Reviews

"Charles M. Robinson... deftly balances the Rangers' more admirable exploits with darker tales of revenge, looting, and lynching... There is much to admire..."
--"The New York Times" "Book Review
""Well done and richly documented, with an impressive bibliography."
--"The Washington Post"

Whatever you may think of Chuck Norris's current TV show, Walker: Texas Ranger, it demonstrates the popularity of the Western and the strong mystique still possessed by the Texas Rangers. A small, elite Texas law enforcement agency, the Rangers have a long history whose blemishes--for example, racism--have often been ignored. Robinson, a history professor at a community college in Texas and the author of several books on the Old West (e.g., Bad Hand), has done a good job of covering the history of the Rangers from their inception in 1823 through the 1930s. He evenhandedly shows both their virtues and flaws and helps one to understand the foundations underlying the modern image. Still, if you already have a book on the Rangers, like Walter Prescott Webb's classic The Texas Rangers (1965) or John Davis's The Texas Rangers: Images and Incidents (Univ. of Texas, 1993), this title is not essential except for collections with a marked focus on regional or criminal-justice history. (Index and photos not seen.)--Charles V. Cowling, Drake Memorial Lib., Brockport, NY Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information.