I love a good western novel…but there are so few writers who can do them well, avoiding the dusty cliches and tropes of the genre to deliver a powerful, memorable, original story with flesh-and-blood characters. So here are my 10 favorite western authors, in no particular order:
Larry McMurtry – Lonesome Dove and Streets of Laredo are two of the best westerns ever. Some of his follow-ups were entertaining, but never matched these two.
Frederick Manfred (aka Feike Feikema) – His Lord Grizzly is a classic, but I’d also strongly recommend Scarlet Plume, Riders of Judgment (made into a miniseries entitled The Johnson County Wars scripted by McMurtry) and Conquering Horse.
Bill Crider – I loved his books Outrage at Blanco and Texas Vigilante, which should be read back-to-back as one, wonderfully-told tale. I’ve been trying for years to get a movie version of those books off the ground and have come tantalizingly close several times. But I haven’t given up hope! He’s also written several other great westerns, too.
A.B. Guthrie – His novels The Big Sky and The Way West are not only classic novels… but classic movies, too. His wonderful westerns should be read in order (Big Sky, Way West, These Thousand Hills, Arfive, The Last Valley and Fair Land, Fair Land) since they are essentially a series.
Ed Gorman – I’ve raved about his books Trouble Man and Wolf Moon on this blog many times. But you’ll also enjoy Death Ground,Guild, hell, anything with his name on it.
H.A. DeRosso – One of the darkest western writers out there…and one of the least well known. His books include .44 , The Gun Trail, and Under the Burning Sun.
Glendon Swarthout – His terrific novel The Shootist is a classic and, fittingly, was the basis for John Wayne’s final western.
Harry Whittington – His westerns (Trouble Rides Tall, Vengeance is the Spur, etc.) are every bit as tightly-plotted and leanly-written as his fine crime novels…and were his only books to be adapted for films and movies.
Elmore Leonard – Before he was the king of crime, he was the king of westerns…many of his books and stories became beloved western movies, too… like 3:10 to Yuma, Hombre and Valdez is Coming.
Thomas Eidson – His book The Last Ride became the vastly under-rated film Missing directed by Ron Howard. His western St. Agne’s Stand is also terrific.
Other western writers I love include James Reasoner, Richard Wheeler, Bud Shrake (The Borderland), Marvin Albert, Lauran Paine, Frank Bonham, Thomas Berger (Little Big Man), Robert B. Parker (Gunman’s Rhapsody and Appaloosa), Tom Franklin (Hell at the Breech), Scott Phillips (Cottonwood), Jonathan Evison (West of Here), Patrick DeWitt (The Sisters Brothers) and Philipp Meyer (The Son). There are many more. In fact, I’m sure other authors and their great books will occur to me the instant I’ve posted this list…but that’s the risk you take when you do one of these.
2024 UPDATE: I would also recommend James Robert Daniels’ The Comanche Kid and Jane Fury, Jonathan Evison’s Small World, David Wagoner’s Road to Many a Wonder, Clair Huffaker’s The Cowboy and the Cossack, and Jim Bosworth’s The Long Way North
(Hat tip to James Reasoner…whose list of his favorite western authors inspired me to share mine).
Good grief, how could you not include Louis L’Amour and Zane Grey?
I agree with Gary. Any specific reason he wasn’t included?
There are a few Louis L’Amours that I’ve really enjoyed, but for the most part, he leaves me cold with flat story-telling and one-dimensional characters. Never got much into Zane Grey, either.
Agree re both Grey and L’Amour. I could never read them, either.
You obviously never read Hondo.
I did. Not wowed.
Yeah some of the older stuff really didn’t tick the boxes for me. I would recommend Galloway which really embraces the socket family. And then also Riley’s luck is one of my favorites and it’s one of his longer novels. For me probably some of it is reminiscing because my dad and my granddad both had extensive Louis L’Amour collections
You don’t know much about great westerns to leave out L’Amour, Zane Grey and William Johnstone.
I’ve read L’Amour, Grey and Johnstone…and they are fine western authors, but not among my favorites. Recently, I really enjoyed SMALL WORLD by Jonathan Evison (a mix of a contemporary drama and a period western) and THE COMANCHE KID by James Robert Daniels, a 2023 Spur Award Finalist for Best Western Novel (but I must confess a bias — my company published it).
Zane Grey has very few good books although I’ve read them all. I have NO DOUBT that most are the product of his wife since they are cheesy women’s perspective romance novels. Grey’s BEST work I believe is the Last Of The Plainsman and that is one of the few of his that I own to reread every now and then.
Louis L’Amour are all great reads but the characters are a bit formulaic. What I like is that his characters are mostly from a male perspective and give a romantic but realistic perspective of the West. You can tell that L’Amour did historical research and incorporates some survival techniques. By far his best works are the Sackett series since they cover a very wide range of the development of America.
Yes, I agree with your assessment of Lois L’Amour. I enjoyed most of his books.
L’Amour was the best ever.
Agree… I have been a horse packer for 40 years and
have packed in most wilderness areas in the west..
I am 70 years old and Louis puts me back in the saddle..
Great read…
Read all the Louis L’Amour books I could find. Tried other authors that don’t hold a candle to his talent.
He wasn’t included in the top 10…………….?? Well, someone missed the boat.
Try Ralph Cotton (Not Ralph Compton)
Never got into Cotton or Compton.
I agree with you there,Louis L’Amour is a legend,the best.
And William Johnstone
William Johnstone is my favorite writer I’ve read L’Amour and Zane Grey and wasn’t impressed.
I’m reading a William John Stine book “the measure of a man” and I find that he is copying many sayings from Louis Lamour. My favorite from Lamour are hondo, flint, and Shalako.
Great author.
Also, how could you not include Elmer Kelton?
William W Johnstone max brand those should be included too
I’ve read literally hundreds of cowboy books. Louis L’Amour was my favorite until I read Dusty Rhodes books the shooter longhorn 1 2 3 and 4. All his books are my favorites. My least favorite but still good is death Rides a pale horse. I can’t figure out why he’s never listed among the best cowboy book writers.
gary, agtee with you, L”Amour the best.i like zane grey but his style takes study so i cannot speed read his books. read mostlu western and thrillers, between 4 and10 a month
I’ve read a lot of L’Amour and, while I’ve enjoyed many of them, they didn’t have the impact on me that work by A.B. Guthrie, Frederick Manfred and Larry McMurtry has had.
Agree.
What, no http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clair_Huffaker?
No cookie for you! ;0)
I’ve never heard of her! I’ll have to sample her work.
That’s a him and his “Cowboy and the Cossack” is what put me on to westerns when I couldn’t get into Zane Grey. He still has me spoiled! 😉
He also did a bunch of screenplays in the 60s like The Comancheros, Posse From Hell, and Flaming Star. Many were based on his own novels, like Seven Ways to Sundown and the War Wagon.
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0400236/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1
Clair Huffaker was a man.
If you ever read Elmer Kelton, you will expect every Library to have at least 20 or more!
Lone Cowboy, My Life Story by Will James. I’ve read many cowboy stories and Will’s is by far my favorite. Absolute must read if you haven’t read it.
Certainly you didn’t mean to overlook jack schaffer’s “Shane”???
Jim, MONTE WALSH is better!
The Western story is compelling for me in a way that other genres are not. It may because a lot of the conflict comes from “man against nature.” Characters in westerns suffer from the environment in ways that just don’t happen in urban stories, where they drive cars, pull up to the drive-thru for a latte, and go to air-conditioned offices. My favorite sub-genre is “the pioneer story” and I’ve read several non-fiction books on it. In Canada, from 1896 to 1911, under the Laurier government, the west was settled, meaning Saskatchewan and Alberta. Homesteaders had to sail in crowded ships from Liverpool, spend up to 13 days on cold train cars, land in Saskatoon and get a horse and cart and tools together, settle their land claim, build a sod house, plough ten acres, plant potatoes and try to get work during the winter. It’s just more compelling than “boy meets girl at McD’s.”
You got it brother…………………..I like to read the history. Louis L’Amour researched all his areas of interest. If he mentioned a river…….it was there. If it was a mountain, it was there. I loved his stories.
More info, please! Can you be more specific, maybe a title?
I agree with your reasons for western stories being far better!
Johnny Boggs has some good novels. His Camp Ford was fun and West Texas Kill was damn good.
I have a copy of Gorman’s Guild that I picked up at a thrift store two years ago.
I still have not read Crider’s westerns. Heck, I still have not read all the Dan Rhodes novels.
You forgot the mavelous and vastly enjoyable work of Charlie Steel! http://www.charliesteel.net
I’m from Italy and I’ve read about 1400 western novels originals or Italian Translations. I know that the lists aren’t exhaustive,
but you can’t forget the followings: the late G.D. Shirreffs (a personal friend of mine), James Warner Bellah (John Ford’s Cavalry trilogy) Charles Marquis Warren (novelist and film maker) W.r. Burnett (Saint Johnson, Mi Amigo, Adobe Walls) Chad Oliver (the Wolf is my brother) Elmer M. Parsons (Fargo) Ernest Haycox and Luke Short, Clair Huffaker, Bud Shrake.
Last but not least with only a novel, but a masterwork in my opinion, T.C. Lewellen with the “Ruthless Gun” a novel that all the aficionados should read on time in a life at least (till now my score is five times)
Probably your bloggers will wonder about Louis l’Amour: Well, I don’t like him very much except his first novel “Hondo” truly a masterpiece in the genre.
Greetings from Italy with my compliments for your good job.
Tiziano.
Larry McMurtry? Really? Really? But I guess that sort does translate well to current TV.
He has very little skill as an author as far as I’m concerned and well below L’Amour. He conveys virtually no knowledge of history and his work is flat and barely entertaining. I’ve found I really don’t even CARE about his characters.
I just finished the 4 Berrybender Narratives and consider them pure garbage! I should have quit while ahead and not even bothered after 50 pages in. McMurtry seems to have a rather unhealthy fascination with rape, murder, dismemberment and torture in those novels. He should really seek some psychiatric help as far as I’m concerned.
Am surprise Terry C Johnston is not been mentioned here. He is one of my favorite.
I totally agree Terry C. Johnston was very good his characters have depth. What I like most is he incorporated historical facts in all his stories.
I recently created a website for my grandfather, western author Wayne D Overholser. waynedoverholser.com. He was a pretty decent western storyteller.
How about William MacLeod Raine, Max Brand and Luke Short?
Jack Schaefer’s Shane rates very high with me……………..top ten easily.
MONTE WALSH too!
Oh, oh, oh! Don’t miss Max Brand! Happy Jack, Brothers on the Trail, his Silvertip series, and on and on. He is the best, and there’s always some twist…just when you think you’ve figured it out…nope, you haven’t. Good guys win, bad guys get their comeuppance. To think I lived my first 54 years without knowing Max Brand!
Max Brand my absolute favorite. ..then Louis lamour…and Zane Grey…!!! Also Hollywood’s famous
Dear Mr. Goldberg,
I’m an Italian fan of western novels and I’ve appreciated very much your list about the authors. I’ve read over than 1400 novels of that genre, in my language or in original language, I trasnlated some of them for a little printing house back in the eighties, and I’ve been a personal friend of the late Gordon D. Shirreffs (I was at his home down in Granada Hills, CA, back in ’88).
To your list I’d add Clair Huffaker, Charles Marquis Warren, James Warner Bellah, an author of horror novels that wrote some westerns by the name of David Case and Elmer Parsons with a very good one: Fargo. But there is a single novel that stand in the higher rank of the western’s Olympus: I’m talkin’ about The Ruthless Gun by a mysterious T.C. Lewellen, truly a masterpiece in my consideration and it’s a pity that the man didn’t write some other stuff, apart a spy story by the title of: The Billikin Courier.
During many yeard I’ve tried to find some info about the mysterious Lewellen but I totalled a big zero. Perchance do you know something about him? I’d like to correspond with people that have an interest in western novels.
Last but not least I’d like very much H.A. De Rosso (his ancestors went to the States leaving Italy) ’cause his westerns are very noirish.
Best to you and your bloggers from,
Tiziano Agnelli.
I am looking for a great book I read in the 80’s I believe about a young man’s adventures in the West ultimately becoming a rough rider and finding fortune, love, etc. and living into the early 1900’s somewhere in Ca. maybe San Francisco a wealthy man. I believe it was considered a historical fiction western. It was a marvelous read (thick) and maybe by a little known author. Does anyone know of it?
You may be thinking of LITTLE BIG MAN by Thomas Berger.
Thank you for your suggestion but unfortunately it is not the same book! Please keep thinking though…….it is worth it!
I appreciate and enjoy reading just about every western writer that were mentioned here. But, my favorite western writer is Ralph Compton.
I enjoy Elmer Kelton’s novels about early Texas and the Texas Rangers…..
louis lamour best by far read every western he ever wrote
I think it ridiculous to leave out Louis L’Amour. NOBODY WROTE WESTERNS AS ENTERTAINING, FUN, AUTHENTIC, AND EASY TO READ AS HE!
LOUIS L’AMOUR WAS THE BEST. CAN’T IMAGINE A TRUE WESTERN BOOK FAN NOT PUTTING HIM AT THE TOP OF THE LIST, MUCH MORE NOT EVEN ON THE LIST. EVEN TOP WESTERN WRITER LARRY WILLIAMS AND THE DUKE JOHN WAYNE SAID HE WAS THE BEST!-a true old western fan
You are exactly right!
What about; ‘The Last Frontier’; by Howard Fast; ‘Little Big Man’; by Thomas Berger; ‘Mountain Man’; by Vardis Fisher; ‘From Sea to Shining Sea’; by James Alexander Thom; ‘Wolf Song’; by Harvey Fergusson; and ‘Tough Trip Through Paradise’; by Andrew Garcia; (also include;’The Big Sky’; by A.B.Guthrie Jr.)
A Good Western to me is something like those written by Max Brand (and his pseudonyms), Louis L’Amour (including his pseudonyms), Bill Johnstone (not the “secret” authors after his death), and a bunch of others, even Jon Messman was pretty good if you overlooked the sex. And many, many old timers not with us any longer.
Richard Wheeler started out really good until he started leaning toward “historical” writing.
Looking at your “picks,” you seem to think Westerns with “historical” significance are best.
I have found the newer writers are too liberal for me, and that includes those writing in other genres: action/adventure, mystery, etc.
Any advice for a young Western scribbler trying to get in the game? I can’t get any agents to look at my manuscript because it’s not steampunk middle-grade vampire porn. I haven’t come across more than 2 agents via google who have ‘Western’ listed under their ‘please submit’ blurbs.
At this point I’m just querying it as historical fiction and hoping nobody notices the preponderance of horses and six shooters.
Try Indie publishing, A site I use is Smashwords and it is free. When your book is vetted it is sent to lots of other online ebook sites. I have published twenty eight books with them so far and although they do not sell as fast as similar books published in print it is rewarding to know that there are some people who appreciate your work, If you need any help look me up on their site and email me.
to each his own I guess- I can not imagine anyone roasting macmurtry and reading better than a 1000 pages of a four volume set. When did you think they were going to be good mr christain?
I am looking for western novels that have a lot of realism. I don’t like Zane Grey (I’m not looking for long, long descriptions of landscapes) but for the details that would help me learn about the life of the west while enjoying a good novel. I’ve read all of Louis L’amour, I like Luke Short, but I am trying to find an author who might give a sentence to a Dutch Oven instead of just say they cooked a meal, or mention more details about a horse and riding then just that someone rode, etc. Any suggestions would be appreciated. I don’t want ones with a bunch of sex in them, just a good, clean Western novel I can curl up and enjoy by a winter fire. Thanks!
I am a big fan of William W. Johnstone, and after his passing, his nephew J.A. Is completing a lot of manuscripts and outlines that Bill left behind. I have over 250 of his westerns and really enjoyed all of them, especially The First Mountain Man series. Also the Last Gunfighter series, the Eagles series are very good in my opinion.
I’m currently wrapping up the Eagle Series, and have just purchased some of the Last Mountain Man series. I also love Blood Valley, etc. Very well done storytelling without dragging out the decriptions of landscapes while still capturing it’s beauty. I personally very much enjoy the Johnstone’s works, and can’t wait to finish the 200 or so westerns currently published!
Yes it is hard to put his books down.
J.A. is not his nephew. Niece! Yep, a girl is finishing some of those books. Since so many are published in a year, I have a feeling there are more writers involved.
Try B. N. Rundell I really liked his books for the exact reasons you mentioned.
try William johnstone hes my favorite author when I read his books Its hard to put it down it keeps you glued to it. He’s written over 100 books my favorite on is about Smoke Jensen. A gunfighter.
Try Max Brand. He has several books where the horse plays a big role in it. He is a great author and is very good in character describing.
Sorry to see that Johnny D. Boggs was omitted. This award-winning author is considered by many–readers and critics alike–to be one of the “best of the west” story-tellers writing in this genre today!
For folks who like middle size western yarns, try to find Haycox’s pulp yarn, NIGHT RAID. This is in one of his collections.
Haycox was one of the Great short story, western writers!
ps, Night Raid Novella can be found in SIX GUN DUO collection.
Interesting list. Gives me some ideas in regard to future reading.
I know I’m late to this discussion, but I’m surprised how little attention Elmer Kelton gets.Who do Western writers themselves love? Well, let’s put it this way… Kelton was awarded 8 Spur Awards (Western Writers of America), 3 Western Heritage Awards, was the first recipient of the Lone Star Award for Lifetime Achievement from the Larry McMurtry Center for Arts and Humanities, and was named him the greatest Western writer of all time by the Western Writers of America.
I have thought several times, when finishing a Kelton book, “Someone needs to make this into a film!” The only one that actually was, “The Good Old Boys,” was Tommy Lee Jones’s directorial debut and I was disappointed by the outcome. To Tommy’s defense, I think my expectations were way too high, since I’m such a Kelton fan.
I just finished an interesting Western the other day. it was by a science fiction writer. excellent Western I thought . called “The Last Lonely Trail” I was entranced. it reminded me so much of the excellent descriptions in the Louis L’Amour novels of whom I am a big fan . Left me wanting more westerns by this author but apparently this is the only one he’s written, so far.
Best ,
Karen
Found a great writer “Brad Dennison”, check him out on Goodreads. His books are excellent.
Cheers,
Ken
It’s hard to beat L’Amour. I have read quite a few Ralph Cotton novels, but not too many of the stories dealing primarily with cattle drives. Ralph Compton is good too. I read a lot of C.J. Petit since his books are free with Kindle Unlimited. His “Knight in shining armor wearing a cowboy hat rescues maiden in distress and marries her after a two day courtship” gets a little tiresome after a while.
Just found this blog. Considering that one person can’t possibly read every book by every Western author, you can’t blame Lee Goldberg for not including everyone’s favorites. And there are different types of Westerns, such as Cavalry vs. Indians, primarily cowboy based stories, stories about gunfighters, stories about mountain men, stories about the attempted rescue of captives, etc. When it comes to cowboy-based stories, the two best may be (based on my reading) Monte Walsh and Lonesome Dove. There are most certainly other greats, but these, off the top of my head, stand out for me. I’ve been reading Westerns for more than 40 years. There are a lot of great books out there waiting to be discovered by readers (the best way to find them is go to used bookstores). Many times I see great reviews for books that I think are not that good, if not downright bad. Everyone has their own preferences.
I guess every writer has his critics. I have always found that the pleasure of discovery was more than enough compensation for me to discover my own favorite western writers/storytellers. I find myself unable to criticize the work of someone published. As a published professor I find myself unable to criticize those who put forth the effort and time necessary to produce western novels. I wrote about real life, fact and figures in the field of criminology. I hope God blesses all western writers who helped me escape from the real world into a world where a could keep and / or recover my sanity. I never read a western novel that was not worth the time it took to read the novelists work.
I have been reading through the comments and I find I have to reply to yours, It was a refreshing read and as a western writer myself I appreciate your understanding of the considerable effort it takes to compose and write a novel of any kind.
My thanks to all who have left comments. I am new to the genre and was looking for advice as to where to start.
I agree with most of the above, which I’ve read through. Despite all the usual classics and some nice rare mentions of western authors, I don’t believe that anyone mentioned THE OX-BOW INCIDENT by Walter Van Tilburg Clark, who also wrote THE TRACK OF THE CAT, both made into fine movies, especially the former.
Someone might have mentioned Oakley Hall’s great novel, WARLOCK, but if so, I missed it. It belongs in the same company.
And if you haven’t yet read that wonderful western epic, BUTCHER’S CROSSING, by John Williams, I envy you your experience awaiting. You should read it just before the first snow.
No one mentioned Cormac McCarthy, which I guess is telling, though BLOOD MERIDIAN, at least the first half of it, had to be very engaging for most of us here. I couldn’t finish Patrick DeWitt’s THE SISTERS BROTHERS the first time but I’m going to give it another try. Robert Olmstead, whom nobody mentioned, has written some solid westerns, probably too literary for some.
No one mentioned Dorothy Johnson, author of THE MAN WHO SHOT LIBERTY VALANCE and THE HANGING TREE, both made into fine movies. I could probably think of a dozen others who deserve to be mentioned, but this is a good list, and you should see James Reasoner’s list at the link Lee Goldman provided.
I have been thrilled by Craig Johnson’s “Longmire” series. Book 1 not the best….but love the rest. TV series is weak.
Mark Olson
I’ve read all his Longmire novels up to “Depth of Winter” (which is pure garbage). I agree the first was not the best, then they got better and then eventually the quality dropped off rapidly. I disagree about the TV show, the writing is much better but of course you are more limited in a 50 minute episode compared to the scope of a novel. The best part in both the books and the show, also the most similar, is “Henry Standing Bear”. I do give Craig Johnson high marks for having create the whole saga to begin with.
I cannot BELIEVE no one has mentioned Owen Wister’s “The Virginian” … anyone who likes Louis L’Amour (my favorite western writer of all time) should like The Virginian. The problem I think most people in this generation have with Zane Grey (and now even Louis L’Amour), is that they wrote in a style that’s becoming lost. Describing things with words is how things have been done for a very long time. If you lived your whole life, say on the east coast, and had never seen the west, Zane Grey’s and Louis L’Amour’s descriptions are priceless. ESPECIALLY IF YOU’VE NEVER SEEN TV, MOVIE, OR VIDEO FOOTAGE OF IT!!! In our time, there’s virtually no place on earth we haven’t seen video footage of – so we can imagine it with minimal written description. Not so just a generation or two ago. Maybe people should keep that in mind, and try to see the value in those types of writing.
If you like good westerns like L’Amour and some others mentioned you must read some by Robert O’Hanlin a relatively new prolific author( about 30 books in just a few years) which are available at several on line sites (but not Amazon)—-I am sure you will glad you sampled this author
I really enjoy L’Amour’s books because I feel like I am there riding along! His short stories are also clever and fun. I made a list of authors mentioned here and will look for them at the library. Thanks
I thought that surely someone would mention Cormac McCarthy with Blood Meridian and All the Pretty Horses Thoughts?
I couldn’t agree more. My favorite book(s) of all time: “The Border Trilogy”.
While a long way from Lamour or Grey, Blood Meridian is a fantastic book, and it’s what got me into reading westerns.
Some other books that I love:
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. I love the movie, but the book is superior. Also by Ron Hansen – Desperados (about the Dalton gang) is excellent.
Deadwood by Pete Dexter. One of my favorites. Published in the 80s well before the tv show, you get to read some familiar names that act very differently than the tv characters. Excellent characterization and just a fabulous book.
The Searchers by Alan LeMay. A famous movie, and a good book. It’s a quick read and overall I liked it a lot. The author set himself a tough task because the events take place over roughly six years. So there are places where it jumps ahead in time in great leaps. Which is fine, but in doing so you don’t “feel” the length of time, you just are told it’s passed. I don’t claim to know how to better accomplish this, but it’s probably my only complaint about the book. A different author would’ve made it 1200 pages long and it wouldn’t have been better for it.
I love Louis L’Amour and Tony Hillerman, neither of whom are on your list. Going to ignore who you recommend as my tastes obviously do not coincide with yours. Thank you, that helps. By the way, I also ALWAYS end up hating the movies that win the Academy Awards. Guess I prefer real to hokey.
I love Kelton’s books better than L’loumour. When I moved here I couldn’t believe the library has no Kelton books. Where I moved from, the library has very book he ever wrote
Lemme guess…you moved from San Angelo to Boston?
I started reading Louis L’Amour in my 40’s, now 67. I’ve probably read all of them 3 times and some like the Sacket books 5 times! He’s the best by
far that I’ve read, but I will gladly try some recommendations I’ve heard here.
Elmer Kelton, masterful writer and Texas historian.
I love his books.
I know some people on here don’t like Louis L’Amour. That may be because he, at times, writes long, poetic descriptions of the landscape, has formulaic characters, and in the Sackett series the characters sometimes are bigger or tougher than life, or maybe the people who don’t like him simply like different things or styles, but I for one am an avid fan of his. I had never been west until I was fifteen years old, but when I went out there I saw that he truly knew what he was writing about. I had always felt at home in his westerns and could see the landscape, but to go out west and see it first hand, I knew where I was. I could turn and see the river he had spoken of and the cave. The way the sunlight shimmered on the sand was just as he described it. His characters may be formulaic, but he always had a twist to their personality and such real descriptions that it didn’t matter. I enjoyed how his main characters weren’t the duded up handsome men that nearly every other author describes. His were real. Sometimes his characters had a broken nose, a deep scar along his jaw, a powder burn on his cheek, an eye that was more squinted than the other from being kicked by a mule. Often they had or acquired a limp or limited use of an arm. These things bring the characters to life for me. His characters also didn’t heal instantly from their injuries as many other author’s characters do, but neither did they lay there and complain either. His attention to detail and historical accuracy are second to none and for me are the standard every author should strive for in their own writing. He never gave a character a weapon, clothing, or horse gear that hadn’t been created yet as many authors unknowingly do. At times he will bring in battles and wars that happened a few years before or had just ended, even ones in other countries such as France and Africa, laws and or law books such as Blackstone, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, the Bible, books and poetry from and previous to the time period that particular book is set in and more and weave it into the fabric his stories are made of. I love this about his writing and I’m able to draw back from the stresses of the day and our modern world and relive the days of old. Yes, the Sacketts were often bigger and tougher than life, but several of my closest friends are the common “six feet two inches in his sock feet” that they were. My best friend’s father and a young fella I met at a used book store, both who are avid L’Amour fans as well, stand over six foot three. In one of L’Amour’s stories I read as a young teen the main character was no taller than the average woman and he appeared weak, but he proved that brains and determination could outfight brawn in a battle. I believe it was a range war. One of my other friends enjoyed that book as well. He is only five foot two and he jokes that L’Amour must have written with him in mind.
The first thing I noticed upon opening this page was the tagline on the cover of ‘Outrage at Blanco’ by Bill Crider. “The most dangerous outlaw in Texas is a woman bent of revenge…” I hope that the publisher will fix the typo. When I see mistakes like that, especially on the cover, it gives me the image of a book not good enough for a professional editor or publisher and therefore seems not worth my time. I would find the tagline intriguing without the typo, but it has turned me away and I am sure others as well.
Do the following qualify? Billy Gashade by Loren Estelman , The Taravels of Jamie Mcpherter and North by Northwest. All great
Gary you’re absolutely right !!! How do you not say L’Amour & Grey .
Dear Mr. Goldberg: No Cormac McCarthy???????
My six favorite novels, in this order:
1-3 “The Border Trilogy” (McCarthy)
4 “Lonesome Dove” (McMurtry)
5 “No Country for Old Men” (McCarthy)
6 “The Hi Lo Country” (Max Evans)
Those are all terrific!!
Willa Cather
L’Amour is formulaic, no doubt, buit still draws his characters out well enough to grab the reader. There are some books where he seems to invent new captures or incidents just to create length. Nevertheless, all his works are entertaining and readable, especially the Sacket series. Elmer Kelton is one of the best western writers in the business, and his books are very well researched. He and L’Amour should be on any list of top Western authors, though of course they do not have to be anyone’s favorites.