Reviews

Last of the Breed by Louis L'Amour

aquintana's review against another edition

adventurous lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

bookie936's review against another edition

3.0

Really enjoyed the wilderness survival and geological descriptions of Siberia; haven’t read much Louis L’Amour since I was a kid. This time around I did notice the very strong sexist and racist references, however. Example (the main character, an indigenous Native American: “He felt no enmity toward the white man. They had superior weapons in better strategy and he recognize that fact. The white man occupied the land, but the Sioux had taken it from the Black Hills from the Kiowa, and they in turn had taken it from others. He was fiercely proud and walked tall, proud of being an Indian and proud of his place in the white man’s world.

pepsigirl's review against another edition

adventurous challenging funny hopeful inspiring mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

still my favorite book of all time! Also very telling about my reading tastes: this story moves quick, hits the ground running and the medium paced parts are short lived before it's right back in the thick of the action. Many chapters end on cliffhangers encouraging me to read "just one more"

There was some time in the middle there that I was worried it'd only be a Nostalgic 5 star but it still holds up. Helps that it's been so long since I reread it that I forgot what happens near the end. It was like being gifted reading it again as if for the first time! So unpredictable and just so awesome!

Also note for future reread: annotate new characters, they return a lot in the end.

suebrownreads's review against another edition

2.0

OK, I could only get 1/3 of the way through this book. I had never read anything by Louis L'Amour, and I had recently seen a friend post a glowing review of this book, so I thought I should try it since he is such a famous author. I found the text simplistic, the characters uninteresting, and the story trite. There were overused words and dialogue. I thought if I heard them say "I am an Indian", or "He is an Indian" (like maybe we had forgotten) one more time, I might scream. In the beginning, I found the story interesting, but I just couldn't stick with the poor writing. Can someone tell me why this man has sold so many books? I don't get it. Maybe some of his earlier books are better? (No offense intended to all the Louis fans out there. This is just my humble opinion.)

thebeardrew's review against another edition

4.0

This was pretty good. To some extent, not all of the characters' stories played out fully, but it was still enjoyable.

jmoses's review against another edition

4.0

This was my first experience with this author, long ago. It remains the only book of theirs that I like, but I like it muchly. Simple man vs wild, but with an unusual setting and plot.

papidoc's review against another edition

3.0

Moderately interesting modern day novel by Louis L'Amour. A U.S. Air Force pilot crash lands in the old U.S.S.R. and finds himself in survival mode. He must escape pursuers, including the inevitable challenger nearly as good as he is. The most interesting part of this to me was the survival skills he used as he made his way back to safe territory...not bad for a novel.

bkoser's review against another edition

3.0

First time reading Louis L'Amour. I liked the story, but the writing was repetitive at times and the ending felt rushed.

abeckstrom's review against another edition

5.0

Quite possibly my favorite Cold War novel--ever! Author, L'Amour, is mostly known for the dozens of Western (i.e.: cowboy) novels he wrote. However, for his work in this book alone I'd place last of the Breed in with the best from Ludlum, Clancy as one of the best writers in the genre. Which begs the question, why haven't they made a movie out of this yet?

npeep's review against another edition

4.0

One of the first survival books I read, and one of the few non-fantasy/sci-fi in my collection. I hold this book in the highest regards, for me up there with my top favorites. Survivalism, under dog, outdoors, a little espionage...It was a heady mix for me. Not sure what else to say, except if you ever read Hatchet, pick this up - it is definitely the big kid version :)