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4.04 AVERAGE
4.04 AVERAGE
10 year old me would have loved this book. A novel about growing up in the California of the wild west era. Characters are either good or evil, not morally grey, the main character is good at everything he does and liked by everyone he meets except for the aforementioned evil men. Besides that there are lots of musings on life, morality, civilization, religion and spirituality, respecting differences, culture and surviving in the wild. So this is actually a very old fashioned book reminding me of old school westerns and of the works of Karl May. I've read Louis l'Amour books before but although these also had that good capable white hats vs evil black hats theme, they were not so epic in scope.
I listened to this book, and the narration was very good. The older language and the plenty of dialogue were very well done.
I listened to this book, and the narration was very good. The older language and the plenty of dialogue were very well done.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
relaxing
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
mysterious
relaxing
slow-paced
I hadn't read this book in probably 20 years and wanted to see if it was as good as I remembered it. My final verdict is that it is still quite good, though maybe not quite as good as I felt it was when I was younger.
For some reason I remembered this being less of a Western than a lot of other Louis L'Amour books. While it probably is somewhat true, it did still have a lot of the common western themes. It was a story of survival mixed with a bit of revenge and a bit of Native American lore.
The story itself starts out fairly slowly and picks up quite a bit in the last part of the book. There were some twists and turns, though nothing particularly surprising. Even though I had read this book before, I didn't remember exactly how it played out, but it went pretty close to how I expected it to finish.
I had forgotten how much Louis L'Amour likes to provide "unconventional" history lessons that may go against some commonly held beliefs. While these are fun tidbits at times and try to provide a different view of history, sometimes it feels like a bit too much. Some of the history he presents feels a bit like common knowledge at this point, but this book was written back in 1983, so in that light it may be a bit ahead of its time. I did enjoy some of the history surrounding southern California and Los Angeles, though.
Overall, I would still recommend this book for anyone looking for an epic western tale.
For some reason I remembered this being less of a Western than a lot of other Louis L'Amour books. While it probably is somewhat true, it did still have a lot of the common western themes. It was a story of survival mixed with a bit of revenge and a bit of Native American lore.
The story itself starts out fairly slowly and picks up quite a bit in the last part of the book. There were some twists and turns, though nothing particularly surprising. Even though I had read this book before, I didn't remember exactly how it played out, but it went pretty close to how I expected it to finish.
I had forgotten how much Louis L'Amour likes to provide "unconventional" history lessons that may go against some commonly held beliefs. While these are fun tidbits at times and try to provide a different view of history, sometimes it feels like a bit too much. Some of the history he presents feels a bit like common knowledge at this point, but this book was written back in 1983, so in that light it may be a bit ahead of its time. I did enjoy some of the history surrounding southern California and Los Angeles, though.
Overall, I would still recommend this book for anyone looking for an epic western tale.
It was OK. Could have been better, I guess. Main issue is the novel jumps from 1st person to 3rd person narration, and then back to 1st. I understand this is sort of previously unreleased material, a posthumous book, so I take it this might be a draft the author hadn't revised yet. Anyway, 3.5 stars.
adventurous
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Fantastically written, a good balance of description and moving the story along. Lots of mysteries within the story that kept me reading to figure out how they all connected - though slightly confusing at times to keep everything straight.
3.5 stars. Loved the beginning, grew tired near the end. Good, solid, captivating storyline. Was a bit preachy toward the end. Listened to this on audio.
Loved this story! This might rank in my top 10 or 15 of all time, and I’ve never thought I would enjoy a western or Louis L’Amour!
Action, suspense, depth, relationship. Intelligent, mysterious, complete.
Action, suspense, depth, relationship. Intelligent, mysterious, complete.
This was one of my first westerns, and I really enjoyed it. This sweeping epic is a tale of family ties, betrayal, love, and revenge. It’s got everything! I didn’t expect a western where the main character is well read in classic literature. This novel also includes some beautiful ponderation about the nature of life and our relationship to nature and each other. Also nice to read a western that actually shows how Indigenous people were misunderstood and should be respected.