I, Tom Horn [Paperback]

Will Henry (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 1996

In I, Tom Horn, originally published in 1975, Will Henry presents a fictional autobiography of Tom Horn that answers decisively the question—did Tom Horn kill fourteen-year-old Willie Kickell, or was he framed?

Horn was a cavalry scout in Arizona Territory during the last Apache campaigns, a champion rodeo rider, a Pinkerton, and finally a stock detective in Wyoming. Known and feared as el hombre de sombra (the shadow man), Horn’s lifetime (1860–1903) spans one of the most colorful and tumultuous periods of the Old West. In this novel Will Henry provides a multidimensional portrait of Tom Horn as a man capable of humor, compassion, and love, and also one who could kill without the least remorse. This figure is set against equally compelling portraits of Al Sieber, chief of scouts under General Crook, and apache leaders in the Four Families of the Chiricahuas, names now fabled in American frontier history Nana, Chato, and Geronimo.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

The multiple-award-winning Henry here takes on legendary cowboy Tom Horn in this 1975 fictional autobiography. Henry presents the character as a man capable of kindness and humor who could also kill without remorse.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"Henry is a creator of Literature. It is not only that he is a consummate storyteller, but his finely chiseled prose also sings with a lyricism that is as haunting as it is rare. His stories not only ring true, but also pull the reader feet-first into worlds that have vanished, except from the pages of books."—Santa Fe Reporter

(Santa Fe Reporter )

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Product Details

• Paperback: 341 pages
• Publisher: University of Nebraska Press (April 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0803272839
• ISBN-13: 978-0803272835
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.3 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #971,820 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For History & Legend Buffs. You will not put this book down!, July 30, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: I, Tom Horn (Paperback)

Once Tom Horn leaves the Horn farm and heads west, the story quickens and never lets you go. We follow Tom Horn through his early years, just after the civil wars, through his formative years (14-16 yrs old) and his involvement with the 10 year long Apache Wars, all the way up to Chief of Scouts, U.S.Army and the capturing of Geronimo. Next we follow Tom Horn through the Cattle Wars and his evolution from a rustler chaser, to manhunter to a gunslinger for hire to a killer. And finally to his Hanging (righteous or not). The legend is here. I couldn't lay the book down wondering what would happen next, and I knew the history. You won't either.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tom Horn, January 31, 2010

By 

W. D. Neil "Dolores James/Neil" (LaGrange, Ga) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: I, Tom Horn (Paperback)

I became interested in the life of Tom Horn because he is buried in the old cemetery in Boulder, Colorado where I lived. I wanted to know the connection that Horn had with Boulder. I researched the archives at the Boulder library. I read letters that were written to him from his relatives while he was in jail awaiting trial. These letters were never published. I discovered that Horn had a brother Charles who owned a freighting business in Boulder. After Tom was hanged Charles had the body shipped to Boulder to be buried there. Next to Tom's gravestone is the stone of Charles and his wife. Even though Tom has been gone for over 100 years someone places flowers at his graveside.
I wanted to learn as much as I could about Tom Horn. I bought all of Chip Carlson's books. I bought one by Dean Krakel, Joe Lefors, and the work of fiction by Will Henry. I drove up to the Iron Mountain country in Wyoming to get the feel of the land where Tom Horn once patrolled. I acquired the posthumous trial of Tom Horn in which he was acquitted based on today's methods of trial.
I want to believe that although Tom had killed rustlers for the big cattle companies, he did not kill Willie Nickel. It was his drunken bragging that incriminated himself. Henry's book is very entertaining and recommended.

4 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable, but not overly so., September 25, 1998

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: I, Tom Horn (Paperback)

After reading "Life of Tom Horn", the fictional account did not quite live up to expectations. Apparently freely borrowing for "Life of Tom Horn", "I, Tom Horn" was a disappointment.