The Great Taos Bank Robbery: And Other True Stories of the Southwest [Paperback]

Tony Hillerman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 2, 2001

In this extraordinary collection, Tony Hillerman presents the Southwest as only he can, choosing remarkable true tales from his personal archives of local lore. As you read these stories, you will be amazed, astounded, and oftentimes confounded by the power of ingenuity, serendipity, and the strange, comical coincidence of life and how it proves, once again, that truth is ultimately stranger than fiction.

From the amusing title story of the holdup that didn't happen, to the riveting account of scientists tracking Black Death through the arroyos, to the ironic account of how a black cowboy's commonsense intelligence destroyed the dogma of the Smithsonian Institution, master storyteller Tony Hillerman reveals the present and timeless past of one of America's most beautiful and haunting regions.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This collection is the essence of Hillerman, which is always instructive fun." -- --New Mexican --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

About the Author

Tony Hillerman was the former president of the Mystery Writers of America and received its Edgar^® and Grand Master awards. His other honors include the Center for the American Indian’s Ambassador Award, the Silver Spur Award for the best novel set in the West, and the Navajo Tribe’s Special Friend Award. He lived with his wife in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Harper Perennial (October 2, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060937122
• ISBN-13: 978-0060937126
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #203,184 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Tony Hillerman was the former president of the Mystery Writers of America and received its Edgar® and Grand Master awards. His other honors include the Center for the American Indian's Ambassador Award, the Silver Spur Award for the best novel set in the West, and the Navajo Tribe's Special Friend Award. He lived with his wife in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

38 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What New Mexico is really about, June 23, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Great Taos Bank Robbery and Other Indian Country Affairs (Mass Market Paperback)

Readers expecting Leaphorn and Chee will be disappointed -- but this is a wonderful book, a collection of essays from Hillerman's journalist days. He neatly skewers Indian-wannabes in "The Navajo Who Had So Many Friends ...," although "The Messenger Birds" and the piece on Mt. Taylor prove (as if we didn't know it already) that he's highly sensitive to the Native American point of view. And although the hilarious title story is mostly of historical interest in today's post-hippie Taos, it'll strike a responsive chord with anyone who's spent time in rural NM. The essay on Reies Tijerina elucidates the (still) sore point of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and its land-grant repercussions ... and yes, we do still have bubonic plague here, although in the era of antibiotics it's not the threat it was in medieval Europe. For someone who wants a sense of what New Mexico is REALLY all about, I recommend this as far and away the best book on the subject (a good runner-up is Stan Crawford's "Majordomo").

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Vintage Tony Hillerman, August 10, 2005

By 

Charles R. Dutra (Socorro, NM) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Great Taos Bank Robbery: And Other True Stories of the Southwest (Paperback)

I purchased this after hearing Tony read a few passages at a lecture. The book is a series of essays Tony wrote as his Masters Thesis at the University of New Mexico. They are true tales of New Mexico, but told only as Tony, one of America's greatest yarn spinners can. Most, in particular the "unfeloneous unbankrobbery" in the title essay will have you holding your sides, while at the same time learning something about the unique culture of the Land of Enchantment. Highly recommended as well is Tony's autobiography "Seldom Disappointed".

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Amusing tales of New Mexico (mostly), September 1, 2008

By 

A. Chase "eclectic reader" (NYC) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Great Taos Bank Robbery: And Other True Stories of the Southwest (Paperback)

This was a fun read about the many different faces of New Mexico. Short stories that can be read in a single sitting. The stories cover the quirky people to the scientific discoveries that are mostly set in New Mexico.