Was Billy the Kid the most romantic of Western desperadoes or a vicious killer? Ever since the Kid was shot by Pat Garrett in 1881, historians, storytellers, and filmmakers have been recounting and reinventing his life. In 1983 Jon Tuska published his first edition of Billy the Kid, and it was immediately recognized as the most accurate account yet produced. Choice called it A magnificent tour de force and a model for others who would study legendary heroes of the American West.

In this new edition, Tuska reexamines the Kid's life and legend, and he analyzes the numerous histories, novels, films, and other interpretations of the Kid. He points out the errors of earlier materials as well as those perpetuated in the last 12 years. As with the earlier volume, this is the last word on the Western figure who still captures the public imagination beyond all others. For public libraries and all students and scholars of the American West and American Popular Culture.