The Wild West 365 by Michael Wallis

This gorgeous book of Wild West history is arranged in 365 entries, one for each day of the year. But where other such books merely tie a “fact to a day” this volume seeks to be something more.

Each daily entry does indeed provide an event tied to the date, as a matter of fact the entry for today’s posting is “William F. “Buffalo Bill” Cody is born in Leclaire, Iowa Territory. 1846.”

And that single line is all you get about the day.

The remainder of the page takes on mini-essay form so that the author can tell a chronological story of the Wild West that starts roughly around 1830 in the January entries and progresses to the 1930s for the December entries.

The mini-essay for February 26, tells the story of “The Rogue of the Rio Grande” Juan Nepomuceno Cortina.

His story of a bit of frontier justice that led to Texas Ranger interaction and the spawning of “Cortina’s War” was one I was unfamiliar with. Such entries leave you hungry for more.

Robert G. McCubbin, as photo-editor, also deserves equal credit for the astounding array of photographs and art in this gorgeous text.

A simply beautiful volume.

The Cowman & His Code of Ethics

“Back in the days when the cowman with his herds made a new frontier, there was no law on the range. Lack of written law made it necessary for him to frame some of his own, thus developing a rule of behavior which became known as the ‘Code of the West.’”

This non-fiction offering from noted Western historian, Ramon F. Adams, seeks to put into written form that which was never formerly circumscribed.

It is a slim volume; my autographed original copy runs to 33 pages. It has a wistful tone, and perhaps a bit of wishful thinking for “how things were.” Who am I to doubt Mr. Adams knowledge of the era?

Wishful thinking or not, it is full of lovely edicts. One could do worse than to absorb and attempt to hew to the advice within.

52 Weeks 52 Western Novels

“There is a power and beauty to a good ol’ fashioned Western that is hard to find in any other genre.”-Scott Harris

“There is blazing six-gun action on every one of the following pages. Hopefully, you will be reminded of some old friends and intrigued and excited by some new discoveries.”-Paul Bishop

The quoted salvos from the co-authors’ introductions to this book sum up what you will find within. The full-title of the book is 52 Weeks 52 Western Novels: Old Favorites and New Discoveries and that about nails it.

Hardcore Western fans, and I am wagering all genre fans in general, love a good recommendation, love a new list. We love the finger that points to a what is, hopefully, a brand-new piece of reading gold.

Often such “Best Of…” lists, no matter the genre, are mighty familiar. There are acknowledged classics to be touted and so often the heft of the list is taken up by works the devout reader has already consumed, and we are left with hopes of finding fresh titles lurking way down the list.

Here, there is a refreshingly different approach. Lonesome Dove is not listed. Not because of any perceived antipathy to Mr. McMurtry, but rather the authors seem to be saying, “We all know Lonesome Dove is brilliant, right? But how many times can we read it? What else is there?”

This approach allows the list and recommendations to breathe with fresh choices, with picks that often fall by the way side. Here, the hardcore Western fan will mostly be confronted with, “Hmm, I’d forgotten about that one” or, “Wait a minute, I never heard of this title” that sends you scrambling to the mighty Amazon or the used book store of choice.

I will not spoil what the authors have done by giving away their picks, they did the work, allow them to reap the rewards. I will add that the book’s design makes this one not only a pleasure to read, but one to browse merely for the art.

With that said, the volume is an easy no-brainer pick for all hardcore Western fans.

Disclosure: After having already read the book, and evaluated it, I have now had the pleasure of corresponding with both authors. Top-notch gents! Good men, good book. What’s not to like?