The best books on the Wild West and the ladies who rule it

If you are up for a little journey into the Weird West, let Nettie Lonesome be your guide. She is anything but the traditional ‘Cowboy’ being a queer, biracial, young woman. This book is a different kind of coming-of-age story—a tougher one, which really takes the reader on a rollercoaster ride. For me, the biggest appeal of this book is the main character. Nettie is a special breed of Ranger who discovers there is more to this world than heaven and earth. There are monsters hiding in the shadows, and Nettie finds she has a particular talent for dealing with them. When it comes to queens of the Weird West, Nettie belongs to be among them. Even if she does prefer to dress as a man.

Being a really big fan of the TV Show Firefly, I felt a need to mention at least one of the comics that were written after it was canceled. Perhaps not the most conventional recommendation, but I thought Cowboys in Space was a good fit for my list. And where would I ever find more well-rounded strong female characters? Zoe, Inara, Kaylee, and even River all embody different elements of strength in women who try to survive in a futuristic frontier world. These four fierce ladies take us on adventures full of hijinks and shenanigans through space. Serenity: Those Left Behind is a well-written and beautifully illustrated story about a lovable band of intergalactic scoundrels. 

Not every fairytale ends with the Prince swooping in to save the troubled maiden. Six-Gun Snow White is no damsel in distress. Valente took a traditional children’s story and turned it into a very dark Western Tale. The biracial heroine, who neither belongs in the white world of her father nor in the Native American world of her mother, struggles to keep one step ahead of the wicked witch stepmother. The flowery unique tone of the writing still gives the novel a hint of the children’s tale it was based on, and might not be for everyone. To me, Snow White—who was ironically named for her dark skin—is one of the strong women in the Wild West that definitely deserves a mention.

“Margaret Parker and Hattie LaCour never intended to turn outlaw,” but sometimes life just hands you a rough deal. Especially if you are a woman in the Wild West. This novel is an interesting journey of strong women choosing to take fate into their own hands. They don’t want to end up on their backs to make money, and decide they rather take the money they feel the world owes them. Heresy is a classical Wild West tale with a bit of a female twist. A good read for any lover of this genre.

I’ll tell you a secret… I wasn’t sure if I was going to recommend this book when I first started it. I only recently read it, and it took me a looooong time to get into the story. The writing didn’t draw me in, to begin with, but eventually, it grabbed me and I decided this novel belonged on my list. The characters are really well-rounded and it was Clara Allen who stood out for me. If I wanted to mention the strong women of the Wild West, I could not leave her out. She is clever, brave, and down-to-earth. The whole novel is a rather epic adventure, and though it is written from a very masculine perspective, the women do shine in their own way.