Mini Reviews | Wild Wild West

 

I have kind of a strange and specific love affair with the Old West. It started when I saw Tombstone, naturally. Never mind the historical inaccuracies! My 12-year-old brain didn't care (I was only ten when it came out, Mom made me wait until it was on VHS to see it) or even recognize, actually, those inaccuracies. I was forever from that point on destined to be in love with Val Kilmer as Doc Holiday and Bill Paxton as Morgan Earp.

As I began this set of mini reviews, I wandered over to IMDB to look at the entry for both Tombstone and Wyatt Earp, movies released within a year of one another, and can not remember why I have never loved Wyatt Earp as much as Tombstone. In fact, I don't ever recall seeing it. The cast alone was fantastic and it is probably one I am going to have to watch fairly soon.

Anyway, on to the reviews!

 Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

So the thing about Tombstone and the gunfight at the OK Corral is that it doesn't even matter what the true story is anymore - that the gunfight was really not that big of a deal and it didn't even happen there anyway. The myth has grown to such epic proportions that no matter what is written about it until the end of time, it will remain THE defining event that everyone associates with the Old West, even if it came at nearly the tail-end of the era it now embodies.

Guinn does a fantastic job putting together the real history and it was a page-turner like no other for me. In this sense, Guinn is 100% accurate with the subtitle in how this event "changed the American West". He does not mean that this non-event event changed the Old West itself, but changed and molded how we would perceive those days decades and now a century on. There is no question that 4 out of 5 people would say the OK Corral or Tombstone if asked to name a place in that time.

The research into this is massive, detailing everything we can possibly know about the Earps - complete with Warren and James, two Earps I did not even know existed, who had even been in Tombstone at various times when Virgil, Wyatt, and Morgan lived there. Of course there is also Doc Holiday and Big Nose Kate, plus the Clantons and McLaurys, plus Johnny Ringo and Curly Bill of course. The backstory is phenomenally told, how the cowboys came to clash with the sometimes-lawmen. The author used a plethora of sources available for the first time here, including diaries and letters of those involved - even the sketch Wyatt drew of the shoot-out and its end. I learned so much more about Johnny Behan and his connection to Wyatt.

You won't find nearly as much information about Wyatt's vendetta ride to avenge Morgan's murder here as there was the lead-up to the gunfight. For that I highly recommend Tombstone: The Earp Brothers, Doc Holiday, and the Vendetta Ride from Hell by Tom Clavin, which is also superb. Instead, once the smoke has cleared so to speak, much of the aftermath involves the inquests into the deaths that occurred that day - Billy Clanton's, as well as the McLaury brothers.

Even though I love Tombstone dearly (true story - I just ordered the DVD because of course now I want to watch it), the real story is just as interesting, if not more so. It is no secret that the Earps were not always as law-abiding as they're made out to be in popular works. The book does a good job clearing away that bit of myth. One might even say they understand why the Clantons and McLaurys were so pissed off; you can't really blame them. So, there are not straight heroes and villains here, everyone is a little bit of both. And there is so much more information here than a movie would ever have room for to explain adequately. So, I see why the story was simplified for the big Hollywood blockbuster (except it kind of wasn't, I don't think. I don't actually remember.)

Highly recommend, especially for those who enjoy a good chunk of Old West history.

 Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐

It is very easy to feel sorry for a lot of the women who became known as a Mrs. Earp at any point in their lives. They were often common-law wives who were easy to leave - as Wyatt himself could attest to. It would seem that the father of some of the most famous lawmen in history started off with this idea himself, marrying a total of three times in his life. The author is also quick to point out that while several of the Earp sons would go on to marry multiple times, there may be even more wives that we don't know about. I would not be surprised one bit.

I really enjoyed the focus of this book. The author does a fantastic job with what I imagine would be very limited source material to bring these women to life behind their passive roles in movies like Tombstone. The book is a quick read and I like that she includes transcripts of letters written by various Mrs. Earps. Live in the West would have been hard enough, but I could not imagine trying to survive out there while also following a husband with wanderlust in his veins. This is a very special group of women who are finally having their stories told and a must-read for those interested in the history of the West.

 Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Just the kind of ladies I would love to read about! Much like the previous title, I was happy to find this gem and learn more about the women who populated the frontier towns aside from those who are already well-known.

Women in the West could be just as tough, if not more so, than the men they kept company with, if they chose to do so. Plenty of women were outlaws and gamblers with their own reputations, saloon owners or soiled doves. The point then, as it still is today for so many women, they did whatever they had to in order to survive. If that meant anything from prostitution to murder, then so be it.

Each woman in the book is given a certain amount of pages for her brief biography, recounting her adventures. I feel a book like this is important because in many cases, this might literally be all we know about many of these women and they deserve to have their stories told, out of the shadows of their male counterparts. Sadly, so many stories were similar in how they came to find themselves unattached in a dangerous time and place. Each chapter opened with a highlight or major event from the woman's life. The author then made great use of personal items, such as letters and diaries, or even interviews given later in life when their gun-slinging days were long behind them.

A recommended read for those with an interest in the period and/or badass women who took care of themselves.

Stacking the Shelves #137

    

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly feature co-hosted by Tynga's Reviews and Reading Reality. It is a chance to showcase all the goodies you've collected throughout the week, whether they're bought on-line or in-store, an ARC or a final copy, borrowed from a friend or the library, physical or digital, etc.

Author Gift

Library Treasures

Happy Reading!
Sarah

Prime First Reads | The Perfect Marriage

 

Rating ⭐⭐

Oh Prime, how you have disappointed me with your First Reads offering once again.

We are told a lot that Jessica and James have the perfect marriage even though they're both terrible people because they cheated on their spouses when they met and fell hopelessly in love, or whatever.

The problem is we never really get to know most of the characters because they are flat and boring.

Even Haley, the psychotic stalker ex-wife is boring.

And it comes down to the fact that they are all boring, because everything they do is predictable.

We hear all about how Jessica's ex-husband Wayne grew up with a shitty dad who beat on him and his mom, but Wayne hides his rage well. We never see it though, we are only told about it.

We hear about how in love James and Jessica are, and how this marriage is perfect because they are so in love and so perfect for each other and  blah blah fucking blah.

Then there is Owen, Jessica and Wayne's son, whose cancer is in remission until it isn't. But we don't really get to know him either, because whatever, why would we need to?

It's not really a "twist" if the way you throw readers off the trail of the killer is literally by leaving said character out of most of the book. That's lazy and, once again, boring.

It becomes obvious who the killer is the minute Jessica and Wayne stop cooperating with the police. The explanation is at least a little interesting, but when the big climax of the story revolves around subpoenas for DNA samples...zzzzzzzzz.

First Line Friday #123

 

First Line Friday is brought to you by Hoarding Books. Playing along is easy: open the book nearest you and share the first line. Then check out the link to see the other first lines posted this week.

"Nobody recognized her."

I first read To Kill a Mockingbird in the summer between fifth and sixth grade. It was quite by accident, but I had found the book on a bookshelf in the basement of my grandparents' home. My youngest uncle technically lived at college about 45 minutes away, but his room was intact upstairs. All his books and electronics equipment amused me for hours downstairs when it was too hot to ride my bike for miles or sit in the county's poor farm cemetery just across the road and imagine what the lives were like for those buried there a century before.

I suppose Grandma had noticed I'd become unusually quiet as I curled up in the oversized desk chair, devouring page after page of the novel. She came to the top of the stairs and asked what I was doing. I told her I was reading one of Kraig's books, it had a bird in the title. When I showed her the cover, I thought she was going to have a heart attack. Grandma was worried my mom would be angry with her for letting me read it, given my age, but luckily there was no such issue and I read the entire book that afternoon, having fallen in love with the story so completely that it became one of my favorite books right then and there.

It was not until a few years ago, around the time of Nelle Harper Lee's death that I became familiar with the story of The Reverend. It had been about six months since Go Set a Watchman had been published - which I had purchased all the while feeling terrible for it because all it looked like to me was a money-grab from a greedy woman pretending to have Lee's best interests at heart.

Side note, I will never read it for two reasons:

1. Lee didn't publish it for a reason, despite having been able to, given the popularity of To Kill a Mockingbird.

2. I can not bear for Atticus Finch to be anyone but the man I first met that summer so long ago. He was my hero and I could not handle having that image shattered.

 It was not lost on me that Lee's protector, sister Alice, had passed roughly six months before THAT and magically this new manuscript had been found. It breaks my heart to think of Lee being on her own, taken advantage of by those who were handling her affairs. Do we know for sure this is what happened? No. But I find it suspicious that this all came about in a few short months after Alice's death.

The story of Willie Maxwell is one I think Lee could have written well, had she enough information and concrete facts. I can't imagine the crushing weight of her own success and how terrifying it must have been, knowing what was expected of her.

Leave a comment and let me know what you think, and leave a link to your FLF so I can stop by to see what you've posted this week.

Happy Reading!
Sarah

Publisher Gift | Our Story: Coming Out in the Time of HIV and AIDS

 

I received a physical copy free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Rating ⭐⭐⭐1/2

This is an incredibly powerful memoir of coming of age and finding oneself in the late 70s, just a few years before the terror of the AIDS-crisis would unleash itself onto an unsuspecting populous. I will say straight away that the reason for my rating has more to do with editing than anything else and I feel like one more round with an editor and this is easily a solid four-five star read. The story is told in a diary format, which I sometimes struggled with because the narrative could be choppy in places.

The author takes us on a journey through his life story from young adulthood and on.  Hamilton leaves his hometown in New Brunswick in 1977. With not much going for the paper mill town, he has little choice, really, if he wants to see all that life has to offer. At that point in his life he was not out, though that did not stop some family members from talking and I feel such heartache for young women and men who still go through this experience today. Hamilton spends two years in Toronto, then moves on to Edmonton , still a bit naïve about the world as a whole and the world he is about to become part of.

As Hamilton begins testing the waters and somewhat hesitantly comes out while living in Toronto. He finds his best friend in Joe, a drag queen who rules the night. The friendship is not without its difficulties but it proves to be a lasting one, as they become roommates and eventually move to Vancouver. This occurs in the summer of '82, and they believe they have their whole lives ahead of them, nothing but good times and good friends on the horizon.

Soon reality comes crashing in as a mysterious and terrifying illness starts making its way through their large and extended group of friends, just as it did to so many around the world. Suddenly the AIDS crisis is in motion and no one is immune. With so little information but plenty of homophobia, young men in particular die at alarming rates. In hospital rooms the doctors and nurses are too afraid to enter, these young men often spent their final moments alone.

Hamilton writes of all of this with brutal honesty, never shying away from the difficult parts. His focus specifically is on living life with his best friend, from those days before Joe tested positive for HIV, right up to his death and the aftermath. It isn't always pretty, but it is honest and that is the best way to honor the memory of a loved one who passes too soon. Hamilton tells his story, Joe's story, and the story of so many young men just like them, going out to live their lives, never imagining where it might lead.

Recommended.

NetGalley ARC | Race Against Time: A Reporter Reopens the Unsolved Murder Cases of the Civil Rights Era

I received a free digital copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

It is a story told many times over but must continue to be told, even after justice has been served - or as much justice as possible anyway, which truthfully is still not enough. I can't imagine there is anyone unfamiliar with Mississippi Burning (from the US, anyway), but I will briefly summarize it anyway.

On the night of June 21st, 1964, James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner were murdered by klansmen for their work in helping African Americans register to vote. The trio were stopped for speeding and taken to the local jail. After several hours the men were released. They'd not traveled far when they were again stopped. The three men were abducted at gun point, shot to death, and buried in a shallow grave. Their bodies would not be discovered for two months. Despite the fact that everyone knew who had committed the murders, no one was charged in the ensuing decades. These monsters thought they'd gotten away with murder like so many before and after them.

When investigative reporter Jerry Mitchell took on this giant, it would be his work that led to the reopening of the case, in addition to three others from the era: the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing that killed Addie Mae Collins, Cynthia Wesley, Carole Robertson, and Carol Denise McNair; the assassination of Medgar Evers; and the murder of Vernon Dahmer.

Mitchell's attention was first drawn to the murders of Chaney, Goodman, and Schwerner during a viewing of the film "Mississippi Burning". The story goes that as he was watching, the man next to him repeatedly commented on things that were or were not accurate in the movie. Afterward they talked and Mitchell learned the man was Roy K. Moore, a retired FBI agent in charge of Mississippi when the murders took place. They joined in conversation with another retired FBI agent, as well a reporter who had originally covered the murders back in the '60s. Mitchell learned no one had been prosecuted and he could not fathom why. The identities of the men were widely known, yet the state had never acted. Even after one of the klansmen confessed, the GOVERNOR refused to let it be pursued it any further.

So, Mitchell got to work - and work it would be. The downside to investigating heinous crimes from earlier decades is the pesky fact he addresses with the very title of the book. He was in a literal race against time to uncover whatever he could in order for the families to seek justice; witnesses to the murders and the suspects themselves weren't getting any younger. And as always, with the passage of time goes one's memories. Yet Mitchell pressed on, getting whatever information he could to force the FBI to re-open the cases.

Mitchell's investigation brought new evidence to light as he and law enforcement agents also began combing through the old casefiles. He is the first to say he could not have done this on his own and it is true. So many were involved in propelling all four cases forward, though I think we can say that none of the murderers might have ever been brought to justice if not for the chance meeting between Mitchell and Moore the night of the premier.

The importance of this book can't be overstated. It is all the documentation one needs to see that even when it seems like there is no hope, all it takes sometimes is one person to change the course. You have to admire Mitchell's commitment; though the klan might be a little quieter now, it still exists. As a result, Mitchell received numerous death threats from the kkk. Not only that, but he was also uncovering a plethora of information that pointed (unsurprisingly) to the state's own involvement in obstructing investigations and covering up the crimes. Despite the danger in his work, Mitchell sought every last scrap of information he could find, interviewed many who would rather have seen their secrets stayed buried, and pursued the perpetrators relentlessly so that the families of the victims could finally come to some kind of peace knowing their loved ones had not died in vain, and that their stories would live on alongside the fact that these cowardly men who hid their faces would not escape justice after all.

Highly highly recommended.

BookSirens ARC | Satin Pumps: The Moonlit Murder that Mesmerized the Nation

I received a free digital ARC via BookSirens in exchange for an honest review.

Rating ⭐⭐

I am late on my review of this one, because I am not quite sure how I feel about it still. The story is part true crime, part memoir. The author is indirectly related to the case, only because the murderer was his family doctor for many years. Honestly, I feel like that part bogged down the story to me. It was important for the author to disclose the fact that he knew Dr. Finch, but I don't really feel like anything beyond that was necessary. It kind of slowed down and already-slow story.

I am by no means a true crime queen, but I have read my fair share and this case was new to me, so I was surprised to learn that it was supposedly so captivating to the nation. This is a terrible thing to say, but the murder itself was so boring that I don't see how that was possible. The synopsis makes everything sound so enthralling...

"Did the handsome, wealthy doctor and his beautiful young paramour plan to kill his glamorous socialite wife? Or did the gun accidentally discharge as he claimed?"

also...

"Set against midcentury CinemaScope glamour of Hollywood, Las Vegas and Palm Springs..."

...except we get no sense of any of them as real people, just these kind of true crime caricatures. Even Barbara, the actual victim, is practically relegated to the sidelines in her own story. As for setting, there's hardly a sense of these places, either. The story could literally happen anywhere and it would not change the excitement level or the way in which the story was written.

The book moves along pretty slowly and took me a bit to get into. The personal memoir parts were distracting and in the end I feel they were not necessary. I think the story could have been tighter and more interesting had it been solely about the crime and its aftermath. The research put into telling Barbara's story is evident, and is certainly a positive I can comment on as something the author did well. I would have appreciated if the memoir-type items would have been left to the intro or conclusion.

I can't say that I would recommend this one for someone who is a huge crime buff and is used to a fast paced story. It might be a good place to start for someone who has never read true crime before, as it is not terribly graphic or messy.

Tackling the TBR Week 9: Mar 1 - March 7, 2021

   

I am now entering year three of Tackling the TBR. Slowly but surely I have made big strides in getting by TBR under control. When I first started in 2019, my TBR was topping out at over 5,000 books. I don't know that I will ever get below 500, but a #BookDragon can dream!

I will be posting on the 7th, 14th, 21st, and the last day of the month. Feel free to join in if you'd like!

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Announcement: I have added a linky to this post and will do so for future Tackling the TBRs as well. A few people expressed interest in this in one of my 'goals' posts so I thought this would be an easy way for us to all connect. I post weekly, but feel free to do whatever works for you - weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, whatever!

The link will be open the entire week.

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Previous Week's TBR Total: 2,942

Currently Reading

Books Added to TBR

Books Removed from TBR: 0

Books Read

Books DNF-ed: 0

Duplicates Removed: 0

New TBR Total: 2,939

Any of these catch your eye? Have you already read any? Let me know!

Happy Reading!

Sarah

Well Of Course...

 Heyo, so I got vaccinated yesterday and today I feel like death. I had all these grand plans for being on spring break this week, with updates, new reviews, etc. Instead, I am just going to lay in bed until I feel better.

That being said, I would 100% without a doubt get vaccinated again if I had to do it over, even knowing how shitty I would feel from the side effects. I'd rather feel crappy for a couple days than end up hospitalized with Covid, on a ventilator. It is not worth the risk to Eleanor. There are too many unknowns for long-term impacts of Covid on kids and I am not taking any chances.

I feel like I have the flu - the actual flu, complete with headaches, chills, nausea, full body aches, dizziness, and fever. Every muscle hurts - except for my calves, for some odd reason.

Even so, pleasepleaseplease, get vaccinated as soon as you can.

If you have gotten a vaccine already, how are you feeling? If you have had Covid, then also been vaccinated recently, how do the two compare, symptom/side effect-wise?

Happy Reading,
Sarah

Stacking the Shelves #136

   

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly feature co-hosted by Tynga's Reviews and Reading Reality. It is a chance to showcase all the goodies you've collected throughout the week, whether they're bought on-line or in-store, an ARC or a final copy, borrowed from a friend or the library, physical or digital, etc.

Library Treasures

Happy Reading!
Sarah