Jack O'Connor Books

John Woolf O'Connor (1902 - 1978) was a distinguished American author and hunter. He became best known as a writer for, and later, the shooting editor of Outdoor Life magazine.

Conquest: A Novel Of The Old Southwest by Jack O'Connor (1930)

Boom Town: A Novel Of The Southwestern Silver Boom by Jack O'Connor (1938) is a novel chiefly about smiling Frank O'Rielly, who was one of the smartest mine foremen in the region but who quit his job to find "pay dirt" for himself.

The Hunter's Shooting Guide by Jack O'Connor (1957) covers the hunter's use of rifles, shotguns and handguns with O'Connor's forthright evaluations of the rifle actions, cartridges and scopes for deer.

Complete Book Of Rifles And Shotguns by Jack O'Connor (1961) is a unique book in that it contains not only the fundamentals of sighting, trigger control, shooting positions and shot placement but many more subjects as well, those that shooters often wonder about but seldom find in the printed word. With a seven lesson rifle shooting course.

Jack O'Connor's Big Game Hunts by Jack O'Connor (1963) cover a variety of game animals in remote and far-flung hunting grounds - buffalo, lion, leopard, rhino, greater kudu and sable antelope in Africa, sheep in the Turkistan mountains and tiger and blackbuck in India.

The Shotgun Book by Jack O'Connor (1965) covers all aspects of shotguns, their design and uses. Begins with a brief history and then goes in American and European doubles, pumps autos, shotgun barrels, chokes, patterning, stock, fit, various purposes - hunting, game specific, skeet, trap, etc. Loads for specific game, shotshells, components, elements of shooting, hitting, learning trap, skeet, handloading and more. Very complete and still pertinent.

Sportsman's Arms And Ammunition Manual by Jack O'Connor (1952) is all about the selection, care and handling of sporting firearms and their accessories. Hundreds of tips on the hunting of game and game birds. Practical information on cartridges, shot and shell. Expert advice on the repair of rifles, shotguns and handguns.

The Rifle Book by Jack O'Connor (1949) is the complete book on the rifle - as valuable to the beginner as to the experienced shooter. O'Connor covers all key aspects of the rifle: actions, cartridges, sights (iron and scope), practical shooting and target work, slings, scabbards, carrying cases, care and maintenance etc. For many riflemen this is the "bible" for the rifle.

The Art Of Hunting Big Game In North America by Jack O'Connor (1967) covers every aspect of big game hunting as it is practiced on this continent today and begins by tracing the origin of North America's game animals.

The Big Game Animals Of North America by Jack O'Connor (1961) includes detailed coverage in text and pictures of all major North American game animals.

Complete Book Of Shooting by Jack O'Connor (1965) covers all the fundamentals and fine points on positions, sight pictures, trajectory, shot placement and safety, plus recoil effect, light, mirage and wind, changing point of impact, truly expert shooting and women shooters.

The Hunting Rifle by Jack O'Connor (1970) contains solid, experienced advice on the advantages and limitations of different rifle actions and hunting cartridges. Explains techniques for accurate shooting and properly placed, game-killing shots. Clarifies aspects of varmint hunting. Well-suited for both beginners and seasoned hunters.

Sheep And Sheep Hunting: The Definitive Book On The Wild Sheep by Jack O'Connor (1974) delves deeply into such practical concerns as the proper rifle, clothing and equipment, trophy judgement - in fact, all aspects of the art of sheep hunting.

Game In The Desert Revisited by Jack O'Connor (1939). Mule deer, whitetails, desert big horn sheep, elk, bobwhite, quail, havelina, turkeys, cougar, doves are hunted and discussed as only Jack could tell it.

Rifle And Shotgun Shooting Basics by Jack O'Connor (1970) is the condensed version from Jack O'Connor's classic book 'Complete Book of Shooting'.

The Best Of Jack O'Connor by Jack O'Connor (1977) is a selection of articles by Jack O'Connor that were published in Outdoor Life Magazine and other publications. He was one of America's premier sporting writers.

The Big Game Rifle by Jack O'Connor (1952) covers every existing species of big game and every available rifle used in its quest - factory rifles and custom-built rifles; rifles for forest game and for mountain game; rifles for soft-skinned and thick-skinned animals; cartridges in every known category; every kind of big-game ammunition, sight, sling, and scabbard. All are lucidly described and clearly illustrated in this informative volume. In addition there are unforgettable anecdotes of action wherever big game is found and a gallery of illustrations that makes this the definitive book in its field.

Jack O'Connor's Gun Book by Jack O'Connor (1992) is in two parts. Book One - Jack O'Connor's Gun Book. Book Two - Handbook for Hunters. Covers handguns, shotguns, ammunition, sights, game decoys and hunting dogs.

Lost Classics Of Jack O'Connor: Forty Exciting Stories From The Pages Of Outdoor Life by Jack O'Connor and edited by Jim Casada (2004) contain 40 stories from the pages of Outdoor Life, most, if not all, have never been published in book form before. Included is perhaps the only fishing story Jack ever wrote - fly fishing for trout in the Grand Canyon.

Horse And Buggy West: A Boyhood On The Last Frontier by Jack O'Connor (1969) is the autobiography of O'Connor growing up in Arizona just after the turn of the century.

Hunting In The Rockies by Jack O'Connor (1947) is about hunting in the Rockies from northern Mexico to the Yukon. The art of sheep hunting and everything else.

Hunting On Three Continents With Jack O'Connor by Jack O'Connor (1987) is a collection of his best material written for Petersen's Hunting Magazine during the years 1973 to 1977.

Last Book: Confessions Of A Gun Editor by Jack O'Connor (1981). Unlike anything O'Connor has written before, this is a fitting last testament to his legacy. This was indeed his final book - Jack died before ever seeing it and he pulled no punches while writing it.

Classic O'Connor: 45 Worldwide Hunting Adventures by Jack O'Connor and edited by Jim Casada (2010) is the sequel to the popular 'The Lost Classics of Jack O'Connor'. Includes more than forty Jack O'Connor stories from Outdoor Life, Field & Stream, Petersen's Hunting and other popular magazines of his day. These stories have never appeared in book form.

Jack O'Connor: Catalogue Of Letters by Jack O'Connor and edited by Ellen Herring (2002) are letters written by Jack O'Connor to his longtime friend John Jobson. They contain much information on guns, especially his .270. There is also a lot on reloading, opinions on other writers and participants in his industry, his salary, the good and bad things about writing books, prices he paid and received for guns he bought and sold and details of his contracts. There is something on almost every facet of Jack O'Connor's writing and hunting career.

Book About Jack O'Connor:

Robert M Anderson

Jack O'Connor: The Legendary Life Of America's Greatest Gunwriter by Robert M Anderson (2004) is a biography about Jack O'Connor. Robert Anderson's masterfully written work is a blockbuster filled with fascinating facts and stories about this controversial character. Anderson spent three years interviewing O'Connor's family and friends as well as delving into JOC's papers, photos, and letters, including the extensive correspondence between O'Connor and Bob Householder. As the only authorised biography of Jack O'Connor, this book covers his early years, his rise to the top of his profession, his hunts for tiger in India, sheep in North America and Asia, buffalo in Tanganyika, his absent-mindedness and his glory years.

Jack O'Connor DVD

Jack O'Connor: An Outdoor Legend Equally at home with an Indian guide on a sheep hunt in the Canadian Rockies as he was on a tiger beat in the company of maharajahs, O'Connor's passion for the hunt took him to the four corners of the globe in search of adventure to fuel his writing. O'Connor brilliantly chronicled his hunts and travels in his many books and countless magazine features, but he also preserved important moments in time with his 16mm camera that travelled with him wherever adventure called. Now, for the first time, this never-before-seen footage reveals another view into the life and times of one of America's true outdoor icons.