimes seems like fiction rather than fact, which is the appeal of a larger-than-life historical figure.
3181475
This book is very interesting.  Has individual stories of different situations in the Wild West that led to frontier justice and executions.  Some of the people mentioned were famous and some no so famous, but the stories are so interesting.  The way executions were carried out was sometimes bizarre, and it really makes you realize that people were quite determined to carry out justice in a way they thought to be right.  Also, there were some tales of injustice carried out by dishonest individuals.
3747881
This was different from what I had expected but it was quite interesting and well written in the Wild West days
3971304
David Cranmer, writing as Edward A. Grainger has been reinventing the traditional western with his introduction of two deputy U.S. marshals, Cash Laramie and Gideon Miles. The two peace officers work out of 1880s Cheyenne, Wyoming, bringing in malefactors, felons, and fugitives from justice. Cash Laramie has acquired a reputation as the Outlaw Marshal, stepping at times outside the precise requirements of his job description to bring undesirables to heel. Historians will recognize in him the thin gray line that separated the lawful and unlawful activities of frontier lawmen whose skill with side arms also qualified them as gunfighters.

Meanwhile, Gideon Miles is the sort of Old West lawman who could exist only in fiction. He is a black man wearing a badge at a time when such a thing was unheard of. Long before full racial equality was an even remotely conceivable idea for most Americans, Cash and Miles are loyal friends and sometimes work together.

In this collection of nine stories, Cranmer teams up with western writer Chuck Tyrell on two of them, Legends, and Property of a Gunfighter. The first takes us from the 1880s to 1921, and the action takes place in New Orleans, where the two heroes are older and living very different lives. But the past has a way of catching up with them.

Property of a Gunfighter is my favorite of the whole lot, partly because it deftly mixes history with fiction, plus a well-known western movie star, in the recounting of an incident in which Cash crosses paths with Wyatt Earp in Nome, Alaska, during the gold rush years.

The story is told by Wyatts wife Sadie to a news reporter, who has more than a casual connection to Cash. This blending of fact and fiction is particularly entertaining, especially in its evocation of the spirited Mrs. Earp as the narrator. (I was reminded of Allan Gurganuss novel, Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All.).

With this new collection, Cranmer has done something you don't often find in western fiction, bringing characters forward in time so that we see them not only age but reflect the changing social environment. In New Orleans, for instance, we find our heroes as retired lawmen in a world of Prohibition, speakeasies, and jazz music. Were not in Cheyenne anymore. Cranmer has done the traditional western a great service by nudging it away from its time-worn conventions and stereotypes and injecting it with several leaps of the imagination.
1907707
If you enjoy early American historical fiction (aka western fiction) with a bit of a romantic twist, you should enjoy this book.

It is based on the early life of Kit Carson, a real-life American frontiersman. The story revolves around a woman who has been kidnapped and Kit Carson's efforts to rescue her.

Generally the story is very well written, and I found myself caught up in the story several times. However, I did find the occasional typo to be an issue. In at least one case, it took me a few minutes to figure out what the writer was trying to say due to a combination of weak writing and typos. It happens and is not a constant problem by any means.

I did have an issue trying to decide when this book is set. I thought at first it was in the 1870s but the dates didn't line up. The Colonel of the title fought in the War of 1812. Further research after reading the book, leads me to believe that the book is set in the 1830s (when Kit would have been in his late 20s). But I'm not sure and the book seemed to have problems with the same issue.

All in all, an enjoyable read.
4453360
A fine retelling of the events leading up to and culminating with the Battle of Hastings from the viewpoint of Walt, one of the surviving Huscarls of Harald (and to a lesser extent a bard in the court of William).  The Story recounts the feud between the Edward the Confessor and the Godwin Family and the resulting struggle between Harald Godwinson and William the Conqueror for the English throne upon Edwards death. The tale also focuses upon Walt's acceptance of his lords death and the end of his society and his reconciliation with the guilt that he feels as a survivor of these events.
I have long been interested in this period of English history and like the author, have a definite leaning to the cause of Harald. As a result this book held me engrossed to the end. I found myself liking the viewpoint character Walt who is presented as a loyal and simple man and sympathising with his feelings of loss and desolation at Williams triumph.
Unlike other reviewers I did not find authors use of modern terms such as psychopath and therapy (to describe the beneficial effects Walt felt in recounting his tale) jarring or detracting from the overall tale. After all I had already assigned these and other modern terms to the situations and experiences described in my own mind - so why shouldn't the author use them?
If I found a weakness with the story it was with the authors description of the set piece conflicts. All were written in a narrative style, seemed a little disjointed and lacking the impact that I was expecting. This however is a minor quibble in a very good book, which I would not hesitate to recommend to anyone interested in this period of history