The War Wagon

Originally published as "Badman," The War Wagon is a good, hard-hitting western novel by Clair Huffaker that was later turned into a John Wayne western. Jack Tawlin is an infamous gunfighter, known all over the west for his ability with a gun. Fresh out of prison, his younger brother, Jess, and a storekeeper, Snyder, approach Tawlin with a plan to knock off a gold shipment. The catch? The gold is transported in an iron stagecoach with four guards inside, a rifleman on top, and twenty riders escorting the shipment from town to town. Against the odds, Tawlin teams up with Snyder and his motley crew for a chance at almost a million in gold. Having seen the movie and read Huffaker's other novels, I thought this was a safe bet, and it is. Good action, developed characters, and enough twist and turns so you're never quite sure who's on who's side. And besides, how can you wrong with a heist story set in the wild west? The War Wagon in movie form has been altered quite a bit, but Huffaker's basic idea is there. Characters change and are combined some, but it's also worth checking out. Kirk Douglas joins Wayne, Keenan Wynn, Bruce Cabot, Robert Walker JR, and Howard Keel in the highly enjoyable 1967 western.