Bill O'Reilly's Legends and Lies: The Real West
Written by David Fisher and Bill O'Reilly
Narrated by Tom Wopat
4/5
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About this audiobook
The must-have companion to Bill O'Reilly's historic series Legends and Lies: The Real West, a fascinating, eye-opening look at the truth behind the western legends we all think we know
How did Davy Crockett save President Jackson's life only to end up dying at the Alamo? Was the Lone Ranger based on a real lawman-and was he an African American? What amazing detective work led to the capture of Black Bart, the "gentleman bandit" and one of the west's most famous stagecoach robbers? Did Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid really die in a hail of bullets in South America? Generations of Americans have grown up on TV shows, movies and books about these western icons. But what really happened in the Wild West? All the stories you think you know, and others that will astonish you, are here--some heroic, some brutal and bloody, all riveting. Included are the legends featured in Bill O'Reilly's ten week run of historic episodic specials-from Kit Carson to Jesse James, Wild Bill Hickok to Doc Holliday-- accompanied by two bonus chapters on Daniel Boone and Buffalo Bill and Annie Oakley.
Frontier America was a place where instinct mattered more than education, and courage was necessary for survival. It was a place where luck made a difference and legends were made. Heavily illustrated with spectacular artwork that further brings this history to life, and told in fast-paced, immersive narrative, Legends and Lies is an irresistible, adventure-packed ride back into one of the most storied era of our nation's rich history.
David Fisher
David Fisher is the author or coauthor of dozens of books, including 22 New York Times bestsellers. He has worked with George Burns, Johnnie Cochran, and Terry Bradshaw, among others. He lives in New York City.
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Reviews for Bill O'Reilly's Legends and Lies
99 ratings7 reviews
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5While I have loved O'Reilly's books on Kennedy, Patton, and Lincoln, this one fell far short of those works. This book contains a brief overview of 12 western outlaws; however not much more information was provided than what I had learned in elementary school, Black Bart being the exception.
2 people found this helpful
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Good entertaining stuff. Learned a few things. Not a huge fan of the narrator launching into cowboy accents all the time for different characters, especially as they all sounded the same.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5While I have loved O'Reilly's books on Kennedy, Patton, and Lincoln, this one fell far short of those works. This book contains a brief overview of 12 western outlaws; however not much more information was provided than what I had learned in elementary school, Black Bart being the exception.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5David Fisher’s Legends & Lies: The Real West, an oversized book of 285 pages of text and historical photos, was published in 2015 as a companion piece to a television series of the same title. As such, I’m sure it provided much more detail and context than the television shows could have possibly offered. However, readers picking it up at this point, especially those who know even the basic history of the American west are likely to be at least a little underwhelmed by the book. That said, Legends & Lies does have separate chapters on the people that most of us so readily identify with the history of America’s westward expansion. Too, the chapters help the reader separate fact from myth even if they do not always provide enough context to explain effectively the motivations of everyone involved. This is very far from being the whole story, but I don’t think it pretends to be that. Legends & Lies, for the most part, delivers what it promises: a brief look at the “characters” that Hollywood and early television programming turned into mythical American heroes, be they “good guys” or “bad guys.” And, many times, they were both.The twelve chapters are these:Daniel Boone: Traitor or Patriot?David Crockett: Capitol HillbillyKit Carson: Duty Before HonorBlack Bart: Gentleman BanditWild Bill Hickok: Plains JusticeBass Reeves: The Real Lone RangerGeorge Armstrong Custer: A General’s ReckoningBuffalo Bill and Annie Oakley” The Radical OpportunistsJesse James: Bloody PoliticsDoc Holliday: Desperate MeasuresBilly the Kid: Escape ArtistButch Cassidy: The Last Man StandingBottom Line: Legends & Lies is a good place to start for readers wanting to learn more about a period of American history that still fascinates so many people all over the world. The book is both a primer and a decent jumping off spot for more focused histories on the same topic. There is certainly nothing new here, and that is likely to disappoint readers hoping to learn more about the “lies” referenced in the book’s title. Frankly, this is pop-history and it is probably more suitable for a Middle School audience than it is for an adult audience.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I found this as an audiobook at a library book sale. I've read other O'Reilly works including the "Killing" series and at least one other Legends & Lies entry. This was kind of a bittersweet read for me as there were times I thought how much my late stepfather would have enjoyed some of the entries. Many of the well known names from the wild west are included: Daniel Boone, Davy Crockett, Frank & Jesse James, Butch Cassidy, the Earps, Doc Holliday, and The Lone Ranger. I learned many interesting facts.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Excellent book on the history of our nation. Very well written.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5A nicely done book profiling twelve legends of the early years and old west of our country. Packed with information on these characters of the past supporting some of the legends along with a fair amount of debunking. And the volume to debunk is thanks to the commercial marketing that sprung up over the years from the dime novels to full blown Hollywood productions. I was familiar with some of the stories having read up on a number of the people here but the profile on the Lone Ranger was entirely new to me and entertaining.