Truth about Handguns: Exploding the Myths, Hype, and Misinformation

A very engaging book. I read it in one sitting and if I were a more demonstrative person, I would have been pounding the arm of my recliner in agreement with Mr. Thomas' take on gun faddism, stopping power arguments and the nuts and bolts of handgun selection. As an active gunwriter, I found that many of his experiences, observations, and prejudices mirror my own. In 1997, he was a bit ahead of the times. Since then, the double action pistols he favors have proliferated and become generally accepted by officialdom and the shooting public. The number of people owning and routinely carrying handguns has multiplied many times over and there is a strong trend toward pocketable,double action only pistols. Jacketed truncated cone bullets-deplored by Mr. Thomas, have largely given way to designs with feed-friendly rounded ogives . Nevertheless, the same myths, hype and misinformation still hold force and have become even more rude and contentious with the explosion of internet gunchat forums. The Truth About Handguns remains timely, topical and very entertaining. It provides intellectual body armor for those comtemplating acquisition of a defensive handgun or an excursion into the chaotic world of internet chatrooms.

Unfortunately this is a hard book to find, I got my used copy from England! It was well worth the wait, because the book is great and the author with his unique and entertaining style does cover all the aspects of modern handguns: capacity, caliber, penetration, stopping power, design, pistoleros, even a trivia quiz. No myths, dogmas, misunderstandings, "commonsense" remain unshaken. Since this is a hunting country around here, I did not have many opportunities to learn about handguns, but this book (just as one of the reviewers mentions this in a less than complimentary way) almost feels like the author is sitting across from you at a table, well, sipping on some drinks. It sure feels better this way than the feeling of looking up to some lecturing stand.

This book is a 300lb counter-balance to gun magazine fluff. Mr. Thomas does a nice, rather entertaining job of bursting our collective bubble on the effectiveness of handgun cartridges. He lets us know that many different types of handguns may indeed be suitable for self-defense though are favorites certainly aren't perfect. And, that handguns just aren't very effective at stopping a determined attacker. I wish more people in the gun community had the more realistic perspective offered by this book. -- An intelligent and entertaining read.If you are looking for another reality check, consider Guns Save Lives by Roger Waters.

Mr. Thomas' book would make a great introduction for someone interested in buying a first handgun. If he had only written it about ten years earlier, I could have saved quite a bit of money and avoided some purchasing mistakes. In addition, his chapter on Alvin York's courageous actions during World War One are a must read.

...that's what Duane Thomas does in THE TRUTH ABOUT HANDGUNS, he gets it right. This is a great little book that addresses many of the predjuices and misconceptions that gun owner's and gun "experts" have about handguns. Duane is obviously someone who has developed his credentials and gathered his information from actually working with guns as opposed to those whose only claim to expertise is reading about guns and watching lots of action movies (don't get me started on the inaccuracies of firearms in action movies). One of the things I appreciate most about the book is the clear separation Duane draws between fact and his opinion. When it's fact he tells you so and when something is his opinion he's fair enough to make that clear also. His writing style is casual and engaging - just the way it should be for a book like this. By the time I was finished I had not only learned something about handguns but I also felt I'd gotten to know Duane, an unexpected bonus.