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srash 's review for:
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Mary-Esther suggested this author to me, and I decided to give this book of his a try since I've always found Tombstone, Arizona's history interesting.
Guinn is an excellent writer who has a knack for combining extensive research with an entertaining narrative. The story itself is fascinating, and even though I had read a lot about it before, I learned a lot of things I didn't know in this book. I really liked his thorough endnotes. They were just as informative and engaging as the rest of the book.
I also appreciated how even-handed Guinn was. I've read some books that make the Earps look like candidates for sainthood and others that engage in a lot of rhetorical gymnastics to explain away the Cowboys' actions. I've always suspected the truth was somewhere in the middle, and as Guinn presents it, the reality is a lot murkier.
And there's a lot more than just shootouts too. There's a rigged sheriff race, scandalous gossip, small-town political backstabbing, and more! In fact, reading about the deep-seated political animosity between the Earps and their eventual opponents was probably my favorite part of the whole book, though I also enjoyed the look at Tombstone as a whole. Even without the infamous gunfight in 1881, the town's history is colorful, what with whisky-induced fires and their attempts to blend then-modern conveniences with frontier living.
~~~
After rereading it, my opinion still stands. It's a very evenhanded, fascinating book about a controversial moment in American Western history.
Guinn is an excellent writer who has a knack for combining extensive research with an entertaining narrative. The story itself is fascinating, and even though I had read a lot about it before, I learned a lot of things I didn't know in this book. I really liked his thorough endnotes. They were just as informative and engaging as the rest of the book.
I also appreciated how even-handed Guinn was. I've read some books that make the Earps look like candidates for sainthood and others that engage in a lot of rhetorical gymnastics to explain away the Cowboys' actions. I've always suspected the truth was somewhere in the middle, and as Guinn presents it, the reality is a lot murkier.
And there's a lot more than just shootouts too. There's a rigged sheriff race, scandalous gossip, small-town political backstabbing, and more! In fact, reading about the deep-seated political animosity between the Earps and their eventual opponents was probably my favorite part of the whole book, though I also enjoyed the look at Tombstone as a whole. Even without the infamous gunfight in 1881, the town's history is colorful, what with whisky-induced fires and their attempts to blend then-modern conveniences with frontier living.
~~~
After rereading it, my opinion still stands. It's a very evenhanded, fascinating book about a controversial moment in American Western history.