BLAKE WROTE OF THE WEST BECAUSE HE LIVED IT. JOHNNY CHRISTMAS WAS THE SAGA OF THE TRAIL, AUTHENTIC, AND IN A PURE WAY, UNIQUE, SINCE THAT PERIOD WRITTEN ABOUT SO MUCH ESSENTIALLY LASTED ONLY TWENTY YEARS. BLAKE WROTE A NON-FICTION BOOK OF HIS ADVENTURES ENTITLED "RIDING THE MUSTANG TRAIL" BOTH BOOKS GIVE A MUCH DIFFERENT VIEW OF THE WEST THAN THE USUAL FORMULA. A REFRESHING TWIST.