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Sun Up: Tales of the Cow Camps
This collection of 16 cowboy tales includes stories of cowboys growing up, learning the ropes, proving their mettle, and even falling in love.
342 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1931
About the author
Will James
129 books43 followersWill James, artist and writer of the American West, was born Joseph Ernest Nephtali Dufault. It was during his creative years everyone grew to know him as Will James. During the next several years, he drifted, worked at several jobs, was briefly jailed for cattle rustling, served in the army, and began selling his sketches and in 1922 sold his first writing, Bucking Horse Riders. The sale of several books followed.
An artist and author of books about the American west and, in particular, horses, Will James wrote the 1926 book "Smoky the Cowhorse". It was awarded the John Newbery Medal in 1927, and remains in print to this day. Several movie adaptations of the story have been created, including a 1933 version that included Will James himself as the narrator.
His fictionalized autobiography, Lone Cowboy, was written in 1930. He also wrote Home Ranch (1935) and he wrote his last book, The American Cowboy, in 1942. In all, he wrote and illustrated 23 books.
In 1991, Will James was named a member of the Nevada Writers Hall of Fame.
An artist and author of books about the American west and, in particular, horses, Will James wrote the 1926 book "Smoky the Cowhorse". It was awarded the John Newbery Medal in 1927, and remains in print to this day. Several movie adaptations of the story have been created, including a 1933 version that included Will James himself as the narrator.
His fictionalized autobiography, Lone Cowboy, was written in 1930. He also wrote Home Ranch (1935) and he wrote his last book, The American Cowboy, in 1942. In all, he wrote and illustrated 23 books.
In 1991, Will James was named a member of the Nevada Writers Hall of Fame.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
April 19, 2022
Taking a break from my personal challenge lists, I poked through the Up Next basket for random titles and chose this collection of sixteen cowboy stories by Will James.
I like the way James writes. I always feel I am sitting in the barn or near the horse pen chatting with an old cowboy friend.
Usually in a story collection there are favorites and not-so-favorites, but I enjoyed all these stories. There are young cowboys learning their trade, older ones facing the truth about getting older, cowboys off the range trying to win big at the rodeos, one cowboy who goes to Los Angeles for some repair work on his teeth after getting kicked by a horse and he ends up in the movies.
Lots of great horses too, of course. But oddly enough one of my favorite stories did not revolve around a wild cowboy or a wild horse. Jake Adams, Sourdough told how our man Jake settled himself into a small ranch and built himself a little house and had everything just so, exactly how he wanted it to be. There weren't many ladies around in the early years but he went to dances and such now and then, and once almost got 'caught' but slipped away from the rope just in time, and from then on became a 'sourdough' bachelor rancher and was mighty happy.
But one day while out riding he saw three people traveling in a car, or trying to. They had busted something and were stuck late in the day with no place to go. Jake offered them his house for the night, and set up everything for what turned out to be a husband, wife, and mother-in-law. Then various events happened that kept the company there longer than expected and the two ladies began to change things around in Jake's perfect little house. He was too much of a gentleman to say anything until the day of the last straw arrived and he came up with a brilliant plan to rid himself of the now very much unwanted guests.
It was a cute story, surprising to me in a way since there was no wild mustang or wilder cowboy involved. Will James writes on a deeper level than you might expect. I also liked the various stories telling of a cowboy who earned a living trapping the wild mustangs until he finally got to thinking how terrible it was for them to lose their freedom.
Any reader must be prepared to read about rougher handling of horses than we would care to see on ranches today, but back in the day the horses were 'broke', they weren't necessarily trained the way we would expect them to be now. They all learned on the fly, even though James is careful to explain in many different stories that anyone who was intentionally cruel to a horse was not tolerated. But there are spills and chills here, so if that thought disturbs you, this might not be the book for you.
However, if you are looking for an authentic experience of cowboy life, Will James is your man.
I like the way James writes. I always feel I am sitting in the barn or near the horse pen chatting with an old cowboy friend.
Usually in a story collection there are favorites and not-so-favorites, but I enjoyed all these stories. There are young cowboys learning their trade, older ones facing the truth about getting older, cowboys off the range trying to win big at the rodeos, one cowboy who goes to Los Angeles for some repair work on his teeth after getting kicked by a horse and he ends up in the movies.
Lots of great horses too, of course. But oddly enough one of my favorite stories did not revolve around a wild cowboy or a wild horse. Jake Adams, Sourdough told how our man Jake settled himself into a small ranch and built himself a little house and had everything just so, exactly how he wanted it to be. There weren't many ladies around in the early years but he went to dances and such now and then, and once almost got 'caught' but slipped away from the rope just in time, and from then on became a 'sourdough' bachelor rancher and was mighty happy.
But one day while out riding he saw three people traveling in a car, or trying to. They had busted something and were stuck late in the day with no place to go. Jake offered them his house for the night, and set up everything for what turned out to be a husband, wife, and mother-in-law. Then various events happened that kept the company there longer than expected and the two ladies began to change things around in Jake's perfect little house. He was too much of a gentleman to say anything until the day of the last straw arrived and he came up with a brilliant plan to rid himself of the now very much unwanted guests.
It was a cute story, surprising to me in a way since there was no wild mustang or wilder cowboy involved. Will James writes on a deeper level than you might expect. I also liked the various stories telling of a cowboy who earned a living trapping the wild mustangs until he finally got to thinking how terrible it was for them to lose their freedom.
Any reader must be prepared to read about rougher handling of horses than we would care to see on ranches today, but back in the day the horses were 'broke', they weren't necessarily trained the way we would expect them to be now. They all learned on the fly, even though James is careful to explain in many different stories that anyone who was intentionally cruel to a horse was not tolerated. But there are spills and chills here, so if that thought disturbs you, this might not be the book for you.
However, if you are looking for an authentic experience of cowboy life, Will James is your man.
September 8, 2024
This is a review of the 1932 Charles Scribner's Sons hardback edition which can currently be found up on The Open Library for who knows how much longer. This is a collection of articles and drawings by James starting in 1923. The book begins with three lovely drawings, and then a handwritten introduction by James. At least, I guess it's his handwriting.
When the story is in first person, you never can tell if it's a true story or not. Don't get hung up on whether it's true ir not. Just enjoy the story as a story. Sometimes, the illustrations come up before a key part of the story is revealed, which was a little annoying. James also uses racial slurs, which weren't considered derogatory back then ... by whites, anyway.
The artwork is spectacular, even though it's all in black and white. James did animals better than he did his people, which is just fine with me.
Selections:
* His Spurs -- a rodeo rider makes a set of spurs like no other, but needs to sell them in order to get entrance money to a big rodeo in Chicago. He comes to regret selling those Spurs.
* On the Dodge -- a cowboy trails the man who stole his horse, then gets caught by the sherif and a posse in a case of mistaken identity.
* The Makings of a Cow-Horse -- the early working years of two cow ponies, Brown Jug and Sundown.
* The Young Cowboy -- This story of a ten year old cowboy doesn't hold up well after nearly 100 years. It laughs at riding weaned calfs and uses the word "chink."
* Cattle Ruslers -- A look at real cattle ruslers. Interesting, but can be a little hard to follow at times. Has some of James' best artwork.
* Midnight -- This shows up in horse anthologies, for a good reason. Cowboy catches a wild black stallion and his herd.
* First Money -- Funny story of two cowboys competing in a crooked rodeo.
* Bucking Horses and Bucking-Horse Riders -- I think this was James' first sale. A lively essay, more about horses than riders. Interesting to note that James claims that pure Mustangs don't buck. Written when Quarter Horses were called Steeldusts.
* His Waterloo -- A cowboy who thinks he can ride any horse in the world gets humbled.
* Jake Adams, Sourdough -- Sourdough is slang for bachelor. A cowboy bachelor gets stuck with uninvited guests. Unpredictable, but uses killed pets in a failed attempt at humor.
* A Home Guard -- Home Guard is slang for relatives of the ranch boss. A cowboy, and many unlucky horses, have to deal with a horse-killing spoiled son of a rancher.
* Filling in the Cracks -- A real cowboy gets hired as an extra and stunt double for a Western film. This is one of those first person stories where I hope it isn't true, since the cowboys clearly abused the horses in the film.
* The Last Catch -- Sort of a short sequel to "Midnight."
* Cupid, the Mustang -- James tries his hand at a romance story, and does a decent job of it. I did not predict what happened to Blaze the Mustang colt.
* Silver-Mounted -- A rodeo champion joins a real cowboy outfit.
* When In Rome -- An English lord takes over a ranch and wants to "modernize" the outfit.
When the story is in first person, you never can tell if it's a true story or not. Don't get hung up on whether it's true ir not. Just enjoy the story as a story. Sometimes, the illustrations come up before a key part of the story is revealed, which was a little annoying. James also uses racial slurs, which weren't considered derogatory back then ... by whites, anyway.
The artwork is spectacular, even though it's all in black and white. James did animals better than he did his people, which is just fine with me.
Selections:
* His Spurs -- a rodeo rider makes a set of spurs like no other, but needs to sell them in order to get entrance money to a big rodeo in Chicago. He comes to regret selling those Spurs.
* On the Dodge -- a cowboy trails the man who stole his horse, then gets caught by the sherif and a posse in a case of mistaken identity.
* The Makings of a Cow-Horse -- the early working years of two cow ponies, Brown Jug and Sundown.
* The Young Cowboy -- This story of a ten year old cowboy doesn't hold up well after nearly 100 years. It laughs at riding weaned calfs and uses the word "chink."
* Cattle Ruslers -- A look at real cattle ruslers. Interesting, but can be a little hard to follow at times. Has some of James' best artwork.
* Midnight -- This shows up in horse anthologies, for a good reason. Cowboy catches a wild black stallion and his herd.
* First Money -- Funny story of two cowboys competing in a crooked rodeo.
* Bucking Horses and Bucking-Horse Riders -- I think this was James' first sale. A lively essay, more about horses than riders. Interesting to note that James claims that pure Mustangs don't buck. Written when Quarter Horses were called Steeldusts.
* His Waterloo -- A cowboy who thinks he can ride any horse in the world gets humbled.
* Jake Adams, Sourdough -- Sourdough is slang for bachelor. A cowboy bachelor gets stuck with uninvited guests. Unpredictable, but uses killed pets in a failed attempt at humor.
* A Home Guard -- Home Guard is slang for relatives of the ranch boss. A cowboy, and many unlucky horses, have to deal with a horse-killing spoiled son of a rancher.
* Filling in the Cracks -- A real cowboy gets hired as an extra and stunt double for a Western film. This is one of those first person stories where I hope it isn't true, since the cowboys clearly abused the horses in the film.
* The Last Catch -- Sort of a short sequel to "Midnight."
* Cupid, the Mustang -- James tries his hand at a romance story, and does a decent job of it. I did not predict what happened to Blaze the Mustang colt.
* Silver-Mounted -- A rodeo champion joins a real cowboy outfit.
* When In Rome -- An English lord takes over a ranch and wants to "modernize" the outfit.
April 3, 2012
Splendid collection of Will James' short stories. How can one resist reading a tale that begins at a rodeo in Chicago with a bucking bronc in the chute ready for the gate to open "Sandy Bordel, one of the top-hands from the Cimarrons, was easing himself in chute number ten and feeling with his toe for the stirrups that hung down on both sides of eleven hundred pounds of TNT which all was wrapped up in brown quivering horse hide." I'm loving re-reading books I loved as a teen. I also just read "Scorpion" which I could not find to add to my book shelf. (I got it at the library) It was excellent also. The author is also an artist and all illustrations in his books are his. There are 43 of them in this book, all packed with action.
October 8, 2015
Loved these varied tales of life on the range, and the characters who lived it.
November 26, 2014
Loved it! Wonderful collection of short stories by Will James. Another favorite!
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews