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41st out of 323 books
—
428 voters
Three-Ten to Yuma and Other Stories
Trust was rare and precious in the wide-open towns that sprung up like weeds on America's frontier--with hustlers and hucksters arriving in droves by horse, coach, wagon, and rail, and gunmen working both sides of the law, all too eager to end a man's life with a well-placed bullet. The New York Times-bestselling Grand Master of suspense deftly displays the other side of h...more
Paperback, 193 pages
Published
November 28th 2006
by HarperTorch
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Nov 21, 2011
Michelle
added it
Three-Ten to Yuma was recommended to me as a great audiobook. As westerns are not my usual genre, and I have never seen the movie, I was not certain what to expect. What I found was a suspenseful short story that packed a lot of drama into a very small amount of time.
As a short story, there is no character development, no big insights into the characters’ thought processes. The entire story itself hinges on one main, rather simplistic, plot point: a sheriff is trying to get his detainee, an inf...more
As a short story, there is no character development, no big insights into the characters’ thought processes. The entire story itself hinges on one main, rather simplistic, plot point: a sheriff is trying to get his detainee, an inf...more
A Breath of Fresh Air
I've been away from reading anything for some time, consumed with other necessary distractions, and have a good twenty books on my bedside table to read, and another dozen on my Kobo. The kind of funk that settles in when you're away from something you love for a long time clouds everything, so I wanted to read something different.
I had not knowingly been exposed to Elmore Leonard until I watched "Justified", and then (as slow-witted as I sometimes can be) realized he had wr...more
I've been away from reading anything for some time, consumed with other necessary distractions, and have a good twenty books on my bedside table to read, and another dozen on my Kobo. The kind of funk that settles in when you're away from something you love for a long time clouds everything, so I wanted to read something different.
I had not knowingly been exposed to Elmore Leonard until I watched "Justified", and then (as slow-witted as I sometimes can be) realized he had wr...more
Seven tales of good men in tough situations
We know all about Elmore Leonard these days, the master of the underworld dialogue and plots like corkscrews. It was a surprise to hear he made his name writing tales of the 19th century western frontier but no surprise at all to find that this early work was very well written and an enjoyable read.
I say that but I still don't consider myself a westerns man, the closest I get to that would be drooling over the cinematic achievement of There Will Be Bloo...more
We know all about Elmore Leonard these days, the master of the underworld dialogue and plots like corkscrews. It was a surprise to hear he made his name writing tales of the 19th century western frontier but no surprise at all to find that this early work was very well written and an enjoyable read.
I say that but I still don't consider myself a westerns man, the closest I get to that would be drooling over the cinematic achievement of There Will Be Bloo...more
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Western stories aren't so common nowadays - or at least I haven't read many - mostly Zane Grey romantic novels in the high school, and italian comic books (Tex Willer, Kit Teller, Commandant Mark, even Zagor, Gil, Blek le Roc, any familiar?) with an older brother. So I was honestly suspicious about what to expect here. Well, what I got were six short stories and a novelette, all easy and exciting to read, all covering very maturely and realistically very different topics. The cowardice and heroi...more
If you really like guns-a-blazing, western cowboy short stories, then you probably won't be disappointed.
I liked each of the stories, "The Captives" more than the others (this should have been the title story of the collection).
Pretty macho stuff, really. In almost every story, the climax is punctuated with manly gunfire.
I haven't read a lot of western fiction (mostly Cormack McCarthy), and was happy to read something light from the genre and not a big novel that left me exhausted. As I'm pretty...more
I liked each of the stories, "The Captives" more than the others (this should have been the title story of the collection).
Pretty macho stuff, really. In almost every story, the climax is punctuated with manly gunfire.
I haven't read a lot of western fiction (mostly Cormack McCarthy), and was happy to read something light from the genre and not a big novel that left me exhausted. As I'm pretty...more
Trust was rare and precious in the wide-open towns that sprung up like weeds on America's frontier—with hustlers and hucksters arriving in droves by horse, coach, wagon, and rail, and gunmen working both sides of the law, all too eager to end a man's life with a well-placed bullet. The New York Times-bestselling Grand Master of suspense deftly displays the other side of his genius, with seven classic western tales of destiny and fatal decision . . . and trust as essential to survival as it is ha
...more
My first Elmore Leonard, and while I had heard that his writing style was rather pointedly minimalist, I found it so sparse that a couple times I wasn't even sure what had just happened. But I seemed to enjoy the later stories more than those earlier in the book, which may indicate there was a bit of a 'learning curve' to reading his work.
Once I got into the stories, it seemed like there was often a small twist at the end that made me think, "THAT was the point of this story?" Different than a...more
Once I got into the stories, it seemed like there was often a small twist at the end that made me think, "THAT was the point of this story?" Different than a...more
Three-Ten to Yuma: Honestly, I liked the movie (the Russell Crowe version) better, and it's not often I say that! I know this is a short story, but even so it seemed ridiculously short. Where's the action? And most importantly, where's the character development? I just didn't connect with the characters in the story like I did in the movie. And the end left me thinking "that's it??" I do wonder why Hollywood changed the names of the characters though... Perhaps to distance itself from a substand...more
I have only read the title story, but I have a feeling the rest of the stories in this collection are very entertaining as well. Elmore Leonard penned these in the early fifties. This book caught my eye a few weeks ago while I was shelving books at the store where I work. The cover makes use of the colors of the desert.
I mentioned the book to a friend before I bought it and he said there's been a good movie called THE 3:10 TO YUMA in the fifties. The next day I heard that Russell Crowe's new mov...more
I mentioned the book to a friend before I bought it and he said there's been a good movie called THE 3:10 TO YUMA in the fifties. The next day I heard that Russell Crowe's new mov...more
I read this collection of short stories because I was curious about the origins of the film. I intended to just read the short, titular story the film was based on and ended up reading the entire collection. I'm not a huge western fiction fan but this was a finely crafted collection of tales. Very enjoyable and recommended even if you aren't a big fan of the western genre.
There's only one lengthy story in there. Leonard keeps things (very) simple, but also very tight. There's not much material, but I enjoyed the hell out of the crazy settings and the lean dialogues. His characters are men of action and it's often comical to read how they handle themselves socially. CAVALRY BOOTS, THREE-TEN TO YUMA and THE CAPTIVES were very enjoyable.
Oct 22, 2007
Denise
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
anyone who likes to read about the west.
These stories by Elmore Leonard are all unique and gripping. The fresh language and crisp despcriptions clearly depict the world that his characters are moving through without dating the period within which they were written.
I picked up the book because I had seen the new movie with Russell Crowe of the title story and really loved it. I was intrigued and wanted to know where such wonderful characters had sprung from. The short story of "3:10 to Yuma" is different than the movie but you can see...more
I picked up the book because I had seen the new movie with Russell Crowe of the title story and really loved it. I was intrigued and wanted to know where such wonderful characters had sprung from. The short story of "3:10 to Yuma" is different than the movie but you can see...more
May 17, 2009
VJ
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
fans of Westerns
Recommended to VJ by:
Film
Shelves:
fiction,
short-stories-fairy-tales
I picked this book up to read Three-Ten to Yuma after having seen the movie. Happily, there was not all the gratuitous violence that characterized the film. I liked the story much better. The other stories are good, too. Spare description and nice touches, but good and short.
slow start with the first few short stories. 3:10 to Yuma picks it up along with Long Night. Interesting to see the Leonard roots in pulp in the Westerns, which will be remembered forever now because of the translation of his character Raylan Givens on FX's excellent "Justified."
I only had the title story on my audiobook, but it was a nice transition between listening to long stories. I'm not a fan of short stories usually, but liked this quick interlude, plenty of suspense.
I am discovering that I prefer Leonard's short-stories to his novels. Leonard is a master of less-is-more and his short stories, accordingly, convey considerable depth in a minimum of space.
These stories were written in the 50's and hold up well.
These stories were written in the 50's and hold up well.
In a 20 page story there isn't much to it. I don't think I will be reading any more Westerns unless they are highly recommended.
Having seen the original, classic movie, I was surprised how short the featured story is. It's so tightly scripted, and takes place over such a limited area, it would make a fine stage play as well. The rest of the stories are equally competent, reliant on strong dialog, and true to the genre.
It is amazing how Leonard can create interesting characters with only a few dozen pages and no backstory.
Good book of western stories, especially "Three-ten to Yuma." You have to enjoy westerns though.
The classic Elmore Leonard. You just need to read some of these every few years.
Gritty, intelligent western stories told in Leonard's typical to-the-point prose. Loved it.
All Leonard needs is a dozen pages and you’ll have one rip-roaring tale.
These classic E.L. short stories from the early to mid-1950s were originally published in defunct men’s magazines like Argosy and Saga. Same old formula, same great writing.
Trust was rare and precious in the wide-open towns that sprung up like weeds on America's frontier--with hustlers and hucksters arriving in droves by horse, coach, wagon, and rail, and gunmen working both sides of the law, all too eager to end a man's life with a well-placed bullet. The New York Times-bestselling Grand Master of suspense deftly displays the other side of his genius, with seven classic western tales of destiny and fatal decision . . . and trust as essential to survival as it is h...more
I'm not crazy about westerns.
Uneven but effective.
So post-war.
Elmore Leonard is generallly associated with urban crime drama, but he started writing Westerns. THis is a collection of seven short stories and they are all pretty good. The 3-10 to Yuma has been made into two movies. The latest, starring Russell Crowe, is only inspired by the short story, because a lot of the movie has been generated by the screen writer. These Westerns, like his crime stories, all feature the believable character development of a great story teller.
What you won't find here is the pitch-perfect master of entertainment you love, but a younger writer still cutting his teeth in these imperfect stories. There are flashes of his later style, and the last story isn't so bad. Fun for fans of the author. If you haven't read him yet, go read Rum Punch, Cat Chaser, or a recent book of crime shorts.
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
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| Books2Movies Club: June 2012 - Three-Ten to Yuma | 11 | 22 | Aug 01, 2012 11:50am |
Elmore John Leonard lived in Dallas, Oklahoma City and Memphis before settling in Detroit in 1935. After serving in the navy, he studied English literature at the University of Detroit where he entered a short story competition. His earliest published novels in the 1950s were westerns, but Leonard went on to specialize in crime fiction and suspense thrillers, many of which have been adapted into m...more
More about Elmore Leonard...
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