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Lonesome Dove
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Initial Impressions: Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry-June/July 2021
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Laura, "The Tall Woman"
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rated it 5 stars
May 24, 2021 05:34PM
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I had this on hold with Overdrive a couple of years back. I waited until I was number 1 in the queue and then the library decided not to renew the license and I gave up. Not surprising, it has been renewed and there is a long wait list. Most surprising, our library system only has one hard copy in all of about 9 branches county wide but numerous copies of the other books in the series. Go figure. Maybe patrons don't want to hold a 900 page book?
I will purchase an e-copy for my Kindle.
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Remember when a TV mini-series was a big event?
I’ve had my copy waiting for the right time and I’m excited to start! I can’t imagine a library having only one copy! Wow!
If we were to compile a short list of books worthy of the title "The Great American Novel," this one should surely be on it. An emotionally rich, sweeping saga with characters that jump off the page. It's also hilarious! Don't let its heft deter you; it's a lively read.
Ron wrote: "If we were to compile a short list of books worthy of the title "The Great American Novel," this one should surely be on it. An emotionally rich, sweeping saga with characters that jump off the pag..."Ron, Agree with you 100%.
I have a copy of this one and would love to get to it, but need to finish a few other reads and am reading another tome right now, David Copperfield, so I'll be tardy. I've been interested in Lonesome Dove since seeing bits of the film.
I read this long ago, still have it on the shelf. I'll read it again this coming month. It's a classic.
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Wow Laura, a virgin dove!I've watched the series 2 perhaps 3 times and am curious to see how it holds up as I loved the film. I read the book when it first came out but recall being unimpressed with its too many pages and when I saw the miniseries recalled none of it. I preferred fluffier stuff in those days I guess. Starting this week.
Since this is so long, is it okay to comment here as we go along if we preface with how far along we are and use spoiler format? Or should we stick to the final thoughts thread?
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Read one chapter this morning and chuckled all the way through.
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I'm 30% through Comanche Moon. This is a fast read. I belive I will finish Comanche Moon AND Lonesome Dove. Comanche Moon provides much humor as I believe Lonesome Dove does.
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I am very surprised by the humor - not really expecting it - but it's really great so far. The writing is just so easy and quickly paced and we're learning everything about the characters in these first 4 chapters. I'm loving the interaction among these men and how completely different Call and Gus are. It is definitely a fun read so far and am chuckling along with you Diane!
I have the kindle copy which will please my arms and hands, though possibly not my thumbs. I am reading a bunch of things right now so I know I won’t be speeding through this. I’ve neither read the book nor seen the tv production so this will all be new to me.
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I am feeling an odd sense of envy for you, Sue, that you are coming to this fresh. Sometimes what I long for most is to read some of my favorite books again, for the first time.Laura, when you have finished the book, please go see the miniseries. It is beautifully done, and you will never want to have any other mental image than these characters, as cast.
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I have books like that. Envious of those who read for first time. I will take your suggestion on mini series. I think I have a college friend who named his daughter after a character. Does “Clara” mean anything?
Ah, yes, Clara means everything!
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🥕s and radishes were not in the movie 😂
At least I don't recall that they were and one would think you might remember that.I'm taking this one slowly unless it gets to the page turning point.
This is the 4th tome in a row I've tackled and I fear getting weary. I may never read a 700+ page book again. Not enough time.
I laughed at that vernacular as well Catherine! Have you gotten to the Mexican strawberries yet?
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Lori wrote: "I laughed at that vernacular as well Catherine! Have you gotten to the Mexican strawberries yet?"Just for you Lori 🍓
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9Xft...
That’s fantastic Catherine! Thanks!
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Now that is funny!
I also noted that passage Diane.This is proving to be quite the page turner. I have completed Part 1. Throughout Part 1 it is notable how simply these people lived, so few possessions and needs, and then how bored some of them must have been in a town like Lonesome Dove.
The exchanges between Gus & Call are just priceless:
(view spoiler)
Men & women here do not highly regard the opposite sex:
(view spoiler)
Simple wisdom:
(view spoiler)
So many funny lines:
(view spoiler)
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You are right about men and women, there is very little romanticism between them. For men it's sex or someone to cook, for women it's survival. Even Gus, who was more intelligent and feeling than most, viewed it all as a game.
I am into part two now, and the action ramps up and things get a lot more serious. Chapter 37 has to be one of the funniest scenes in literature. McMurty was a genius at pacing and interweaving the bad and the sad with the humorous.
The pigs are the best! I love the quote too, Diane . Just read that part. I’ve been asking myself all along how it is that Call and Gus are living the lifestyle they fought against as rangers? The irony!!!
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One thing that surprised me was that Gus was not a native Texan! But I guess that's a relative term at this time - 1870's. He was born in Tennessee. I, myself, am not a native in that term being born in Kentucky, but consider myself a mix of my two states! I do have one son born here in San Antonio. Here's a quote from an article about native Texans in Gus's era that I found interesting:
In the early days of Anglo Texas, becoming a Texan took only a few months. Actual native Texans were a minority in the state until 1880. The number of those born on Texas soil continued to increase faster than the number of outsiders moving in until 1940, when more than three fourths of the population were natives. With World War II the dominance of natives began to decline, but never was the decline so dramatic as during the boom of the seventies and early eighties. In ten years the state’s population increased by three million people. Most of the newcomers moved here from nearby states and other parts of the South that we identified with, but there seemed to be an unusual number from “up there”: the North. Not all of those outsiders came willingly, and some of them—difficult as this is to believe—didn’t like it here.
Link to the article from Texas Monthly:
https://www.texasmonthly.com/the-cult...
Catherine, I love the quotes! Gus and Call have a unique relationship and quite different personalities. Call is definitely a hard working kind of guy who isn't really interested in pleasurable things. On the other hand, Gus is all about pleasure and avoiding pain and hard work. There's a ton of great quotes to site.
Part two is definitely ramping up and we're introduced to new characters from Ft. Smith. Oh, Elmira (I'm hearing that old country song Elvira in my head 😂) you are a woman pushing away all that's good in your life.
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Aaah!! Yes!! I am slowly making my way and wish the interruptions would go away and let me be! You were so right about how easily McMurtry can entwine the sad and bad with the funny!
His female characters are independent aren’t they? None I’ve met so far want to be taken care of by a man. They are interested in a man for what they can get from them. But Lorena and Elmira both have been used and abused by men so.....not surprised they’d be that way.
Well, after reading Ch 45, I have a different view of Lorena. I still think she's independent because she wants to get to San Francisco but she knows or else believes she can't do that without the help of a man which is why she latches onto Jake. Now (view spoiler)
The pages turn easily and despite the fact I know where all this leads, I remain very interested in in keeping them turning. That said, reading this is like driving through Texas. Hours go by and you feel you've made little headway, though not as noticeable with an e-reader.I chuckled when Gus and Lorena were talking about her getting to San Francisco and she said she was never going to make it out of Texas and Gus tried to convince her she practically was because they were halfway. Halfway in Texas is not almost there, lol.
There are sentences throughout that drop hints about what is to come, small foreshadowing phrases. Nothing one would notice if you haven't seen the film, which so far seems to be very true to the book.
Fun fact: My dad was from El Paso. He told us a relative was a Texas Ranger back in the day. Of course I had no idea what a ranger was so it meant nothing to me but he seemed proud of the fact.
Oh Rangers are definitely held in high esteem here. What stories your relative must have told!Catherine, you've described the driving through Texas experience perfectly. It can be mind numbing to travel for what seems like days and it's only hours and it looks the same! And an excellent analogy for reading this chunk of a book! I'm half way through the book so that should be almost done, right? Ha! Hardly! But it seems this part is going rather quickly.
Lori, my husband went with me to Houston one time for the International Quilt Festival and decided to visit the space center while I was otherwise engaged. This was before GPS. He took the rental car thinking how hard could it be to find. He passed up his turnoff and I recall him saying he had to go what seemed like a hundred miles before he could turn around but he eventually made it.
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Speaking of independent women, have you gotten to Janey yet Lori? Now there was was one independent gal!
My husband watches a show called "Lone Star Law", about game wardens in Texas. It's a reality show, and those guys can be pretty tough, but I expect a Texas Ranger is a different breed.
Not to Janey yet but I thought you were talking about Louisa from ch 37- most hilarious chapter yet! She was pretty independent and dominant! Roscoe escaped that one for sure. He’s turning out to be quite the bumbling idiot! Cant wait to read what else will befall him. The little girl may be his savior!!
Ch 51- first coming together of all these different characters! I loved the line “The unusual thing about the man was that he was reading a book.”I guess one wouldn’t expect to see a reading cowboy!! 🤠
Louisa was something else!I’m up to Ch 46.
On the Southern Literary Trail
Books mentioned in this topic
The Land Breakers (other topics)Comanche Moon (other topics)
Lonesome Dove (other topics)
Comanche Moon (other topics)
Dead Man's Walk (other topics)
