Customer Reviews

Gunfight at the O.K. Corral

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"Gunfight at the O.K. Corral" By Gayle Martin, would make a great gift, or add it to your own collection of books. Ms.Martin goes into great detail to ensure that she has all the facts right in this book. It's appeal is to all ages.

The book begins with Luke and Jenny, a brother and sister who are on vacation with their mom and headed to their grandparents' house in Dallas,Texas. Along the way, their mom decides to stop and have lunch in Tombstone, Arizona.

While they are there, Luke and Jenny meet a ghost named The Swamper. He takes them on a trip back in time to the days leading up to the famous gunfight at the O.K. Corral. They see Wyatt Earp and his brothers, Doc Holiday, and the Clantons. The Swamper teaches them many different lessons as they travel through time. They even get to witness the actual gunfight at the O.K. Corral.

This book is interesting and unique and would make a great addition to school library's across out country. It is a book to be shared by all. Kids that read this book won't even recognize that they are being taught morals and life lessons through Luke and Jenny's travels. It makes learning fun. I have really enjoyed this book, and even though it is a work of fiction, it is backed by historical facts. You can buy this book at "Five Star Publishing" or on Amazon.

Sandra Heptinstall
Whispering Winds Book Review

Do you think that it would be fun to go back in time and witness interesting events, like the famous gunfight at the O. K. Corral in Tombstone, AZ? Eight-year-old Luke Bartlett and his older sister Jenny were going to visit Disneyland for vacation, but their father was called with his Army Reserve Unit to serve in Iraq, so their mother is taking them to see their grandparents at Dallas, TX, instead. The kids are bored, but when they stop in Tombstone, AZ, something strange happens. While sitting on a bench as their mother shopped, they meet the Swamper, a handyman who lived downstairs in the Grand Hotel back in the 1880s--or rather his ghost.
Luke and Jenny also become "spirit people" (Swamper says, "Actually, I prefer to think of myself as a spirit person. It has a nicer ring to it, don't you think? The word `ghost' sounds too much like Halloween.") The Swamper takes them back to the streets of old Tombstone during the days of Virgil, Morgan, and Wyatt Earp and the Cowboy Gang of outlaws led by Ike Clanton and Frank McClaury. Beginning on Oct. 28, 1880, when Marshall Fred White was shot, most conclude accidentally, by Curly Bill Brocius, they follow the simmering feud between the two groups that led up to the Oct. 26, 1881, shoot out in which Tom and Frank McClaury and Billy Clanton were killed, and then the aftermath as both sides began to assassinate key members of the opposing factions.
Author Gayle Martin not only tells the story from an eyewitness viewpoint as accurately as possible, noting that there are a lot of facts about many of the events which are simply not known for sure, but also asks questions that deal with the ethical principles underlying what happened. When I was young, the television show Wyatt Earp starring Hugh O'Brien was very popular. While it should never be our desire to tarnish the names of good men unnecessarily, we do need to remember that there were situations where people who generally stood for the right did have faults and make mistakes, so that not every one of their choices is commendable. We can learn from that as well. Gunfight at the O. K. Corral received honorable mention at the 2008 Hollywood Book Festival. It is extremely well researched and written in an exciting and eminently readable style. There is a guide for parents and teachers at the end.

Gayle Martin's book "Gunfight At The O.K. Corral: Luke and Jenny Visit Tombstone" is a wonderfully written and informative account of the feud between Wyatt Earp, his brothers, Doc Holiday, and the Clantons.
A fictional tale about real life events it is the story of Luke and Jenny, a brother and sister who, while on vacation, are transported back to 1880's Tombstone and witness the events leading up to the famous gunfight.
While written for young readers adults will also enjoy reading this action filled slice of old west American history. Packed full of little known facts this is a book that will be read over and over by the entire family.
As an author and storyteller Gayle Martin is on a level equal to Carolyn Keene, R.L. Stine, and J.K. Rowling.