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Summary: Lonesome Dove: America's Great Western
Review: America's search for a great western epic came to a close when Larry McMurtry wrote his Pulitzer Prize winning classic Lonesome Dove. The novel, though long at nine-hundred and forty-five pages, contains all pieces of the great western including: gunfights, hangings, rattlesnakes, bandits, Indians, Texas ranger, and of course a cattle drive, and leaves the reader thirsting for more. All these elements, along with McMurtry's brilliant use of themes, culminate to achieve his purpose of exploring the "true" Old West. McMurtry, through the course of almost one-thousand pages, never strays from his themes involving death, love, determination, and a journey. McMurtry utilizes death throughout the novel to disillusion the reader of his myths of the Old West, were only bad guy in the black cowboy hat dies. First, Sean O'Brien, the young baritone from Ireland, dies in a brief but graphically detailed scene in which he is attacked by numerous snakes while crossing the Red River. Also, Roscoe and Joe, July Johnson's deputy and step-son respectively, along with a young girl who meets up with them along the way, are brutally murdered by an old enemy of Gus and Call's, Blue Duck. McMurty's graphic detail of these seemingly senseless acts of violence effectively prove to the reader that the Old West was not a time of fun and games but was a serious and dangerous time period. McMurtry counteracts this death theme with a theme of unrequited love. McMurtry keeps love abundant in this epic, most noticeably through the cowhands' love for Lorena, July's love for Elmira and Gus's love for Clara. Although the love is unrequited by all the women, this illusion of love keeps the men's minds off of the hardships at hand and allows them to feel positive, even if only about one thing, throughout the drive. Love is a vital part of history and was no less vital during the Old West, as McMurtry prove. Determination is shown through Call and Newt, coincidentally father and son. Call will never give up his drive to be a hero and to settle new frontiers. He searched for trouble in Lonesome Dove and found his last frontier with a drive north. Newt's determination is for one thing and one thing only; recognition. Newt wishes to be recognized first as a man, second as a cowboy, and finally as Call's son. Determination was forced upon most residents of the Old West because without determination, one could not succeed or even live in most cases. The main theme McMurtry strives to point out is the journey. The obvious journey involves that of the cattle drive from Texas to Montana but there are also internal journeys for some of the characters. Lorena's journey is two-fold. One is her journey to this mythical illusion of her dream city; San Francisco. The other is her journey to respectability as a women. Gus's journey involves finding Clara, or more accurately finding the Clara he knew many years before. Call is searching for a final frontier and also his past self, as a respected and revered hero throughout the Old West. These journeys tie into McMurtry's purpose by showing truly how quickly the Old West became "civilized" and by explaining the strength it took for settlers to travel to such a dangerous place. McMurtry, through a dazzling spectacle of themes and events, created a masterpiece of Western American Literature, which will be treasured by future generations as the great American Western Epic. McMurtry, along with any other writer, will never be able to top the success or greatness of Lonesome Dove.
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Summary: Wow! What a book!
Review: Larry McMurtry uses a thrilling plot and some of the realest, and therefore some of the best, characters ever to tell a story about a cattle drive and the cowboys that went on it in Lonesome Dove. McMurtry's plot utilizes both serious, fast-paced adventure and heart-breaking, emotional scenes to keep the reader attached. Newt's experience during his first time across the Rio Grande with the men to find horses enthralls the reader and prevents him from putting the book down. The same could be said for the scene in which Gus harasses the bartender in San Antonio for disrespecting Capt. Call and himself for they were famous Texas Rangers and had gotten their picture on the mirror behind the bar. One of the most breathtaking scenes occurs when Call gets into a fight with the cavalry scout, nearly beating him to death. The reader is amazed and can't possibly close the book. When one of the Irishmen who joined the outfit dies in the river from snake bites, the reader, like Newt, gets very emotional and maybe a little watery-eyed. In fact, all the scenes when someone dies cause a saddening to overcome the reader and creates an emptiness inside the reader, though it was only a character from a book. However, McMurtry's creation of some of the greatest characters ever is what sells this story. Who can't love the talkative Gus, who despite his womanizing tendencies is one of the most loyal characters ever? Then there is the formidable Woodrow Call, the Captain, the withdrawn leader who has difficulty discussing some events from his past. Also, Newt, the fatherless son of a prostitute who was adopted by the Hat Creek outfit as a youngster and now plays a major role in the cattle drive and the establishment of the new ranch, engages the reader and make him never want to stop reading. Newt embodies the classic McMurtry theme of a young boy coming of age. This is one of the greatest books I have ever read. It is one of only two books, that after having read it, I feel my life would have been incomplete had I not read them. McMurtry's characters are some of the greatest I have ever had the pleasure of reading about. One of the critics in the front of the book wrote, "It has been a long time since I have been as annoyed at a writer as I was with McMurtry for bringing his story to a close after a mere 843 pages. He could have doubled it without any diminishment of power and pleasure. It is, yes, just that good". I agree completely. The emotions I felt reading Lonesome Dove I have nothing to compare to. I liked it that much. McMurtry included an epigraph at the beginning which goes : All America lies at the end of the wilderness road, and our past is not a dead past, but still lives in us. Our forefathers had civilizations inside themselves, the wild outside. We live in the civilizations they created, but within us the wilderness still lingers. What they dreamed we live, and what they lived, we dream. I believe this is very accurate. I especially agree with the last sentence. The people of the past saw only in their imaginations the possibilities of what the world might become. Since reading this book, I wish had been there to experience the adventures and see the openness of the land they saw.
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Summary: Worst Book I Have Ever Read
Review: What happened to the spare, perceptive author of "The Last Picture Show"? McMurtry spends nearly 200 pages introducing the characters, then sends us on an adventure with Gus and Call, two faceless, interchangeable Marlboro Men who shoot or hang everyone they meet. The prose is so cliched, the narrative so loose, the characters so murky, that I wonder if McMurtry was just typing. He was one of the most promising young novelists of the '60s, and he ended up writing this hack Western potboiler. A waste of a wonderful talent.
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Summary: I am jealous...
Review: of any reader who has not discovered this wonderful book. This is not a western, it is not an action book, it is not a romance, or a travelogue, it is not not historical fiction. It is simply a fantastic piece of storytelling. I do not particularly like the writing of larry mcmurtry, but somewhere he woke up a put together his masterpiece. It is the story of two unforgettable characters on the cattle drive of thier life. The story of this drive and the vivid characters, good and bad, make the book the kind you hope never ends. The good guys are very complex. The villains are difficult. It is everything you want in a book. I am gushing so because it is so good. I hate to hype something too much but i really feel that i cannot go overboard with this book
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Summary: Unconditional Friendship and Partners To The End, April 2001
Review: I definitely would give this book a five star rating. If I could give it a ten star, I would. This book is that great! If you like to read stories about the old west and adventures, then this book is for you. It is about honesty and totally pure hearted feelings and emotions. This book puts you right into the story. You feel as if you are right there with them throughout the entire adventure. You will feel their pain and sorrow and their joy and laughter. This book keeps you hanging on every word and longing for more. Although this is a rather long story you just hate to have to put the book down. This is the type of book you want to keep on reading to find out more. You can read this book in a few short days. I also liked the way this book was put together. The hardback cover keeps the book solid and easy to handle and the printing of the words were large enough to read easily, which did not tire my eyes. A man's word is as good as gold. When Captain Woodrow F. Call and Augustus McCrae say that they are going to do something, they do it. These are the two main characters who were retired Texas Rangers. Who were always true to their word, no matter what they had to do. Captain Call gets this idea of herding cattle from the Rio Grande to Montana. He convinces Gus to go along with his idea. Reluctantly, Gus agrees and they form the Hat Creek Cattle Company, which is situated next to the town of Lonesome Dove, on the bank of the Rio Grande River. They form a posse and cross over into Mexico where they steal their own horses back and then acquire a herd of cattle to drive north 2500 miles to Montana. Their adventure of a lifetime adds a lot of characters to the story. They become involved with a prostitute, a retired Texas Ranger, Indians, water moccasins, past loves, whiskey and horses. In my opinion, Lonesome Dove has to be the very best western book I've ever read and the CBS Mini-Series was just as good. It will have you laughing and crying at the same time. If you want an honest to goodness great book to read then I recommend Lonesome Dove to anyone who can read!
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Summary: I'll read it again...and again...and again...
Review: This is one book I could not put down. Gus was one character that I at first wasn't sure whether I would like or not because of his "womanizing". But as I read more, I found myself cheering for him every time he was with a woman. He was the most loving character in the entire story, and he made Call look like the gruff one. The way he took care of Lorena made me wish I had known a man like him in my life. He kept the humor going and was always able to bring out the best in all the other characters. I laughed and cried over him several times. The other characters were also very well written, and I was able to envision what the wild west may have been like. Since reading this book, I have been addicted to westerns, but none have compared or even come close to this one. I have yet to find another that I enjoyed reading as much. This is one book that I will keep and read over and over. I enjoyed Lonesome Dove from the first page to the last. I found it hard to sleep at night because I was anticipating what I might read the folowing night. I didn't want it to end. This is one book you must read!!!
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Summary: Best Book I've Ever Read - By Far
Review: This is an outstanding novel about the American west. I loved ever minute i read of this book. Larry McMurtry goes into great detail about the cattle drive from South Texas all the way up to far North Montana. There is action, adventure, drama, and even some romance. He makes the characters so great. You will just love the way everyone has thier own personallity. I read the whole book in only a few days, I just couldn't put it down. I was hooked after the first few chapters. I can't think of anything wrong with it, thats why I gave it five stars. This is a very superb novel and I would recommend it for anyone.
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Summary: McMurtry's subjects and treatment are bound to please.
Review: When McMurtry brought Call and Gus to life in his version of the old west, he included personality traits for each which both delight and confound his readers. From the beginning at the "town" of Lonesome Dove till the end at the same place, McMurtry's audience is literally swept off their feet by his prose, his settings, but most of all his characters. Even though this novel may be the author's most famous, his collected works are varied and full-bodied. All share one pleasing trait -- McMurtry's sense of human folly and tragedy soars through the medium of his vivid prose. If you've only tried one or two, you're missing out on some truly good reading!
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Summary: Lonesome Dove tapes - a great story but horrible tapes!
Review: Being a big fan of this book, I was looking forward to enjoying the book on tape edition during a long drive with my brother, who had never read the book or seen the mini series. Things went well at first and the miles flew by but when we started book two chapter one and turned to the second side of the tape the wrong side from book one was repeated which ruined the experience. When I got home I exchanged the tapes and the new tapes had the same error. I exchanged them again and again the mistake was repeated. This is a great book and the greatest mini series I have ever seen so the disappointment in I feel for the poor job done on these tapes can hardly be expressed. I had my money refunded finally but I wish I had the book on tape without errors.
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Summary: Best Character Driven Western Ever.
Review: If you read only one Western in your life, let it be this one. The tired Western genre has suffered in recent decades. Lonesome Dove breaks this trend. McMurtry dives right into the heart of of a cowboys-on-a-cattle-drive cliche', and comes out with a piece of literature that competes with the best of any genre. Lonesome Dove is intricately plotted and rich with imagery of western landscapes and nineteenth century cow towns. It also offers good action--like the water moccasin attack at the river ford--and moving love scenes. But the driving force is the characterizations. McMurtry has populated his book with some of the most fascinating folk you'll ever meet on paper. And the real gem is dialogue. Lonesome Dove has arguably some of the finest dialogue ever written. Gus McCrae's ramblings and witticisms are genius. You will like this book. --Christopher Bonn Jonnes, author of Wake Up Dead.
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