WILD WEST HISTORY ASSOCIATION

 

Most longtime outlaw-lawman aficionados have probably read a number of books about Jesse and Frank James. Those books probably included Background of a Bandit by Joan M. Beamis and William E. Pullen and Jesse and Frank James: The Family History by Phillip W. Steele. Chances are you think you know a lot about the family of America’s most famous bandits. However, if you think this-- think again-- you have seen only the tip of the iceberg.

 

Jesse James fanatics are going to be delighted with all the new material and serious historians are going to wonder how they have missed so much for so long...

 

In summary, this is one of the best books I have read in a long time. I did not want to put the book down. It reads a lot like the family sagas written by Howard Fast and John Jakes. However, this is all fact, not fiction.

 

If you have any interest in the James gang and their history this book is a “must read”.  And do not skip the notes; there is a wealth of material to be found in the notes and the bibliography is a gold mine. Four more volumes of James family history are to follow this book. I eagerly anticipate all of them.

 

FULL REVIEW PENDING PUBLICATION