Originally published in 1973 as: The great Taos bank robbery and other Indian country affairs

Great Taos bank robbery -- Navajo who had so many friends -- He couldn't get no wire strung -- Very heart of our country -- Mountain on the guardrail at exit 164b -- We all fall down -- Messenger birds -- Conversion of Cletus Xywanda -- Apache who wouldn't be missed -- Hunt for the lost American -- How Quemado got Quemado -- Las trampas -- Blackjack Ketchum and the sixteen faithful bartenders -- Othello in Union County -- Committee and the mule deer -- Quijote in Rio Arriba County -- Keeping secrets from the Russians -- Mr. Luna's lazarus act -- Author's notes

Presents nine extraordinary, true tales of daily life in New Mexico, including the comical title story, about a bank holdup in Santa Fe that never was. In this extraordinary collection, Tony Hillerman presents the Southwest as only he can, choosing remarkable true tales from his personal archives of local lore. As you read these stories, you will be amazed, astounded, and oftentimes confounded by the power of ingenuity, serendipity, and the strange, comical coincidence of life and how it proves, once again, that truth is ultimately stranger than fiction. From the amusing title story of the holdup that didn't happen, to the riveting account of scientists tracking Black Death through the arroyos, to the ironic account of how a black cowboy's commonsense intelligence destroyed the dogma of the Smithsonian Institution, master storyteller Tony Hillerman reveals the present and timeless past of one of America's most beautiful and haunting regions. Hillerman knows the Southwest like no other contemporary writer. From its wry politics to its astonishing history to the hypnotic rhythms of daily life, these nine pieces offer the New Mexico readers have never seen but will come to love