Examining the role of guns and violence in the American West

Bryce Andrews grew up obsessed with the cowboy lifestyle. As a kid his parents would drive him from Seattle to Montana, where he shot his first guns on the prairie with his godfather. He eventually moved out to the Montana countryside, a city boy trying to fit in as a ranch hand.

Andrews originally moved to Montana without a firearm, something he says was almost unimaginable to the people he worked with.

But the more he tried to fit in, the more he had to resort to violence — things like hunting, defending livestock, and even defending himself. He also had to contend with his inheritance — both his family's history and an old revolver from his grandfather.

Those experiences of the modern frontier forever changed the way Andrews viewed the history of the American West.

His new book, “Holding Fire: A Reckoning with the American West” is an examination of the role of guns and violence in the American West, and an attempt to build a more hopeful future with the artifacts of the past.

Soundside producer Alec Cowan recently spoke with Andrews about the book, and what first attracted a Seattle kid to the open range of Montana.

Listen to the full segment by clicking "play" on the audio above.