This is the first book by Russell I've read since The Sparrow and Children of God, which I loved. Her writing is witty and on-point as in the other books, but the topic just wasn't as interesting. The book details Doc Holliday's life until just before he and the Earps leave for Tombstone but I think there's a reason other accounts tend to focus on the events at Tombstone; they're just more interesting than anything that happens in the course of this novel. If you want a detailed backstory for those characters then I would certainly recommend this book. Otherwise I would probably try something else.
This author has an engaging command of the English language. She brings the whole era of the post-Civil War to life with the clink of the coins and the arguing amongst the drunken cowboys in Dodge City, Kansas. Russell tells the life of Doc Holliday before he became famous, while he was a consumptive dentist struggling to stay alive with a debilitating illness.
Because of the research done by this author, this book reads like what Doc would have said and thought. He started life as a Georgian gentleman who earned his dentistry degree in Pennsylvania after the Civil War. I was amazed to hear Holliday's MD-uncle tell his nephew to get a degree in dentistry because medicine was generally practiced by quacks and snake-oil sellers! One of the reasons that Holliday was so successful in dentistry school was because of his skill as a pianist (his finger dexterity).
Soon after Holliday set up practice, he was diagnosed with tuberculosis and encouraged to move west for the drier and cleaner air. He moved to Texas, but a national depression soon removed the opportunity to have a dentistry practice. As a youngster, he'd learned to play cards at home; now he used that skill to cover his living expenses.
I happen to be listening to this book and the reader is Mark Bramhall. His gritty voice adds a great deal to the story. Much of this book is about the relationship between the Earp brothers with Doc. One point the author makes is that Doc and Morgan were really the closer friends (not Wyatt and Doc, as many presume). Once Morgan died, the other Earps and Doc separated and lost connection with each other.
This book portrays Doc as a gentle, generous Southerner who could become angry quickly and then released his anger just as quickly. He was also the most intelligent man in his circle of friends. One thing I noticed, however, is that the story is fascinating at first and then it drags along for a while. The closing chapters are of great interest (again). One fascinating fact the author shares is that Margaret Mitchell (author, Gone With the Wind) was a Holliday relative and she heard many stories about the Hollidays and incorporated them into the background of her novel.
This story, based on private diaries and papers, gives a truer biography of Doc Holliday than most. The author states that Bat Masterson wrote a defamatory story of Doc that has stood as the truth for about 100 years. The author wrote this book in order to give a more honest explanation of Holliday's short life.
Because of the research done by this author, this book reads like what Doc would have said and thought. He started life as a Georgian gentleman who earned his dentistry degree in Pennsylvania after the Civil War. I was amazed to hear Holliday's MD-uncle tell his nephew to get a degree in dentistry because medicine was generally practiced by quacks and snake-oil sellers! One of the reasons that Holliday was so successful in dentistry school was because of his skill as a pianist (his finger dexterity).
Soon after Holliday set up practice, he was diagnosed with tuberculosis and encouraged to move west for the drier and cleaner air. He moved to Texas, but a national depression soon removed the opportunity to have a dentistry practice. As a youngster, he'd learned to play cards at home; now he used that skill to cover his living expenses.
I happen to be listening to this book and the reader is Mark Bramhall. His gritty voice adds a great deal to the story. Much of this book is about the relationship between the Earp brothers with Doc. One point the author makes is that Doc and Morgan were really the closer friends (not Wyatt and Doc, as many presume). Once Morgan died, the other Earps and Doc separated and lost connection with each other.
This book portrays Doc as a gentle, generous Southerner who could become angry quickly and then released his anger just as quickly. He was also the most intelligent man in his circle of friends. One thing I noticed, however, is that the story is fascinating at first and then it drags along for a while. The closing chapters are of great interest (again). One fascinating fact the author shares is that Margaret Mitchell (author, Gone With the Wind) was a Holliday relative and she heard many stories about the Hollidays and incorporated them into the background of her novel.
This story, based on private diaries and papers, gives a truer biography of Doc Holliday than most. The author states that Bat Masterson wrote a defamatory story of Doc that has stood as the truth for about 100 years. The author wrote this book in order to give a more honest explanation of Holliday's short life.
This was the February pick in my online book club, The Reading Cove. I thought it was a snooze-fest. It did get off to a promising start with Doc Holliday's early years, but this suffered under a very sluggish and rambling narrative. I quickly lost interest in all the drinking, gambling, etc.
I'd recommend this for die-hard Western or Doc Holliday fans.
I'd recommend this for die-hard Western or Doc Holliday fans.
Loved reading this book. So interesting reading about life in Dodge city. The ending left me wanting more!
Book Description
Born to the life of a Southern gentleman, Dr. John Henry Holliday arrives on the Texas frontier hoping that the dry air and sunshine of the West will restore him to health. Soon, with few job prospects, Doc Holliday is gambling professionally with his partner, Mária Katarina Harony, a high-strung, classically educated Hungarian whore. In search of high-stakes poker, the couple hits the saloons of Dodge City. And that is where the unlikely friendship of Doc Holliday and a fearless lawman named Wyatt Earp beginsâ before the gunfight at the O.K. Corral links their names forever in American frontier mythologyâwhen neither man wanted fame or deserved notoriety.
My Review
Russell really brings to life the characters of Doc Holliday, Wyatt Earp, Morgan Earp and Kate, his lady friend. Her descriptions make you feel like you are in Dodge City in the 1870's where Doc worked as a dentist. The character development is excellent and there is a great mixture of fact and fiction. I learned a lot about his early years and his mother, Alice, who died of tuberculosis. If was from his mother that he acquired tuberculosis which constantly troubled him and took his life too early. He was an excellent piano player and I could imagine him playing in the saloons. I now look forward to reading Epitaph which is the sequel to Doc and highly recommend these books to those who love westerns.
Born to the life of a Southern gentleman, Dr. John Henry Holliday arrives on the Texas frontier hoping that the dry air and sunshine of the West will restore him to health. Soon, with few job prospects, Doc Holliday is gambling professionally with his partner, Mária Katarina Harony, a high-strung, classically educated Hungarian whore. In search of high-stakes poker, the couple hits the saloons of Dodge City. And that is where the unlikely friendship of Doc Holliday and a fearless lawman named Wyatt Earp beginsâ before the gunfight at the O.K. Corral links their names forever in American frontier mythologyâwhen neither man wanted fame or deserved notoriety.
My Review
Russell really brings to life the characters of Doc Holliday, Wyatt Earp, Morgan Earp and Kate, his lady friend. Her descriptions make you feel like you are in Dodge City in the 1870's where Doc worked as a dentist. The character development is excellent and there is a great mixture of fact and fiction. I learned a lot about his early years and his mother, Alice, who died of tuberculosis. If was from his mother that he acquired tuberculosis which constantly troubled him and took his life too early. He was an excellent piano player and I could imagine him playing in the saloons. I now look forward to reading Epitaph which is the sequel to Doc and highly recommend these books to those who love westerns.
