True West

William R. Handley is an associate professor of English at the University of Southern California. He is the author of Marriage, Violence, and Nation in the American Literary West. Nathaniel Lewis is an associate professor of English at Saint Michael's College and the author of Unsettling the Literary West: Authenticity and Authorship (Nebraska 2003).

"True West reminds us that the relentless search for authenticity is a quest for something that is elusive—and perhaps wholly illusory."—Jonathan Kirsch, Los Angeles Times Book Review "True West is a herald of change in the air—a promise of a regenerated critical assault on literature that may be western but is also among the finest being produced in English today, and to be valued for that as much or more than for its regional provenance."—Lee Clark Mitchell, Western American Literature "The approaches as well as the topics are wide-ranging, up-to-date, and presented in innovative ways. . . . I find True West among the most provocative collections I recently have read. I recommend it highly."—Ann Ronald, Western Historical Quarterly "At last, William Handley and Nathaniel Lewis have tackled the slippery slope of what authenticity means to the West. . . . [An] excellent first work in the daunting task of exploring the deep interweaving between authenticity and our frontier origins."—Kevin Britz, Journal of Arizona History "The fifteen essays in this outstanding collection clarify how authenticity has functioned in cultural and literary settings. Instead of simply distinguishing the 'fake' from the 'authentic,' they explore the nature and consequences of quests for and claims to authenticity. Readers interested in the Great Plains will find rewarding essays on literature, environment, and the uses of American Indian history. . . . Thematically tight and imaginatively broad, a testament to the skill and vision of its editors. An extensive bibliography enhances its usefulness for scholars."—Ellen Baker, Great Plains Quarterly