Rating: 
Summary: An examination of Wyatt Earp
Review: Last read anything of Wyatt Earp back in the late fifties with S.N.Lake's 'biography' 'He Carried a Six Shooter' Neville Ltd, London 1953. I soon realised that the content contained a 'degree' of exaggeration and embellishment. Having now read 'The Life Behind the Legend' I was impressed with the fine and detailed account written by Casey Tefertiller. In my view it presents a balanced account of the events of the time and does not avoid aspects of Wyatt Earp's life which conflict with the idolised image portrayed by Lake. An excellent and informative read.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent!!
Review: Mr Tefertiller's book is by far,one of the most accurate books on Wyatt Earp's life.Without any prejudice, Mr Tefertiller presents facts,reports,paper articles and all sorts of sources of information which makes the book a fascinating journey thru Earp's life.I was surprised by the enormous information Mr Tefertiller brings about Wyatt Earp"s last days in California.This book is a must for ,not only Wyatt Earp's followers but for Old West in general.
Rating:
Summary: The most accurate, unbiased book on Wyatt ever written.
Review: Mr. Tefertiller has done an outstanding job of research and uncovered long forgotten newspaper articles giving an unbiased account of life in Tombstone and the events surrounding the most famous gunfight of the old west.
Rating: 
Summary: A well written analysis of an extremely complex man
Review: Tefertiller sees Earp's story in a broader context--the role of a just man in an unjust society, or how to maintain order when the laws clearly don't work. Seen in that light, the story of what happened at the OK corral deserves a wide audience. This is a fine, well written book, offering a balanced view of Earp and his family. I found two things of particular interest: Tefertiller's portrayal of Josie Marcus ("Sadie," Wyatt's commonlaw wife) as a real shrew in her later years, and his sympathetic view of Stuart Lake, Wyatt's first real biographer.
Rating:
Summary: Balanced, well documented
Review: Tefertiller's biography of Wyatt Earp appears to me to be the best balanced and well documented book about the Old West legend. Timothy Fattig's upcoming version may outdo it but this one is the best yet published. It relies heavily on primary source documents such as newspaper accounts and court transcripts. Rather than simply rattle them off, though, Tefertiller develops the background information each step of the way through the text. In this way, he expertly examines the context of conflicting source documents, such as the competing and wildly polar opposite newspapers in Tombstone.To empathize with the object of a biography is the natural inclination of writers and Tefertiller is no exception. While he does a good job of being as objective as possible most of the time, and reveals the real Wyatt Earp warts and all, he does toward the end seem a little too given to accept Earp's own public statements as unswervingly honest. With regard to the incident late in his life when he participated in a gambling swindle, to this reader at least, Earp's testimony seems obviously disingenuous. That single criticism aside, if there is one book you read on the topic, let this be it. Not only does the reader derive a mostly objective appreciation for Wyatt Earp but a much clearer picture of the Old West culture in which he lived.
Rating:
Summary: Earp Finally Meets Professional Historian
Review: The best and most satisfying aspect of this book is that Tefertiller, unlike almost every other author to date, has no axe to grind. For once the Earp legend -- so long the arena of the rabid pro-Earp and anti-Earp factions -- is treated by a professional historian with care, caution and the deliberate intention of setting the record straight regarding the controversial life of Wyatt Earp. What emerges, however, is not dry, dense or academically lifeless. On the contrary, the settling of highly debated issues, the unraveling of mythology and the clarity Tefertiller brings to the true story of "The Fighting Earps" makes for a great and insightful read. The story of the American west has too long been the province of the well-intentioned but not necessarily historically skilled amateur. Tefertiller showcases how much more fascinating characters and situations can be when legitiamtely and carefully showcased. In all, a highly commendable and most satisfying read.
Rating:
Summary: "NO DUTY TO RETREAT"
Review: THE REAL SIGNIFICANCE OF CASEY TEFERTILLER'S NEW BOOK ON WYATT EARP IS THAT HE POINTS OUT IN tHE SHOOTOUTS AT (NEAR) THE O.K. CORRAL AND IRON SPRINGS, WYATT WAS UNSCATHED, CREATING THE MYTHIC LEGEND WHICH SURROUNDS HIM TODAY. AND BY DEFENDING HIMSELF, WYATT ESTABLISHED THE TRADITION OF "NO DUTY TO RETREAT" WHEREBY A LAWMAN COULD DEFEND HIMSELF WITH IMPUNITY WHETHER HE WAS THE FIRST OR EVEN THE SECOND TO DRAW. MUCH OF THE WYATT EARP MYSTIQUE TODAY IS DUE TO THAT UNIQUE TURNING POINT IN AMERICAN WESTERN HISTORY, WHICH ALL PREVIOUS WRITERS SEEM TO HAVE MISSED.. ITS IMPACT ON LAW ENFORCEMENT HAS BEEN INCALCULABLE. AMERICA FOR THE FIRST TIME REJECTS THE ENGLISH TRADITION OF LAWMEN AS COWARDS. WYATT WOULD NOT RUN FROM A GOOD FIGHT. HE SOUGHT JUSTICE WITHIN AND WITHOUT THE LAW. THEREIN LIES THE CONTROVERSY. SIGNED. EARL CHAFIN, GRAD USC AB HISTORY MEMBER. W.O.L.A, WYATT EARP SOCIETY, PHI ALPHA THETA (NATL HISTORY HONORARY) COMMENTS: BAUDWAY4ME@aol.com or PACDIGITAL@aol.com
Rating:
Summary: A great adventure story
Review: This book is a real page turner and every bit as exciting as any western movie ever filmed.It makes you wonder why so many films and pulp novels opted for the made up "Knight of prairies" type nonsense and didn't stick closer to the facts...they're much more interesting! Of course in all fairness,the name of Wyatt Earp became more of a symbol in all the years it was altered and added to by TV and the movies...the true history being so lost that the name became *only* a symbol,and nothing more,for some mythic wild west that everyone has heard of but really knows little about.Mr. Tefertiller has made a very noble attempt to clear that up with this book.Naysayers and Earp bashers would have you believe that this book is "Hero worship"...I say...nonsense.This book paints a portrait of a very complex and flawed man.The Earps bad past isn't glossed over or covered up.One gets the feeling that either the naysayers don't like this book because 1. It doesn't specifically bash the Earp's (instead portraying them as human beings with human weaknesses) and/or 2.It does bash the Clantons McLaury's and Behan (very fair in the light of how absolutely worthless they were..Yes,I lean more toward the pro-Earp side)Rabidly Pro or Anti Earp camps of course can always decide for themselves...the text is fair and accurate. A great page turner of an adventure story....all the more so because it really happened!
Rating:
Summary: A great adventure story
Review: This book is a real page turner and every bit as exciting as any western movie ever filmed.It makes you wonder why so many films and pulp novels opted for the made up "Knight of prairies" type nonsense and didn't stick closer to the facts...they're much more interesting! Of course in all fairness,the name of Wyatt Earp became more of a symbol in all the years it was altered and added to by TV and the movies...the true history being so lost that the name became *only* a symbol,and nothing more,for some mythic wild west that everyone has heard of but really knows little about.Mr. Tefertiller has made a very noble attempt to clear that up with this book.Naysayers and Earp bashers would have you believe that this book is "Hero worship"...I say...nonsense.This book paints a portrait of a very complex and flawed man.The Earps bad past isn't glossed over or covered up.One gets the feeling that either the naysayers don't like this book because 1. It doesn't specifically bash the Earp's (instead portraying them as human beings with human weaknesses) and/or 2.It does bash the Clantons McLaury's and Behan (very fair in the light of how absolutely worthless they were..Yes,I lean more toward the pro-Earp side)Rabidly Pro or Anti Earp camps of course can always decide for themselves...the text is fair and accurate. A great page turner of an adventure story....all the more so because it really happened!
Rating:
Summary: Hard to put down
Review: This book takes the black and white of the Old West and colorizes it. The extensive footnoting shows the depth of Mr. Tefertiller's research. Make this one of the first books you read about Wyatt Earp. You'll come away with a knowledge of who he was and what his life was like.
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