A fascinating and detailed history of the Wild West through a wide range of stories. I knew little of American history and these stories have inspired me to read more o the subject. That you to Net Galley for an audio arc in exchange for an honest review.

Engaging and comprehensive history of the Old West of the US.
Great detail and gives you deep dive on stories you know and others that are new.
Each story is a great length and you can listen for short or long journeys.
Would recommend.

My knowledge of the early settlers and the ‘Wild West’ is limited and doubtless coloured by so called cowboy films, popular in the 1950s and 1960s. However, it’s a subject that interests me, not least because I discovered my ethnicity is nearly 25% Native American.

I’ve realised as the years have gone by that history is very subjective. Particularly in the case if the first so called settlers in the USA. Regardless of which European country they came from, they colonised and decimated the native population. And they did so with impunity and a strong sense of entitlement. Rather than learn from the indigenous population, many of whom were willing to help once their initial suspicions were allayed, the ‘settlers’ dominated and controlled.

I’ve really enjoyed this account which is a wide ranging variety of stories which are vaguely familiar mixed with the totally unknown. There’s a real sense of adventure and discovery and as a taster for what life was really like, this is an excellent place to start. The narration is superb and I felt part of the journey with these early travellers.

I'm a huge history lover but as an irish woman I admit I know very little about American history. Any books I have tried to read on the subject seem a little too based and self indulgent so I was expecting more of the same from this audio book.

I was presently surprised. It lays out the facts and allows the listener to make up their own mind. Devoting equal pages to for example the Donner Party and The Trail of Tears.

I enjoyed hearing stories of the past I never would have known about. A great mix of well known characters from the wild west and lesser known but equally important people and events.

It has encouraged me to read more books on this subject in the future

A brisk and fun introduction to a subject as vast as its landscape. I'm sure more serious scholars of the period will baulk at its focus on the famous legends rather than the more prosaic forces of history, but Nolan's trick is to use the former as a way into the latter. He remembers why people are fascinated by the Old West and doesn't tell them off for it.