Publisher: Pantheon Books
| ||||||||||||
Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Erdoes ( Lakota Woman ) recounts a rip-roaring assortment of legends and lore from the Old West. The characters that populate his tales are larger than life, emanating from a land larger still, with seemingly unlimited horizons. In fact, says Erdoes, "the essence of American legends . . . is exaggeration," and this belief informs his stories of lost mines and mountain men, ghosts and gunfighters. A posse of heroes includes such luminaries as Billy the Kid, Paul Bunyan and Jim Bowie as well as lesser-known poker players, pioneers, prospectors et al. Readers may question the inclusion of multiple entries about men like Roy Bean or the wholly fictitious Deadwood Dick (a product of penny dreadfuls) while equally colorful and important figures (Bat Masterson, Poker Alice, Belle Starr) receive scant mention--some (Soapy Smith, Klondike Kate) none at all. Overall, the doings of women and minorities are underreported, and there are too few tales of Alaska and the Yukon for this volume to be truly representative of frontier folklore. Nevertheless, Erdoes successfully evokes an era when awaiting the word from the West was a national pastime, and shows us how and why legends are "history turned upside down."
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
YA-- Readers will be entertained by the exploits of such figures as Daniel Boone, Davy Crockett, Calamity Jane, Pecos Bill, and Jim Bowie. As is to be expected, the tales are frequently wild beyond belief; some are humorous; some are a bit frightening; all take readers into the world of the imagination. Erdoes does a nice job of categorizing the selections and providing extensive source notes.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
More About the Author
Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.
Customer Reviews
|
There are no customer reviews yet.
|
|||
|
Video reviews
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Tag this product(What's this?)Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items. |
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
