Rating: 
Summary: This much we know for sure
Review: Oh, history would be so much better for all of us if historians were more like Corbett. Instead of repeating the overused, well-known "facts" to describe the origin and operation of the Pony Express, Corbett delights the reader with all the "facts" he has come across in his extensive research. He makes it clear that many of these "facts" are clearly contradictory so that the reader quickly sees that there is more to the story than we learned in school. I particularly enjoyed how Corbett then carefully presented the truest picture he could, carefully documenting which sources he was using for which details. Personal interpretations are included when they are absolutely necessary but the author does not pretend to be an amateur psychiatrist or make more of his research than there is. Corbett puts the whole Pony Express venture in the context of the times when the nation was bigger than it's infrastructure could really support, when mail call at the downtown Sacramento post office resembled one in some remote army outpost. And, of course, the government, unable to keep up with the demands of the citizenry, were eager to contract with sharp entrepreneurs who offered the solution to the demand for faster communication. This is a true history book with even more appeal than popular action adventure fiction.
Rating:
Summary: This much we know for sure
Review: Oh, history would be so much better for all of us if historians were more like Corbett. Instead of repeating the overused, well-known "facts" to describe the origin and operation of the Pony Express, Corbett delights the reader with all the "facts" he has come across in his extensive research. He makes it clear that many of these "facts" are clearly contradictory so that the reader quickly sees that there is more to the story than we learned in school. I particularly enjoyed how Corbett then carefully presented the truest picture he could, carefully documenting which sources he was using for which details. Personal interpretations are included when they are absolutely necessary but the author does not pretend to be an amateur psychiatrist or make more of his research than there is. Corbett puts the whole Pony Express venture in the context of the times when the nation was bigger than it's infrastructure could really support, when mail call at the downtown Sacramento post office resembled one in some remote army outpost. And, of course, the government, unable to keep up with the demands of the citizenry, were eager to contract with sharp entrepreneurs who offered the solution to the demand for faster communication. This is a true history book with even more appeal than popular action adventure fiction.
Rating: 
Summary: Facts Separated From Myth
Review: The first chapter of "Orphans Preferred" cleverly drives home what seems to be the central point of the book: it's extremely difficult, if not impossible, to separate the "true" Pony Express from the Pony Express of our American mythology. As daunting as this task is, Corbett, on balance, does an excellent job of presenting what facts are available, as well as describing the myths of the Pony Express with good humor instead of the self-righteous outrage many authors would stoop to. The result is a fascinating book that informs and entertains. Some may call what Corbett does in "Orphans Preferred" revisionist history (the term even turns up in the book's dust jacket). I feel that this is unfair, as "revisionist history" suggests twisting history to a particular (usually political) agenda. Corbett does just the opposite by objecively presenting the facts and the myths regarding the brief but fascinating history of the Pony Express.
Rating:
Summary: Facts Separated From Myth
Review: The first chapter of "Orphans Preferred" cleverly drives home what seems to be the central point of the book: it's extremely difficult, if not impossible, to separate the "true" Pony Express from the Pony Express of our American mythology. As daunting as this task is, Corbett, on balance, does an excellent job of presenting what facts are available, as well as describing the myths of the Pony Express with good humor instead of the self-righteous outrage many authors would stoop to. The result is a fascinating book that informs and entertains. Some may call what Corbett does in "Orphans Preferred" revisionist history (the term even turns up in the book's dust jacket). I feel that this is unfair, as "revisionist history" suggests twisting history to a particular (usually political) agenda. Corbett does just the opposite by objecively presenting the facts and the myths regarding the brief but fascinating history of the Pony Express.
Rating:
Summary: Horses On The Fly
Review: This book has it all: horses, settlers, miners, indians, Mark Twain, Buffalo Bill, Wild Bill, Annie Oakley, Queen Victoria, Sir Richard Francis Burton, modest men, and immodest men telling tall-tales. What more could you ask for? The Pony Express was only in business for 18 months, from April 1860 until October 1861. I was astounded by that fact, considering the place that the institution holds in the American imagination. It was a losing proposition, financially, from the get-go, and it was quickly done in by the transcontinental telegraph and railroad. The author, Christopher Corbett, has a lot of fun trying to separate the facts from the myth. Part of the enjoyment in reading this book is provided by the over-the-top language used by newspapers of the time. For example, here is the Sacramento Daily Bee regarding the first rider out of Sacramento, William Hamilton: "...quite a crowd was in attendance who cheered lustily as Hamilton and his mettled steed dashed off at a rattling pace." It's also fun to read about Mark Twain's experiences in "Roughing It." Twain did not mind the difficulties of overland stage travel, but he was disgusted by the food served to travelers (including the Pony Express riders): "The station keeper unended a disk of last week's bread...and carved some slabs from it which were as good as Nicholson pavement..." Why is Twain included in the book? Because he actually saw Pony Express riders, and wrote accurately concerning what they did and how they did it. Twain sometimes exaggerated in the interest of literary liberality, but not in this case. The problem is, not everyone stuck to the facts. Buffalo Bill Cody, for example, although a noted indian fighter and killer of buffalo, felt the need to add to his resume by claiming he rode for the Pony Express. As a teenager, he did work as a messenger for the men who started the Pony Express, but historical evidence strongly suggests he never was an Express rider. Still, bringing Buffalo Bill into the story enables Mr. Corbett to tell us about Buffalo Bill's Wild West show, which ran for about 30 years and was extremely popular. Bill took his show to England in 1887. The Prince of Wales, Albert Edward, saw the show, and was so enthusiastic that he managed to convince his mother, Queen Victoria, to make one of her rare public appearances by coming out to Earl's Court to see the show. (Victoria had been in virtual seclusion since the death of her husband Prince Albert in 1861.) Oh, and Victoria brought along a few friends: the king of Denmark, the king and queen of Belgium, the king of Saxony, the king of Greece, and various other princes and dukes. Victoria loved the show, which featured a stagecoach holdup, a Pony Express rider, and the 26 year old sharpshooter Annie Oakley. Buffalo Bill's press agent, Arizona John Burke, ("a master of the adjective to the exclusion of other parts of speech") obviously loved the publicity. Many people tried to hitch themselves to the Pony Express star, by claiming to have been riders- including one fellow who was born in 1854, which would have made him 6-7 at the time in question! The most famous so-called "rider" was Broncho (his spelling) Charlie Miller, who was born in 1850 and died in 1955. He was 11 at the time he supposedly rode for the Pony Express, so it's a pretty safe bet that he wasn't a rider, though he may have seen a few. (He also claimed to have been born in the back of a Conestoga wagon out in California. Alas, his real name was Julius Mortimer Miller and he was born in New York City. Oh well.) At the core of this book, though, are the actual riders and the horses. The Pony Express hired the best riders around and they bought the fastest horses available. The real riders were usually quite modest. For example, Richard Cleve once told a historian that "not much interesting ever happened." He then told of one trip where he went 160 miles in a blizzard, under whiteout conditions, with a temperature of 40 below zero. "Cleve apologized for not having a more interesting story." As Mr. Corbett states, the riders may not have been orphans, but they were almost always young, wiry, expert riders...who were willing to risk death daily.
Rating: 
Summary: A very windy author...
Review: This book really was a let down. The author just can't seem to get to the point. Trivial history continually draws away from the story. I can't recommend you buy this book, let alone take the time to read it.
Rating:
Summary: THIS MUCH IS TRUE
Review: Virtually everyone has heard of the Pony Express, the thundering horses, and the spirited young men who rode risking life and limb. All have seen a multiplicity of images, the stereotypic Pony Express horse and rider, that grace a variety of corporate stationery, restaurant menus and billboards. But who really knows the truth of the history of this singularly American venture? Living in Pony Express country and having done my share of reading and having visited various Express-related sites I thought I was fairly well versed. But after reading "Orphans Preferred: The Twisted Truth and Lasting Legend of the Pony Express" by Christopher Corbett I have to admit that my supposed knowledge was more a collection of the myth surrounding this short-lived, though spectacular, chapter in history. "Orphans Preferred..." was thoroughly enjoyable read. Corbett does what all responsible authors tackling a dubious subject should do: he collects all of the information, both factual and fabricated, puts it in the hopper and does his best to sort things through. Then he leaves it to us, his readers, to maker our own conclusions. Not once in the book does Mr. Corbett claim to be totally convinced that this or that piece of information is undeniably true or undeniably false. He correctly leaves it to various quoted sources to do that. But what else could he do? The information available about the Pony Express is at best a jumbled mess. Such notables as Buffalo Bill Cody and James Butler "Wild Bill" Hickok muddied the waters with their efforts to link themselves to and take credit for various aspects of the Express. Hollywood, playing on this hearsay and extensive legend, did its best as well to further mess things up. The result: not one of us, including Author Corbett (and that made very clear by his own admission in the book), has a clear picture of what really went on. But who's really counting? Corbett does a masterful job of setting straight, at least in my mind, what is absolute fact and what is absolute fiction, leaving a considerable amount of gray area in between. Corbett eloquently points out in "Orphans Preferred..." that the legend will ride on regardless. Thank goodness it does. Legends are great so long as we know they are legends. But as Americans would we really let any of our favorite legends go, among which the Pony Express holds an honored place, without a considerable fight? John Ford's movie, "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance" perhaps says it best: "This is the west, sir. When the legend becomes fact, print the legend!" Douglas McAllister
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