The Way West Buddy Read (expanded to include The Big Sky; Fair Land, Fair Land and These Thousand Hills)

[Terry]

Thanks, Sue. I am open to read them any time! I just now ordered the first of them. Let’s see if others want to join and when.

[Sue]

Lori wrote: "Sue, these all sound fantastic! Thanks for bringing them to our attention. I’d definitely want to read them and will start looking for them. It also seems as if I need to create my own Pulitzer cha..."

That is wonderful Lori! I started after seeing Sara's and it's been immeasurably rewarding. There are few stinkers but I've enjoyed most of them and found many all time favorites from it.

[Sara, Old School Classics]

I have been grateful for my Pulitzer challenge more than once, Sue. Happens that The Town is still on my list and I had intended to do the series, since I really hate to come into it on the last book; so, next year, any time that is good for the group, would work for me. Thanks so much for suggesting it!

Lori, you really should set up a Pulitzer challenge and track them. You might be surprised how many you can already check off. I have found that only a handful are no longer good reads, and those are primarily because they are so tied to the politics of their time that they are dated.

[Terry]

I should probably do that, too, Sara! I have read a lot of them already.

[Sue]

Sara wrote: "I have been grateful for my Pulitzer challenge more than once, Sue. Happens that The Town is still on my list and I had intended to do the series, since I really hate to come into it on the last bo..."

Woohoo! I'll throw out July, Aug and Sept next year as a starting point and everyone else can make suggestions if those don't work.

[Brian E]

Sue wrote: " I could do Nov, Dec, & Jan starting this year too or other times in 2022."
I'd join in for a read of the Awakening Land starting in November as that time frame works really well for me. Next year is good too - Sue did mention next summer, which I presumed was intended to make reading a rustic Americana series kind of an annual summer tradition
Like Sara, I've wanted to read The Town but not start at the third book in the trilogy - yet it's hard to fit in the time for a trilogy on your own. I always thought of this series like the Lord of the Rings movies -where they waited until the third work of the trilogy to give it the award, be it Pulitzer or Oscar, in kind of a recognition of all three works.
I have had all 3 novels sitting in my Amazon cart the past few years hoping for a price decrease that hasn't happened yet. I've been thinking more about reading that trilogy while following this thread because of the same reasons Sue did.
Here's what the three books in my Amazon cart look like:

I like the set - very appropriately earthy colors.
EDIT: I just saw Sue's most recent post and July -September 2022 works for me.

[Sara, Old School Classics]

Terry wrote: "I should probably do that, too, Sara! I have read a lot of them already."

I started tracking in 2016, and I'm not done yet.
Here is a link to my challenge, in case you need a list or want to know what folder your own challenge should go in. I'll be interested in following you both if you decide to do this.

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

[Sara, Old School Classics]

July-September is also fine for me. I'll pencil it in on my reading schedule. :)

[Lori]

That time frame sounds great! Thanks Sue!

Sara, thanks for posting your challenge! Wow, I counted and I’ve already read 19 with at least 1 on my tbr for this year and several others sitting on my shelf! The only one I really don’t want to read is A Confederacy of Dunces. 🙁 I avoided that read earlier on The Trail.

So, this sounds inevitable that I will create a challenge.

[Shirley (stampartiste)]

Sara wrote: "Glad you liked it so much, Shirley and Sue. He is a powerful writer. I'm glad to have discovered him."

Thank you, Sue and Sara! I have really enjoyed reading this series with you!

[Sue]

Brian wrote: "Sue wrote: " I could do Nov, Dec, & Jan starting this year too or other times in 2022."
I'd join in for a read of the Awakening Land starting in November as that time frame works really well for me..."

Great Brian! Those are nice book covers.

[Shirley (stampartiste)]

Terry wrote: "Sue, thanks for the terrific suggestion!

I definitely would be up for the Richter trilogy. Chances are, though, that I will have forgotten all about it before next year, let alone next summer! So ..."

That is so cool, Terry! So many places in the United States associated with your family. As far as I know, the only state associated with my father's family was North Carolina, so rather boring by comparison. LOL. I was looking through your list of places, and I couldn't help but notice Kalispell, MT. Such a small town, and yet two of our daughters visited it last month on a two-week stay in Glacier National Park. They loved it up there and were reluctant to return to the hot flatlands of south Louisiana. After reading These Thousand Hills, I'm sure I wouldn't want to live there in the wintertime, though.

[Shirley (stampartiste)]

Sue wrote: "Sara wrote: "I have been grateful for my Pulitzer challenge more than once, Sue. Happens that The Town is still on my list and I had intended to do the series, since I really hate to come into it o..."

Sue, this sounds like a great group read again! I'm excited to continue traveling the far west with all of y'all. And July-Sept. sounds great. I'll go ahead and mark my calendar. Thank you for suggesting this!

[Shirley (stampartiste)]

Brian wrote: "Sue wrote: " I could do Nov, Dec, & Jan starting this year too or other times in 2022."
I'd join in for a read of the Awakening Land starting in November as that time frame works really well for me..."

I don't know if buying used books interests you, Brian, but have you tried Alibris? Under Get A Copy (on the Goodreads book page), if you'll click "Stores", Alibris should come up. I buy most of my books through them and make sure I buy from a Half Price Books (HPB) store in Dallas. In my experience, I usually get my books within a week.

[Shirley (stampartiste)]

Sara wrote: "Terry wrote: "I should probably do that, too, Sara! I have read a lot of them already."

I started tracking in 2016, and I'm not done yet.
Here is a link to my challenge, in case you need a list o..."

Thank you for the link, Sara! I may need to do this as well. I have already read 14 of the books on the list, and there are several that I've been wanting to read. A couple I know I wouldn't be interested in reading (like Lori, I'm not interested in reading A Confederacy of Dunces - as it's from Louisiana, I tried to read it several years ago, but it was a definite DNF for me!), but it would give me direction on reading other great American authors.

[Terry]

Shirley, I also tried to read A Confederacy of Dunces once too and gave up. I do think I will try again one of these days.

[Sue]

I'm an outlier here on A Confederacy of Dunces. I thought it was very funny. I would say that if you don't like it after a short while, you won't like it. No book works for everyone but Humor is even more individualized.

[Sue]

For all of you checking on The Awakening Land books, don't forget to try your library by the series title. My book only has the book that has all three together.

[Shirley (stampartiste)]

My library has The Awakening Land series book, too, Sue. So I’ll be set. Thank you for letting us know!

[Lori]

There was a DVD available called The Awakening Land but I will have to do interlibrary loans for these three next year. That will work. Thanks again, Sue.

[Sara, Old School Classics]

I hated A Confederacy of Dunces, but it does seem to be one of those books that people either love or hate. Nothing could persuade me to read it again and I would have DNF'd for sure if I hadn't been doing it for the challenge.

[Brian E]

Shirley (stampartiste) wrote: ".I don't know if buying used books interests you, Brian, but have you tried Alibris?."

Thanks for the Alibris tip, Shirley. I usually buy from Amazon since it is convenient and it's free shipping for a Prime member. To get away from the Amazon juggernaut though, I started ordering from Abe Books and Book Depository, only to then find out that Amazon owns them too! I will check out Alibris

I have bought a lot of used books but only in person and never online because, well I guess I like to see "how used" a book really is. Also, I usually encounter a less than significant price differential, including shipping charges. I am thinking of buying a used copy of Sigrid Undset's Jenny, though, because of the large price differential between new and used.

One of my favorite things over the past 30 years has been visiting used book stores including going to a Half-Price Books in the southwest Chicago area every few months. However, I prefer the independent used book stores, like Prairie Archives in Springfield IL that charge closer to 1/3 rather than 1/2 for used books. I also haven't visited used book stores as often the past few years because, besides COVID, my current health situation severely limits how long I can stand, making perusing the shelves more difficult and less fun.

[Sara, Old School Classics]

Brian, you should also check out betterworldbooks.com I buy a lot of books from them and find that books labeled very good and good are just that. Shipping is included in the price, so no surprises, and they are a non-profit literacy group, so you are also doing something good for others.

[Brian E]

Thanks, Sara and, again, Shirley. It's nice to have 2 alternative book sources to try out.

[Terry]

Brian, I frequently buy from ThriftBooks, where I usually can get “very good” used books for $5-7, and free shipping when ordering $10 or more. They also have a frequent buyer rewards where you occasionally get a free book. I find they are consistently cheaper than the Half Price Books in Niles, IL. “Very good” is usually good enough for me. Of course, Like New and New are more expensive.

[Sue]

Shirley (stampartiste) wrote: "My library has The Awakening Land series book, too, Sue. So I’ll be set. Thank you for letting us know!"

Great! It looks like everyone is in and we can check for more people when it gets closer.

In the meantime, I'm so excited for Enemy Women in Sept!

[Brian E]

I have finished The Big Sky trilogy. Here’s my review of the 3rd volume, Fair Land Fair Land, where I also compare the three volumes: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

*SPOILERS * SPOILERS * SPOILERS*
I thought the 3rd volume’s resolution of Summers’ conflict with his former friend Caudill was rushed. Also, for a fulfilling resolution of Caudill’s storyline, I needed some perspective from Caudill’s point of view in this book; a perspective I never got. During most of The Big Sky I had made an emotional investment in Caudill as the main character and I felt short-changed by the trilogy’s cursory dismissal of him during the 2nd and 3rd volumes as this purely evil caricature.
For most of The Big Sky I presumed that Caudill would serve as the main character of the trilogy and I treated him accordingly. Then as his impetuous unrestrained jealousy overcame him causing the epic tragedy, I still thought his story would go on. At the end of The Big Sky I thought Caudill showed some possible complexity, although still showing his awful qualities as evidenced by his seduction of the young Kentucky woman. I thought his visit to Summers in Missouri seemed like a failed attempt to reach out for some redemption. At this point, I expected Caudill’s story to continue into the next two volumes and was surprised to see he disappeared for volume two and made a token (a fairly wooden token too) appearance in volume 3 but only in the service of Summers’ story arc.
The story of a person’s fall from grace into villainy has been prominent in literature since Satan was cast out of heaven. In contemporary times the trope is evident in more popular culture with characters such as Lex Luthor (Superman), Harry Osborn (Spider Man), Magneto (X-Men) and, of course, Anakin Skywalker (Star Wars). I thought there was more to Caudill’s story that could have been tapped.
My attitude toward Caudill may be influenced by reading the books in the regular order. It appears that a few in this group read The Way West first. I think that could definitely affect the reader’s attitude toward the characters of Caudill and Summers. After The Way West, one would think of the wonderful Dick Summers as the hero of the trilogy. Thus, while Caudill would be an interesting character to follow in The Big Sky, the reader would know that the wise Dick Summers, though less prominent here, would become the prominent hero of the second volume. As a result, Caudill’s surprising and tragic fall from grace would not have as big an impact as it did on me. I don’t think The Way West first reader would feel like Guthrie pulled the rug out from beneath them like I did. I lost my two favorite characters in one blow, Caudill to his own villainy and Deakins to Caudill’s villainy. The Way West first reader still had Dick Summers, who they had already bonded with as their primary hero of the story so would not feel such a strong loss.

Thank you all for the wonderful discussions that spurred me on to read this great American trilogy in the first place. I will always smile and think of The Big Sky trilogy as expanding my view of “chick lit.”

My review of The Big Sky: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
My review of The Way West: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Sara, Old School Classics]

I loved reading your take on this, Brian. I was one who read the books in reverse order and was so, so glad I did. I think I had more appreciation for The Big Sky than I would have if I had read them in proper sequence. I can understand how the order switch would have absolutely affected someone, just as it affected you, for you are correct in assuming it kept Caudill from being established as the main character in my mind. I still found the unexpected tragedy very hard to take!

Thank you so much for adding your thoughts to this thread. Brought back the trilogy for me to ponder again.

[Terry]

Brian, I loved your comment about Chick Lit! Very funny!

[Sue]

I love your comments, Brian. I read them in the same order that you did and had the same reaction to the Big Sky. It's nice to know I'm not the only one. It was infuriating to have Caudill kill a friend who had helped him and been with him for many years. Boon, was not properly developed and the ending felt like a cheap shot. Jim Deakins was good character and it would have been great to have him in the other books. I closed the book after the murder and never finished the rest.