“Lonesome Dove” by Larry McMurtry won the Pulitzer Prize for
Fiction in 1985, and it’s a book that I’ve wanted to read for a long time. I
put it on my “bucket list” several years ago and finally finished reading it on
Sunday.
For those of you unfamiliar with “Lonesome Dove,” it’s about
a pair of former Texas Rangers, who have decided to drive a large herd of
cattle from South Texas to Montana. After hearing all about Montana’s great
qualities from a friend they haven’t seen in almost a decade, they hope to
become the first cattle ranchers in Montana and make a fortune. Things don’t go smoothly though as
a number of their friends die along the way, and they have to deal with such
dangers as grizzly bears and hostile Indians.
Many people are familiar with “Lonesome Dove” thanks to the
popular TV mini-series adaptation of the novel. The TV series included four
episodes that originally aired on CBS in February 1989. This mini-series got
great ratings, and its cast included Robert Duvall, Tommy Lee Jones, Danny
Glover, Diane Lane and Anjelica Huston.
As you might have imagined, the book (and the mini-series)
appears on a number of “best-of” lists. The book was included on The Art of
Manliness’ “Fiction for Men” reading list and Esquire magazine’s list of “75
Books Every Man Should Read.” The Art of Manliness also ranked it No. 89 on a
2011 list called “100 Must Read Books: The Man’s Essential Library.” It’s also
a past winner of the Western Writers of America’s Spur Award for Best Novel.
While reading “Lonesome Dove,” I learned that McMurtry had written three other books in what’s called his “Lonesome Dove Series.” In order
of publication, the complete series includes “Lonesome Dove” (1985), “Streets
of Laredo” (1993), “Dead Man’s Walk” (1995) and “Comanche Moon” (1997). Oddly,
these novels aren’t in chronological order. If you want to read them in chronological
order, start with “Dead Man’s Walk,” then read “Comanche Moon.” “Lonesome Dove”
comes next, and “Streets of Laredo” is last.
From the outset, I wondered where the title, “Lonesome Dove,”
came from. While reading the book, you quickly learn that it’s the name of the town in South Texas,
where the two main characters have owned and operated a small livery operation since their retirement from the Texas Rangers. The novel begins and ends in this desolate frontier town.
Of course, this made me wonder if "Lonesome Dove" was a real place you could visit, but as it turns out, it’s a fictional place. McMurtry has said in
interviews that he came up with the name while eating in an Oklahoma
restaurant. While there, he saw a van owned by Lonesome Dove Baptist Church in
Southlake, Texas, and the rest is literary history.
In the end, I really enjoyed reading "Lonesome Dove" and highly recommend
it to anyone out there who enjoys a good book, especially Westerns. How many of
you have read “Lonesome Dove”? What did you think about it? Did you like it or
not? Let us know in the comments section below.
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