Still Searching for the "Real" Billy the Kid.

This article reviews two recent biographies of Billy the Kid, a notorious figure of the American West, focusing on the ongoing debate about his character as villain, hero, or both. James B. Mills's extensive biography, *Billy the Kid: El Bandido Simpático* (2022), portrays Billy in a largely positive light, emphasizing his charm, loyalty, and acceptance by the region's Hispano population, while downplaying his violent actions. In contrast, Richard W. Etulain's *Thunder in the West: The Life and Legends of Billy the Kid* (2020) offers a more nuanced view, acknowledging Billy's complexity as both a criminal and a charismatic figure, and situates his story within broader cultural and historiographical contexts. The review suggests that future scholarship might benefit from shifting focus away from Billy himself toward the diverse communities involved in the Lincoln County War to better understand the historical environment surrounding his life.