Butch Cassidy

The True Story of an American Outlaw

By: Charles Leerhsen

Narrated by: Pete Simonelli

Charles Leerhsen brings the notorious Butch Cassidy to vivid life in this “lyrical and deeply researched” (Publishers Weekly) biography that goes beyond the movie Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid to reveal a more fascinating and complicated man than legend provides.

For more than a century the life and death of Butch Cassidy have been the subject of legend, spawning a small industry of mythmakers and a major Hollywood film. But who was Butch Cassidy, really? Charles Leerhsen, best-selling author of Ty Cobb, sorts out the facts from folklore and paints a “compelling portrait of the charming, debonair, ranch hand-turned-outlaw” (Ron Hansen, author of The Kid) of the American West.

Born into a Mormon family in Utah, Robert Leroy Parker grew up dirt poor and soon discovered that stealing horses and cattle was a fact of life in a world where small ranchers were being squeezed by banks, railroads, and cattle barons. A charismatic and more than capable cowboy - even ranch owners who knew he was a rustler said they would hire him again - he adopted the alias “Butch Cassidy,” and moved on to a new moneymaking endeavor: bank robbery. By all accounts a smart and considerate thief, Butch and his "Wid Bunch" gang eventually graduated to more lucrative train robberies. But the railroad owners hired the Pinkerton Agency, whose detectives pursued Butch and his gang relentlessly, until he and his then partner Harry Longabaugh (The Sundance Kid) fled to South America, where they replicated the cycle of ranching, rustling, and robbery until they met their end in Bolivia.

In Butch Cassidy, Leerhsen “refuses to buy into the Hollywood hype and instead offers the true tale of Butch Cassidy, which turns out to be more fascinating and fun than the myths” (Tom Clavin, bestselling author of Tombstone). In this “entertaining...definitive account” (Kirkus Reviews), he shares his fascination with how criminals such as Butch deftly maneuvered between honest work and thievery, battling the corporate interests that were exploiting the settlers, and showing us in vibrant prose the Old West as it really was, in all its promise and heartbreak.

©2020 Charles Leerhsen. All rights reserved. (P)2020 Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved.

awesome

a very good story not at all boring .I highly recommend it to anyone interested in the old west

a beautiful story beautifully told

I have read numerous biographies of Western outlaws and heroes. this is easily the best written and the best told audiobook I have encountered. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in a good tale, the early Western United States, and American superheroes.

The description of the LDS people.

Just for the record, the description of the LDS people is totally incorrect. To start off they were not trying to escape America and the reason they treated the Indians so poorly is because of how the Indians treated them when they were traveling to Utah.

Just not that interesting!

The book seems accurate and truthful but at the end of the day Butch’s life just was not that exciting. Part outlaw, frequent ranch hand, and charismatic leader. Life on either side of the law in the late 1800’s and turn of the century sounds boring, hard, and depressing.

Great book!!!

I really loved this book. It was interesting and held my attention throughout the book. I even finished it in one day.

Well done and entertaining

If you are curious about this subject, this book provides an engaging account. The subject is covered at the right level with a proper amount of anecdotes and insights. It is a balanced account and not a love letter... the good and the bad. The narration is well done.

Butch Cassidy is still a modern day hero!

sailed right thru it....going to listen again!!!
Butch Cassidy is a modern day hero...now and forever!

Great biography

Very good book. It provides a balanced look at the real Butch Cassidy, and does an excellent job at deciphering all of the myths surrounding the man.

For Hardcore fans only

Way too much padding. The interesting robbery parts are few and far between. Fanatics only

Poorly written

This book is just full of complaints. I can't even finish it because all the author does is complain.