Product Description

Award-winning historian Michael Wallis has spent several years recreating the rich, anecdotal saga of "Billy the Kid" (1859-1881), a deeply mythologised young man who became a legend in his own time and yet remains an enigma to this day. With the Gilded Age in full swing and the Industrial Revolution reshaping the American landscape, 'the Kid', who was gunned down by Sheriff Pat Garrett in the New Mexico Territory at the age of twenty-one, became a new breed of celebrity outlaw. He arose amid the mystery and myth of the swiftly vanishing frontier and, sensationalised beyond recognition by the tabloids and dime-store romances of the day, emerged as one of the most enduring icons of the American West-not to mention one of Hollywood's most misrepresented characters. This new biography separates myth from reality and presents an unforgettable portrait of this brief and violent life.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #469454 in Books
• Published on: 2008-07-25
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 368 pages

Review
"It is a moral tale of a kind, to which Michael Wallis has done full justice." Frank McLynn, Literary Review "Following Wallis's search for the real Billy the Kid is a fascinating experience." Elmore Leonard"

Customer Reviews

An interesting read...
I've always been interested in the Old West: cowboys, Native Americans, outlaws, pioneers, the frontier, buffalo. Even though most of it is myth and legend instead of fact, it's still fascinating. Billy the Kid is a prime example. The legend was built up around this kid, but the truth of his life is very different, and it's interesting reading this book to find out just how much less romantic and dashing and murderous his actual life was amd how little is actually known about him. Historians can't even agree on his real name and he wasn't known as Billy the Kid until after his death! My one criticism of this book, and I suppose that's a product of there being so little material to go on, is that it seems less a biography of Billy the Kid as a person and more of a biography of the evolution of the myth of Billy the Kid. It also spends a long time building up a picture of the world the Kid was born into - almost half the book goes by before he even gets to the Lincoln County War, the participation in which was what propelled the Kid to fame/notoriety - and then rather skims through everything that came after in just a few pages.

Not JUST another BTK book!
If you are a Billy the Kid "expert" you may not find anything new in this book.
However for the rest of us, Michael Wallis presents Billy's story in a fresh and entertaining style.

He also provides interesting background detail to the events and personalities in Billy's life.

For me perhaps the most intriguing part is his presentation in some detail of Herman Weisner's research into Billy's origins.
Of course it's fairly easy to provide explanations as to Billy's name choices of William and Henry, but why Bonney?
Weisner's research not only provides a very convincing and straightforward reason but also may explain
why Billy seemed so mature for his age - maybe he was older than so far believed!!

I believe Jan Girand's book on Billy's origins may be published soon and this may give added weight to Weisner's research.

Obviously there is still a great deal to discover about Henry McCarty!!

This is definitely a valued addition to my existing BTK books - four stars pushed to five because as the chapters are in the main fairly short it's also a great book to "dip into" for a few minutes of Billy the kid and Lincoln County entertainment!

Billy the Kid: The Endless Ride
When Pat Garrett shot and killed Billy the Kid on July 14th 1881 in New Mexico Territory a legend was born.

From the corrupt streets of New York to the corrupt towns of the Wild West, Billy the Kid's 21 short years are brought vividly to life by this fascinating biography.

So few actual facts are known about him that historians do not even agree about his birthplace or even his real name. Michael Wallis has painstakingly sifted through all the exaggerated stories and outright lies that have surrounded him over the years and through a mixture of anecdotes from people who knew him, reliable sources, historical documents, and his own meticulous research, he has debunked many of the myths of his murderous ways and discovered that

"the truth of the young man was neatly covered up through sleight of hand with historical facts by a host of dime novelists, journalists, and hacks.......he was then and forever a mirage."


Until his mother's death in 1874 when Billy was only 14, he was a normal mischievous boy. Afterwards he became a young man who had to fend for himself and grow up very quickly by living on his wits and eventually turning to horse stealing and gambling to live.

This is not just a history of Billy the Kid, but also a history of the Old West during the late 19th century, of the lawlessness and corruption during his short life, including the infamous Lincoln County War.

I particularly enjoyed the photographs dotted around the book, which included many of the characters and places mentioned, and the cover of the book shows the only documented photographic image of him, taken in late 1879 or early 1880. Paulita Maxwell, one of Billy's lady friends, said in later years, "I never liked the picture, I don't think it does Billy justice". The young man's image is forever frozen in time - just like his myth.