{"product_id":"queen-of-all-mayhem-the-bloodsoaked-life-and-mysterious-death-of-belle-starr-the-most-dangerous-woman-in-the-west-isbn-9780063307018","title":"Queen of All Mayhem: The Blood-Soaked Life and Mysterious Death of Belle Starr, the Most Dangerous Woman in the West","description":"\u003cp\u003eA riveting, deeply researched, blood-on-the-spurs biography of Belle Starr, the most legendary female outlaw of the American West. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOn February 3, 1889, just two days shy of her forty-first birthday, Myra Maybelle Shirley—better known at that point by her outlaw sobriquet “Belle Starr”—was blown from her horse saddle and killed by a pair of shotgun blasts, delivered by an unseen assailant, only a few miles away from her home in the Indian Territory of present-day Oklahoma. Thus ended the life of one of the most colorful, authentic, and dangerous women in the history of the American West.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhile today’s household names like Annie Oakley and Calamity Jane had dubious criminal bona fides, Belle’s were not in any doubt. This notorious gunslinger led a gang of horse thieves (a very serious crime in an era when horses were often the basis of one’s livelihood); was romantically involved with two of the West’s most legendary outlaws, Cole Younger and Jim Reed (her first husband); and participated in stickups and robberies across present-day Texas and Oklahoma. When Reed was murdered, Belle crossed into the Cherokee Nation in Indian Territory, where she assimilated into the Cherokee tribe, a matrilineal society, and soon married Sam Starr, a direct descendant of Nanye’hi, the greatest female warrior in Cherokee history.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eDane Huckelbridge, acclaimed author of \u003ci\u003eNo Beast So Fierce\u003c\/i\u003e, probes a life rich in contradictions and intrigue. Why did a woman who had considerable advantages in life—a good family, a decent education, solid marriage prospects, a clear path to financial security—choose to pursue a life of crime? The life of Belle Starr, the Bandit Queen, is one of almost endless trauma: the horrors of the Civil War, which destroyed her hometown and killed her beloved brother, Bud; the untimely deaths of her first two husbands, both of them murdered; a stint in Detroit’s notorious women’s prison. Her career coincided with those of Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and yet Belle Starr was a very different sort of feminist icon.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eQueen of All Mayhem\u003c\/i\u003e is a triumph of American history biography, revealing one of the most-mythologized figures of Western lore as she truly was.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis definitive look at the real Belle Starr separates fact from fiction to explore:\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eA True Female Outlaw:\u003c\/b\u003e Unlike contemporaries like Annie Oakley, Belle Starr’s criminal bona fides were never in doubt, from leading horse thieves to her romantic involvement with the legendary Cole Younger.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eThe Civil War's Influence:\u003c\/b\u003e Discover how the horrors of the war, which destroyed her hometown and killed her beloved brother, set a woman of privilege on a path of rebellion and crime.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eIndian Territory Life:\u003c\/b\u003e Explore her assimilation into the Cherokee tribe, a matrilineal society where she married Sam Starr—a descendant of the nation’s greatest female warrior—and carved out her own domain.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eA 19th-Century Anomaly:\u003c\/b\u003e Go beyond the mythology to understand the complex woman who defied expectations to become a very different kind of icon from her contemporaries, like Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e | \u003cp\u003e“Dane Huckelbridge’s \u003cem\u003eQueen of All Mayhem\u003c\/em\u003e deftly delivers on its promise to thrill readers with the story of the most dangerous woman in the West in the late 1800s. Belle Starr was the wildly famous female outlaw you’ve likely never heard of. But this is more than just a rollicking recounting of a villainess who rode sidesaddle with a gun strapped to her hip. It’s an exploration of \u003cem\u003ewhy\u003c\/em\u003e criminals turn out to be criminals.”  - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eKate Winkler Dawson, author of American Sherlock and The Sinners All Bow\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Dane Huckelbridge's engaging biography of Belle Starr—a female outlaw who gained notoriety for her criminal activities in the second half of the nineteenth century—reveals surprising new insights about a spirited woman who defied gender norms.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eAmanda Bellows, author of The Explorers: A New History of America in Ten Expeditions\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"A satisfying exploration of the life of the sassy bandit queen.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Huckelbridge has conjured up one heck of a Wild West tale about a 'whiskey-drinking, horse-thieving, gunslinging double widow' that is chock-full of Western lore and nasty desperadoes. . . . The elusive, colorful story of a rare outlaw, told with brio.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"An exuberant and highly entertaining biography of one of the greatest of all US folk heroes. Dane Huckelbridge's deft deep-dive into the hard-living, gun-slinging life of Belle Starr sorts facts from fiction, and is a most welcome addition to the male-dominated history of the American West.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eKatie Hickman, author of Brave Hearted and She-Merchants\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Dane Huckelbridge's thrilling and complex account of the remarkable female crime boss Belle Starr left me astonished—and completely upended much of what I \u003cem\u003ethought\u003c\/em\u003e I knew of the history of the Wild West.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eDan Chaon, author of Sleepwalk\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“[A] well-executed book . . . Dane Huckelbridge . . . admirably tackles the arduous task of separating fact from fiction in reconsidering a larger-than-life personality. His work serves as both a revealing biography and a fascinating true-crime mystery.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBookreporter.com\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“[A] notorious Wild West outlaw gets her due . . . Huckelbridge’s well-researched account excels at sorting fact from embellishment as he verifies the truth and offers possibilities when proof cannot be found.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eWashington Post\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Zesty and a tad daredevilish . . . Dane Huckelbridge relates the events of [Belle’s] life with whip-cracking energy and a sprawling exuberance for the messiness of the American experiment in the 19th century.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eWall Street Journal\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"William Morrow","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44890899284197,"sku":"NP9780063307018","price":28.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780063307018.jpg?v=1730234304","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/queen-of-all-mayhem-the-bloodsoaked-life-and-mysterious-death-of-belle-starr-the-most-dangerous-woman-in-the-west-isbn-9780063307018","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}