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Bonnie and Clyde: A Biography
Motivated by greed and sadism--or perhaps by poverty and boredom--star-crossed lovers Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow set out on a series of robberies throughout the American Southwest, many of which ended in murder. Frustrated by the suffocating poverty of the Great Depression, they were especially eager to target their oppressors--banks, store owners, and at times, the police. Their numerous crimes triggered an FBI manhunt, but their Robin-Hood ethos made them heroes in the eyes of many, establishing their place as legends of American folklore. This objective volume paints a realistic picture of often-romanticized subject matter, as it explores the motivation and impact of two of the most notorious criminals in U.S. history.
Motivated by greed and sadism--or perhaps by poverty and boredom--star-crossed lovers Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow set out on a series of robberies throught the American Southwest, many of which ended in murder. Frustrated by the suffocating poverty of the Great Depression, they were especially eager to target their oppressors--banks, store owners, and at times, the police. Their numerous crimes triggered an FBI manhunt, but their Robin-Hood ethos made them heroes in the eyes of many, establishing their place as legends of American folklore. This objective volume paints a realistic picture of often-romanticized subject matter, as it explores the motivation and impact of two of the most notorious criminals in U.S. history.
Colorful narrative chapters explore the lives of Bonnie and Clyde in vivid detail, giving insight into the fear of a country gripped by Depression-era poverty, and the public's endless fascination with those that live on the outside of the law. Ready-reference features such as a timeline and glossary round out the work's accessibility, making this an ideal resource for students of American history and popular culture.
Motivated by greed and sadism--or perhaps by poverty and boredom--star-crossed lovers Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow set out on a series of robberies throught the American Southwest, many of which ended in murder. Frustrated by the suffocating poverty of the Great Depression, they were especially eager to target their oppressors--banks, store owners, and at times, the police. Their numerous crimes triggered an FBI manhunt, but their Robin-Hood ethos made them heroes in the eyes of many, establishing their place as legends of American folklore. This objective volume paints a realistic picture of often-romanticized subject matter, as it explores the motivation and impact of two of the most notorious criminals in U.S. history.
Colorful narrative chapters explore the lives of Bonnie and Clyde in vivid detail, giving insight into the fear of a country gripped by Depression-era poverty, and the public's endless fascination with those that live on the outside of the law. Ready-reference features such as a timeline and glossary round out the work's accessibility, making this an ideal resource for students of American history and popular culture.
- GenresNonfictionHistoryCrime
160 pages, Hardcover
First published May 30, 2007
2 people are currently reading
103 people want to read
About the author
Nate Hendley
31 books30 followersMy name is Nate Hendley and I am a Toronto-based journalist, writer, and speaker.
My latest book, Atrocity on the Atlantic is a full account of the torpoedo attack on Canadian hospital ship, Llandovery Castle, in the First World War. Sinking hospital ships violated international treaties, so the sub commander had his deck gun shell lifeboats containing survivors to kill any witnesses to his war crime. One lifeboat with two-dozen survivors escaped to bear witness.
The sinking was condemned by the public, press, and politicians, around the world. In 1921, the attack was prosecuted at the Leipzig War Crimes Trials (the little-known attempt to bring German war criminals to justice after the Great War). In its ruling, the Leipzig court set a legal precedent that guided subsequent war crime prosecutions, including the Nuremberg Trial.
Sadly, for all the impact it had, the Llandovery Castle tragedy soon faded from memory.
As published by Dundurn Press, my book details the attack, profiles medical staff on board the ship, and discusses the long wake of a forgotten war crime that continues to influence international law.
My last book, The Beatle Bandit, was about Matthew Kerry Smith, a troubled young man who robbed a Toronto-area bank in 1964 disguised in a Halloween mask and a "Beatles" wig. A bank patron tried to intervene and was killed in a gunfight with Smith. This murderous heist fueled a nationwide debate about guns, capital punishment, and the death penalty.
As published by Dundurn Press, The Beatle Bandit won the Crime Writers of Canada Award of Excellence for Non-Fiction 2022. It was also nominated for the Toronto Heritage Book Awards 2022.
I have written several other books, primarily in the true-crime genre. Previous books have focused on organized crime, Bonnie and Clyde, gang bosses Al Capone and Dutch Schultz, wrongful murder convictions, and cons and hoaxes, among other topics.
For more information about my books and background, visit my website at http://www.natehendley.ca
I host a blog, which can be viewed at https://crimestory.wordpress.com/
I am a member of the Canadian Freelance Guild (CFG) and the Crime Writers of Canada (CWC).
I live next-door to Jeanne, world's greatest girlfriend.
I do public presentations based on my books. For more information, contact me at: nhendley@sympatico.ca.
My latest book, Atrocity on the Atlantic is a full account of the torpoedo attack on Canadian hospital ship, Llandovery Castle, in the First World War. Sinking hospital ships violated international treaties, so the sub commander had his deck gun shell lifeboats containing survivors to kill any witnesses to his war crime. One lifeboat with two-dozen survivors escaped to bear witness.
The sinking was condemned by the public, press, and politicians, around the world. In 1921, the attack was prosecuted at the Leipzig War Crimes Trials (the little-known attempt to bring German war criminals to justice after the Great War). In its ruling, the Leipzig court set a legal precedent that guided subsequent war crime prosecutions, including the Nuremberg Trial.
Sadly, for all the impact it had, the Llandovery Castle tragedy soon faded from memory.
As published by Dundurn Press, my book details the attack, profiles medical staff on board the ship, and discusses the long wake of a forgotten war crime that continues to influence international law.
My last book, The Beatle Bandit, was about Matthew Kerry Smith, a troubled young man who robbed a Toronto-area bank in 1964 disguised in a Halloween mask and a "Beatles" wig. A bank patron tried to intervene and was killed in a gunfight with Smith. This murderous heist fueled a nationwide debate about guns, capital punishment, and the death penalty.
As published by Dundurn Press, The Beatle Bandit won the Crime Writers of Canada Award of Excellence for Non-Fiction 2022. It was also nominated for the Toronto Heritage Book Awards 2022.
I have written several other books, primarily in the true-crime genre. Previous books have focused on organized crime, Bonnie and Clyde, gang bosses Al Capone and Dutch Schultz, wrongful murder convictions, and cons and hoaxes, among other topics.
For more information about my books and background, visit my website at http://www.natehendley.ca
I host a blog, which can be viewed at https://crimestory.wordpress.com/
I am a member of the Canadian Freelance Guild (CFG) and the Crime Writers of Canada (CWC).
I live next-door to Jeanne, world's greatest girlfriend.
I do public presentations based on my books. For more information, contact me at: nhendley@sympatico.ca.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
January 30, 2024
The infamous Bonnie & Clyde of the 1930's crisscrossed southern states and the Midwest stealing and hold up crimes. In their pursuit and zeal, 12 people ended up dead at their hands.
This edition of this publisher's series is geared toward a middle to high school audience. Logistically, the paragraph compilations are long and hard to follow when you lose your place, but fairly short chapters for each section of their lives. Also, I think for dramatic affect, there could have been more photos, at least of the people involved, not necessarily of the "death scenes" keeping the audience in mind. There seemed to be many characters that were involved in their schemes and victims.
This edition of this publisher's series is geared toward a middle to high school audience. Logistically, the paragraph compilations are long and hard to follow when you lose your place, but fairly short chapters for each section of their lives. Also, I think for dramatic affect, there could have been more photos, at least of the people involved, not necessarily of the "death scenes" keeping the audience in mind. There seemed to be many characters that were involved in their schemes and victims.
March 26, 2014
A truly crazy story about two lovers bounded together by crime. All while adding more accomplices as they go along. This is such an interesting story. I can't wait to read more and do more research on these two and all those involved in their infamous story.
June 29, 2015
Those Great Depression days were really depressing. Poor Bonnie, she just wanted to be a Hollywood STAR *feels*
November 1, 2019
Hasn’t everyone heard about the iconic criminal couple, Bonnie and Clyde? What if most of the things you think you know about them is wrong? Bonnie and Clyde is the biography about the iconic duo written by Nate Hendley. The book focuses on the different stages they went through in their lives and how they ended up together. It also goes through their lives before they met each other and the crimes they committed. The book humanizes them and projects them as lovers who would do anything for each other, almost like Romeo and Juliet with a criminal twist.
The book starts off very slow and boring. The beginning is more about the backstory of Clyde’s life before he became a criminal. There are interesting things about his life that were exaggerated by the public at the time. Clyde wasn’t a macho man at all. He was intelligent, quiet, and most of his crimes were well thought out before they were committed. Clyde was involved in a lot of small crimes, and most of the stuff that made him and Bonnie famous back in the 30’s were petty thefts. The public perceived Bonnie and Clyde as heroes against the great depression. It’s cool that even though Bonnie and Clyde were criminals, they were seen as people who wouldn’t be held down by the depression. He and Bonnie’s main thefts were of small stores and little banks in small towns. I found that interesting because they are often represented as these big, tough criminals in videos and books. I was also interested in how they met, there is a lot of speculation of what really happened, but historians believe that Bonnie met Clyde through a wounded friend. Bonnie was also considered a great writer. She kept records of the day-to-day lives, and crimes she committed with Clyde. The book makes importance of the fact that Bonnie was well off as a child but chose a life of crime with Clyde. The fact that she chose the criminal life over her middle-class home shows how much she loved and cherished Clyde. They killed for each other and stopped at nothing to keep each other safe. They are a great example of what real love looks like because no matter what, they stayed together and never let the other be severely harmed.
Overall, I think this is a great book for people who like history or biographies. The book went into a lot of details about their lives that I never thought about. I also recommend this book to anyone who is interested in learning about criminals because Bonnie and Clyde are well-known, but their lives outside of love and crime are hazy. This book even talks about the lies told about their lifestyle and how they were notorious, but not as bad as they seemed. Teens and adults are a good audience for this book because they are old enough to comprehend and be interested in it. The love between them is also very inspiring, and if they weren’t real people, they would make a good romantic novel.
The book starts off very slow and boring. The beginning is more about the backstory of Clyde’s life before he became a criminal. There are interesting things about his life that were exaggerated by the public at the time. Clyde wasn’t a macho man at all. He was intelligent, quiet, and most of his crimes were well thought out before they were committed. Clyde was involved in a lot of small crimes, and most of the stuff that made him and Bonnie famous back in the 30’s were petty thefts. The public perceived Bonnie and Clyde as heroes against the great depression. It’s cool that even though Bonnie and Clyde were criminals, they were seen as people who wouldn’t be held down by the depression. He and Bonnie’s main thefts were of small stores and little banks in small towns. I found that interesting because they are often represented as these big, tough criminals in videos and books. I was also interested in how they met, there is a lot of speculation of what really happened, but historians believe that Bonnie met Clyde through a wounded friend. Bonnie was also considered a great writer. She kept records of the day-to-day lives, and crimes she committed with Clyde. The book makes importance of the fact that Bonnie was well off as a child but chose a life of crime with Clyde. The fact that she chose the criminal life over her middle-class home shows how much she loved and cherished Clyde. They killed for each other and stopped at nothing to keep each other safe. They are a great example of what real love looks like because no matter what, they stayed together and never let the other be severely harmed.
Overall, I think this is a great book for people who like history or biographies. The book went into a lot of details about their lives that I never thought about. I also recommend this book to anyone who is interested in learning about criminals because Bonnie and Clyde are well-known, but their lives outside of love and crime are hazy. This book even talks about the lies told about their lifestyle and how they were notorious, but not as bad as they seemed. Teens and adults are a good audience for this book because they are old enough to comprehend and be interested in it. The love between them is also very inspiring, and if they weren’t real people, they would make a good romantic novel.
August 21, 2016
I heard and read lots of bits and pieces about Bonnie and Clyde such as "couple Robin Hood", "Romeo and Juliet with violent criminal records", "undefeated partners in crime", who were these people? I believed they were some very popular fictional characters. I finally decided to read their "books". Imagine my surprise when I learned that what I had believed all this time was false. Bonnie and Clyde were as real - flesh, bones and blood as I am. They weren't someone's imaginative characters brought to life. This was one of the top book on that search list.
It was a short and easy read. Maybe because their lives were fast-paced, violent, tragic and adventurous, but short one nonetheless. My view of The book gave all the details as much as the writer could find throughout the passed years.
It was a short and easy read. Maybe because their lives were fast-paced, violent, tragic and adventurous, but short one nonetheless. My view of The book gave all the details as much as the writer could find throughout the passed years.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews