“WANTED. YOUNG, SKINNY, WIRY FELLOWS. NOT OVER 18. MUST BE EXPERT RIDERS. WILLING TO RISK DEATH DAILY. ORPHANS PREFERRED.”—California newspaper help-wanted ad, 1860The Pony Express is one of the most celebrated and enduring chapters in the history of the United States, a story of the all-American traits of bravery, bravado, and entrepreneurial risk that are part of the very fabric of the Old West. No image of the American West in the mid-1800s is more familiar, more beloved,...

A horror-filled tale of crumbling catacombs and the darkest family secrets, set in the picturesque hills of Sicily, from the acclaimed author of Road of Bones and All Hallows.Across Italy there are many half-empty towns, nearly abandoned by those who migrate to the coast or to cities. The beautiful, crumbling hilltop town of Becchina is among them, but its mayor has taken drastic measures to rebuild?selling abandoned homes to anyone in the world for a single Euro, as long as the bu...

"If men no longer know what they are looking at, there may well be unicorns in the world yet, unknown and glad of it."Living in peace in her lilac wood, the Unicorn didn't know the world had changed, or that anything had happened to the rest of her kind. Overhearing a chance conversation, she resolves to venture out and discover the truth. The road is dangerous, and the risks are great. If she fails, then unicorns will be lost. Forever.A modern fairy tale, ...

He was the greatest Indian warrior of the nineteenth century. His victory over General Custer at the battle of Little Bighorn in 1876 was the worst defeat inflicted on the frontier Army. And the death of Crazy Horse in federal custody has remained a controversy for more than a century.The Killing of Crazy Horse pieces together the many sources of fear and misunderstanding that resulted in an official killing hard to distinguish from a crime. A rich cast of characters, whit...

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 knowHow 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 t...

On 14 May 1804, one Captain Meriwether Lewis and his companion William Clark led a thirty-three-man expedition to the new lands of Louisiana. 8,000 miles and two years later, after rafting up the Missouri and crossing the Rocky Mountains, they reached the far side of the world, the Pacific Ocean.Fredrick Nolan explores the first US settlers of the American West, including the remarkable stories of unsung heroes and heroines, the bloody battles between settlers and the native Americ...

Discover these tales of frontier justice and life-and-death struggles will transport you to a bygone era of adventure and excitement. Originally published in 1907, Bat Masterson's gripping collection of short biographies introduces you some of the most famous lawmen and notorious outlaws of the Wild West, including cattle rustlers, sharpshooters, and gunslingers. From Doc Holliday and Wyatt Earp to lesser known figures like Luke Short, Famous Gunfighters of the Western Frontier is packed w...

"Vivid, Comprehensible . . . cuts through decades of mythmaking." —Texas MonthlyPopular culture transformed his memory into “Davy Crockett,” and Hollywood gave him a raccoon hat he hardly ever wore. In this surprising New York Times bestseller, historian Michael Wallis has cast a fresh look at the flesh-and-blood man behind one of the most celebrated figures in American history. More than a riveting story, Wallis’s David Crockett is a rev...

The True Story Behind True GritImmortalized in the classic novel and films, the real "Rooster" Cogburn was as bold, brash, and bigger-than-life as the American West itself. Now, in this page-turning account, Cogburn's great-great-grandson reveals the truth behind the fiction--and the man behind the myth. . .He was born in 1866 in Fancy Hill, Arkansas, the descendant of pioneers and moonshiners. Six foot three, dark eyed, and a dead shot with a rifle, Frankl...

An expanded edition of one of the most original and provocative works of American history of the last decade, which documents the pioneering experiences and grit of American frontier women.

A major one-volume history of the Oregon Trail from its earliest beginnings to the present, by a prize-winning historian of the American West.Starting with an overview of Oregon Country in the early 1800s, a vast area then the object of international rivalry among Spain, Britain, Russia, and the United States, David Dary gives us the whole sweeping story of those who came to explore, to exploit, and, finally, to settle there.Using diaries, journals, company and expedition r...

Cowboy and drifter Frank Clifford lived a lot of lives—and raised a lot of hell—in the first quarter of his life. The number of times he changed his name—Clifford being just one of them—suggests that he often traveled just steps ahead of the law. During the 1870s and 1880s his restless spirit led him all over the Southwest, crossing the paths of many of the era’s most notorious characters, most notably Clay Allison and Billy the Kid.More than just an entertaining and informative na...