The American West

The American West by William Targ

A Treasury of Stories, Legends, Narratives, Songs, and Ballads of Western America

If you love the color and excitement of the West, here is your book! In this volume you'll find the West portrayed in fiction and fact, in prose and song. It is a carefully chosen collection of some of the very best writing about the West, both past and present. There are "Wild West" stories, funny stories, factual narratives of stirring events in Western history and legend, and a group of authentic Western songs and ballads.

William Targ, the editor, knows the vast literature of the West. It has been his aim to include in this book a wide variety of material, while insisting on its accuracy in painting a word portrait of the region and its people.

The book is divided into three sections; the first contains short stories; the second non-fiction dealing with people, places and Western history; and the third is devoted to songs and ballads.

Some of the stories in the first section are:

THE TWO-GUN MAN, by Stewart Edward White

THE BRIDE COMES TO YELLOW SKY, by Stephen Crane

BAR-NOTHING'S HAPPY BIRTHDAY, by Eugene Cunningham

GHOST OF THE CIMARRON, by Harry Sinclair Drago

WHEN A DOCUMENT IS OFFICIAL, by Frederic Remington

THE COME-ON, by Eugene Manlove Rhodes

THE SUN-DOG TRAIL, by Jack London

Among the non-fiction pieces is a brilliant account of Custer's last battle by Frederic P. Van de Water; the thrilling story of the expeditions of Lewis and Clark, Fremont, and Pike by Henry Howe; "The Naming of Death Valley," by C. B. Glasscock; and a sketch of such notorious Western gunmen as the James brothers, the Youngers and the Daltons by William McLeod Raine.

The long list of verse includes such favorites as "I Ride an Old Paint," "As I Walked Out in the Streets of Laredo," and "Whoopee, Ti Yi Yo, Git Along, Little Dogies." The editor has added a fascinating Intro-diction, Notes and a Glossary of Western words and phrases.

Hardcover with dust jacket

Author: William Targ

Edition/Year: 1946, The World Publishing Company

Condition: Good vintage condition, dust jacket shows obvious signs of wear

Dimensions: 8.5" x 6"