Billy the Kid

El Bandido Simpático

By: James B. Mills

Narrated by: Chaz Allen

Length: 22 hrs

Publisher's summary

James B. Mills has left no stone unturned in his 20-year quest to tell the complete story of Billy the Kid. He explores the Kid’s disputable origins, his family’s migration from New York into the Southwest, and how he became an orphan, as well as his involvement in the Lincoln County War, his outlaw exploits, and his dealings with Governor Lew Wallace. Mills illuminates the Kid’s relationships with his enemies, lovers, and numerous friends to contextualize the man’s character beyond his death and legacy. Most importantly, Mills is the first historian to fully detail the Kid’s relations with New Mexicans of Spanish descent.

So, the question remains, who really was the person the world knows as Billy the Kid? Was he more than a young reprobate committed to a life of crime, who relished becoming the famous outlaw and cold-blooded, self-absorbed “sociopath” or “thug” that some still prefer him—need him—to be? Or was he in fact the generally good-hearted, generous, courteous, young vigilante whom so many remembered with considerable fondness, who ultimately preferred the company of the more peaceable Hispanic population than his own Anglo people? In this groundbreaking biography, Mills takes the listener closer to the flesh-and-blood human being named Henry McCarty, alias William H. Bonney, than ever before.

The book is published by University of North Texas Press. The audiobook is published by University Press Audiobooks.

“This book is going to knock the socks off everyone who thinks they know who Billy really was.” (Bob Boze Bell, author of The Illustrated Life and Times of Billy the Kid)

"Mills' Billy the Kid will be the first resource scholars and researchers will reach for..." (True West)

"Raises the bar high for all scholars of the New Mexico outlaw...." (Western Writers of America ROUNDUP Magazine)

©2022 James B. Mills (P)2023 Redwood Audiobooks

Horrible reading

I'm sorry but the reader makes this almost unbearable. I would think that if you're going to read a book with unfamiliar place names you'd do some research to find out how to pronounce them. What's worse though is he will pronounce things correctly one sentence and the next butcher the same word. It makes listening difficult and annoying. It's really too bad because the story is interesting.

Incredible documentary!

Once I was able to get past the performance, which wasn’t easy, the story was fascinating.

Billy the Kid, El Bandido Simpatico, by James B. Mills

I love the history of the old west and have always been fascinated with Billy the Kid’s saga. I have read most, if not all, of the books written about the Kid, and I learned some things I had never knew before. Kudos to the author for his thorough research. I would have given this audio version of the book 5 stars, if not for the uneven delivery of the narrator. He mispronounced names again and again, and used a distracting rhythm throughout. Aside from the narration, I give this book the highest marks for historic accuracy and the exciting way events are depicted, making it seem to be a fictional adventure story. This is an outstanding addition to the Billy the Kid myth. Well done, Mr. Mills, well done!

The definitive Billy The Kid biography

Author James B. Mills has compiled the definitive biography for one of the greatest figures of the old west, weeding out folklore from facts about the famous outlaw. Did The Kid come face to face with another famous gunslinger, Jesse James in Las Vegas? Is there any chance The Kid didn't die in 1881, as some have speculated? These are just a few topics the author tackles in "Billy The Kid." Mills examines the evidence of Billy The Kid's birth in New York, and his eventual migration to New Mexico. After losing his mother to tuberculosis, the orphaned teenager became entangles in the Lincoln County War. The research is impressive, and Mills presents the most detailed account of Billy The Kid's short life.

Wonderful and interesting writing but annoying narration

The writing is both interesting and well-researched. It is an excellent look at Billy the Kid and the times/places in which he lived. The narration is annoying, though, because of the unnecessary and awkward pauses. At least half of these pauses come from spliced recordings where, it seems, information is being corrected or added. The book is so interesting, though, that it helps the narration more than the narration helps it.

Terrible narration

Content is great, but the narration is painfully poor. Almost impossible to listen to. It’s a shame that what could be a great book is ruined.