Customer Reviews

The Big Book of the Weird Wild West (Factoid Books)

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

One of the many "Big Books" from Factoid Press, this volume delivers up a multitude of disturbing, humorous, and crazy tales from the West of yesteryear. Cleverly (and sometimes graphically) illustrated, this book would probably not be a good read for anybody who believes that the Old West was John Wayne-esque, where the good guy always won the duel and got the lady. The real West was more like a spaghetti western, where even the good guys were cut from a dubious cloth. Included in this volume are the stories of the ill-fated Donner Party (who were forced to dine on one another), Six Gun Slade (whose treatment of his opponent was surely an inspiration on Quentin Tarantino), Liver-Eatin' Johnson (the name says it all), Cowboys vs. UFO's, the slaying of a prehistoric bird in Arizona, and many, many others. Perhaps most amazing was how frequently people crossed the line from outlaw to lawman- it's almost as if being a murderer or train robber was a necessary prerequisite for a law enforcement job! The role of blacks, women, and homosexuals is discussed with refreshing frankness, and the clash between Anglo, Spanish, and Indian cultures is addressed as well. This book is entertaining and educational at the same time, and highly recommended to anybody with the slightest interest in what went on in the real Old West.

You won't find Will Smith in this bizarre yet hilarious collection of true (and possibly true) tales from the dark side of the Western frontier. This entry in the now-legendary Big Book series meets the high stanards set by the others -- but be warned. This is one of the more violent Big Books. Not for kids. But if you enjoy rough and tumble true tales of killers, cannibals and crazies this book'll show you what the West was really like.

I love the whole "Big Book" series. This is loaded down with loads of fun stories about the wild west in all sorts of different cartoon styles. Some of the stories are funny, some downright amazing. There's a whole lot more to western lore than the gunfight at the OK Corral.

In this format of different short pieces (one page to six or so) by different artists strange stories about the west are presented. Some of the subjects are interesting but others are not done well at all... I suppose a result of so many different styles and approaches. OK as a light read, which is what I picked it up as. Otherwise more of interest to the juvenile market.

This collection of black and white entertaining comic-style renderings of vignettes about the West is really well put together. Most of the stories concern actual events from the times of Manifest Destiny to Turner's "End of the Frontier", though there are few ghost/supernatural stories set in a western setting for the reader looking for items of a "weird" bent.

Note: Everything included in the collection is backed with bibliographic citations. Thus this collection with judicious use could be used as a supplement to a study of American History.

Paradox press adds another "Big Book Of..." that shares the same flavour of it's "brothers". A wide style of illustration helps the feel of this book, as do the wide array of "tales" culled from the period. Nice that they included several not-so-well-known tales. Note: this is NOT a refrence guide, but an rather enjoyable read.

I love the Wild West and comics but this really wasn't as great as I thought it would be. Gets a 2.5.

A fine collection of the stranger part of the history of the Old West. Good cartooning, & absorbing reading.


There is a sub-genre of Westerns, growing in strength, called the Weird West.

Anybody who likes this book would enjoy--Daisy Kutter: The Last Train
Or
The Riot at Bucksnort and Other Western Tales (The Works of Robert E. Howard)

I found this to be the best and most exciting of the "Big Books." The wild west anecdotes contained within are well-chosen; they're humorous, interesting, and more than a bit eccentric. It's definitely interesting for anyone who's enthralled by the old west.

The Old West is full of legends. And you'll find a passel of 'em in this volume from Paradox Press. Many of the stories spotlighted here are a mixture of American history and mythology. But as the Unsinkable Molly Brown (who is featured in the book) would say, "It makes for a good story!"