This is a story about Doc Holliday - a man known to be quick at firing his gun back in the old west days. He is most famous for the shootout at the OK Corral with the Earp brothers. This book takes place in the years prior to the OK Corral shootout.Doc was very sick with tuberculosis and spent most of his life waiting to die. During this time though, he didn't sit around and wait, instead he lived a very full life.Professionally he was known as Doc because he was a dentist, however, he didn't make his name as a dentist but rather as a card shark. He could count cards and because of this he knew when to up the anty or when to fold and take his losses.He was generous with his money and once spent all he had (about 3 grand) on the wake of a friend. He also gave people dental care without asking them to pay for it.His girlfriend Kate was a prostitute, but for some reason this didn't seem to bother him much. They fought like crazy and then made up. This was the cycle of their life. In between, Kate took care of Doc when the tuberculosis started acting up.His best friends were the Earp brothers and in fact the Earp brothers considered Doc Holliday a brother himself.I picked up this book because of the author - I've read several of her other books and wanted to see what this one was like. The author did a fantastic job of re-creating the old west and bringing Doc Holliday and the Earp brothers to life. I didn't want the book to end it was so interesting to read. (And this is from someone who is not a fan of reading history.) Though I should probably note that it is a historical fiction, so it wasn't like reading straight, boring history. I was first intrigued by this book when I read the description that Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday were bothered by Johnny Horse Saunders death. I wondered why these two men would be bothered so much and decided to read the book. However, this book was about a lot more than one person's death it was also about who these two men and others were as people and what made them tick. It was a refreshing thing to read about whom these men may have been like through the written words of Mary Doria Russell beyond what they are most famous for the shoot out at OK Corral. What a refreshing book!
What do You think about Doc (2011)?
Historical fiction about Doc Holiday, liked it decided to read more by this author
—AnglicWarfare
