Korean Job Discussion Forums

[stevemcgarrett]

This is my little happily self-indulgent tobacco spittin' thread for discussing maybe the greatest Western novel ever written, I reckon.

That would be Larry McMurtry's Lonesome Dove for all you slow pokes on the prairie.

Now I ain't supposin' many of you have read this here book, so if you're a mite curious, you can ask away.

But if you've read it, why sit yourself down for a spell.

Myself, I like the gritty humor, especially from Gus McCrae. Yes, he tosses out a discouragin' word now and then in his home on the Texas range but he mostly don't mean no harm by it. Salt and vinegar and a touch of whiskey in his words is all.

My favorite part, though, is when Roscoe sets out from Fort Smith, Arkansas to git July, the sheriff, only to be corraled by some widow trying to farm the land by herself. The conversation over cornbread where she tries to convince him to get hitched is hilarious, don't ya reckon?

I can't recall the last time a book took me away more gloriously from the nonsense of modern life to a time when straight talking wasn't considered too rough by the common folks.

Makes me think of all the years I spent in Texas backcountry, especially Laredo, Amarillo, Big Bend, and yes of course San Antone. Never had finer Mexican fixins than at Mi Tierra, that little cafe servin' up green chili chicken enchiladas with good goat cheese on freshly rolled flour tortillas, a side of homemade refried beans and a little salsa and a mug of Corona on tap with a lime slice in it.

But back to the book. What y'all make of it who bothered to sit back, kick your boots off and read it?

[mj roach]

Guess it's time to dust off my tattered copy and re-read it for the umphteenth time. Maybe watch my well worn video of the TV series afterwards.

[endo]

[stevemcgarrett]

mj roach:

Mine's so dog-earred even the Kiowa renegades want to eat it.


endo wrote:

[RACETRAITOR]

Is there a good reason you need to use caps? Were your parents killed by a lowercase letter? It is a useful complaint looking at your post history.

[swetepete]

I never read McMurty but I hear he's good.

The only westerns I've ever read are Cormac McCarthy. They rule, but are a little bit...uh...heavy. Not the kind of stuff that makes people look back fondly on the days of yore.

[cwemory]

Lonesome Dove's good. But my choice for the greatest western novel would be Cormac McCarthy's All the Pretty Horses. The writing styles great, omitting most puctuation, just like real cowboys would .

[Richard Krainium]

[Julius]

[Fresh Prince]

For all the green horns out there, the greatest western writer this side of El Paso I reckon, is Louis L'amour.

All suppose I'll have to take a gander at this here fellow Larry McMurtry's Lonesome Dove.