Comments (32)

Doc

a Novel
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1 to 25 of 32 items
Dec 02, 2023lilypad_1 rated this title 2 out of 5 stars
Very violent and tedious. Agree with review just prior to this.
Jul 15, 2021Bobby_George rated this title 2 out of 5 stars
I got about half way through "Doc" and stopped reading it. At times it read like an encyclopedia entry, particularly as new characters were introduced. I also found that I really did not care about any of them. I was especially…
Dec 23, 2020kwylie04 rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
This was an absolutely phenomenal story! I've always enjoyed the raucous Westerns featuring Wyatt Earp and Doc Holiday, but it was so much fun to read about a story featuring the men behind the legends, myths and lies. An outstanding,…
Oct 06, 2019ValleriM rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
This book was fascinating! "Doc" takes place in the shadow of that death sentence called tuberculosis, which Dr. John Henry Holliday postponed for as long as he could with a mixture of gentility and bourbon. Fact and historical fiction…
Aug 15, 2019brangwinn rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Growing up near the town where Doc Holliday died, I knew little about him or Dodge City. I got all my knowledge from the TV show Gunsmoke! I had now idea that Doc Holliday had TB and how he lived for so long with it. Meeting the Earp…
Jul 21, 2019EljayJohnson rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
A fictional account of the life of Doc Holliday, it was a rich story with sly wit, great heart and colorful and complex characters. I felt cheated by the telling (or actually the non-telling) of Doc's final years and the book was a little…
Aug 05, 2017SCL_Justin rated this title 2 out of 5 stars
Doc is the story of John Holliday and how he came from the south to Dodge City and got in with the Earps. There’s a small flash forward to the O.K. Corrall and the narrator talks a bit about his eventual death too, but the bulk of the…
Sep 30, 2016wmccliment rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Really wonderful historic fiction - so well written. It was total entertainment in my opinion, the author did a superb job with her characters. It also made me curious to read an actual biography of this legendary man.
Dec 28, 2015CMLibrary_gjd rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
My new reading tastes lean toward WESTERNS recently. Starting with this superb retelling of an old, familiar story. Takes place before everybody leaves for OK. A good story about a privileged young Southerner who can't stay in the South…
Oct 29, 2015
engrossing story about a complex gunfighter who may not have been a villain at all
Oct 12, 2015RedLeaf rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Mary Doria Russell is a gifted storyteller. She presents her characters based on historic research and then creates a compelling life narrative for them. This book is not about Tombstone and the OK Corral rather it's about the period…
Aug 25, 2015thomd rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Having read two of Mary Doria Russell's previous books, both science fiction, I approached this with caution. My previous knowledge of Doc Holiday was at best a caricature. This book focuses on Doc's life in Dodge City, but touches on…
Jul 21, 2015CrochetCat374 rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Excellent fictional work about Doc Holliday that actually dispels many of the tall tales and legends that have sprung up around this consumptive, card-dealing dentist. The action is set in Dodge City, Kansas, years before the infamous…
Jun 19, 2015
Excellent book delving into the personal life of Doc Holliday by showing him not as the gunslinger we all assumed her was but as a progressive dental surgeon, a loyal and dedicated friend, a responsible community leader and an intelligent…
Apr 10, 2014
John Henry Holiday ‘Doc’ Holiday gambler, dentist, and gun fighter of OK Corral fame comes to full, fascinating, and colorful life in this fascinating historical novel. Well written and true to place and time you can almost taste the dust…
Mar 07, 2013
This was a great read. Probably my first "western." All the characters were so rich and full, that you felt like you knew what made them all click. And ultimately this book is about friendship and loyalty and the many challenges that…
arbolito
Feb 14, 2013arbolito rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
Good read if you like getting a more realistic look into what has become an overly simplified gunfight story... Doc introduces us to some very interesting characters, and mde me want to read more of Mary Doria Russel's work. I am reading…
Feb 07, 2013sschwa rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
A good book, but not as rich as A Thread of Grace.
Oct 18, 2012EndsWell rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
This was an absolutely fabulous book - one of my Top 10 for 2011.
Oct 05, 2012DeltaQueen50 rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Separating the man from the legend, Mary Doria Russell’s Doc is an extraordinary read about John Henry Holliday, better known as Doc Holliday. This book kept me glued to its pages for days. Taking the information that is known, she builds…
Sep 25, 2012Urbano rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Engrossing. I loved it.
Sep 20, 2012rhys33 rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
Well written, but the story seems to wander along aimlessly without any real direction. It has a few moments here and there, but what a snoozer! I expected much more after reading Mary Doria Russell's The Sparrow (which, by the way, is…
Aug 17, 2012Suzanne_Library rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Beautifully written. A moving portrait of human beings struggling in dehumanizing conditions, forging compassionate links with each other in spite of the difficulty and despair in their lives. Who would have imagined that a novel about…
Aug 14, 2012cebbk rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
MDR is a gifted author. The character she created for Doc via charming dialog is vivid and complex, as is his mistress. I marked many snippets of wisdom as I read and have recommended the book to many.
Jun 14, 2012kamccrory rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
This is an historical fiction book about Doc Holliday of Wyatt Earp fame. The book focuses mainly on the time he spent in Dodge City. I enjoyed the book and found the character of Doc growing on me. Mary Doria Russell is one of my…