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april_does_feral_sometimes 's review for:
Dead Man's Walk
by Larry McMurtry
'Dead Man's Walk' by Larry McMurtry is sort of a prequel, but it can be read as a standalone.
Beloved (❤️) characters and best friends Augustus 'Gus' McCrae and Woodrow Call were introduced in a previously published novel, [b:Lonesome Dove|256008|Lonesome Dove (Lonesome Dove #1)|Larry McMurtry|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1559668037l/256008._SY75_.jpg|3281465]. That book is about their lives when they were older experienced ex-Rangers who had settled down to run a business in Texas. But they both were once young men unknown to each other who were eager for adventures in the West. That is where 'Dead Man's Walk' begins.
The two greenhorns meet and decide to sign up with the Texas Rangers together. Despite the fact the two young men appear to Texans to be like young pups, and that they are almost completely ignorant of horses, camping outdoors and hunting, tracking, the Indian nations, guns, and what killing is like, the Rangers accept them. They take anybody.
Gus and Call are thrilled! However, what follows is greatly shocking to the boys and very entertaining for us! It soon becomes clear rangering is dangerous business for the characters, gentle reader. The excursions are often led by crazy and incompetent 'generals'. There is no training or planning. Almost none of the Rangers ever know what is happening around them or why they are going on a journey, or where they are going, or how to get there, or how long the journey will be (no maps, no skills at 'reading' the landmarks), whenever they are contacted and invited to come along on some harebrained scheme. Some of the invited scouts fortunately know how to track, hunt and can speak the languages of local tribes.
The boys endure their first Indian attack and see their first scalping on one excursion. In other excursions, they experience for the first time the deaths of their fellow Rangers from attacks - not only from Indians, but from crazed plainsmen. They see mistakes in judgement from panic and drunkenness and lack of planning. They find the bodies of children murdered by Indians or psychopathic White men or Mexicans. They discover a very lucrative business in slave trading by Indians, Mexicans and White men. They find murdered Indians. Dead horses are everywhere, and not because of being shot or accidents, but because the animals are mistreated and are in poor shape. Their guns do not fire because they are old and wrecked, but even if they have a working gun, they don't shoot because of the shock of attacks. Horrible sudden deaths and mutilations freeze them like statues. Some of their company die slowly from shootings and injuries from spears and arrows when they are miles and weeks from any town. Walking is often their only option since they lost their horses in attacks and nighttime thievery and plain ordinary negligence. Starvation and thirst kills many of their fellow Rangers on trips because the men do not carry canteens or even think to plan for long stretches between watering holes. Many of the men do not have proper shoes, blankets or slickers and only one change of clothes. Meeting the disciplined Mexican troops for the first time shocks them as they had heard only racist gossip about Mexicans. The Mexicans quickly educate the ridiculously ignorant Rangers about the laws of Mexico in regards to American yahoos assuming they can overthrow Mexico with a hundred Rangers.
Call and Gus realize they have a lot to learn! It is pure luck Gus and Call survive. Wow.
'Dead Man's Walk' is very entertaining and somewhat graphic. It starts slow, but by the end it is exciting and awesomely revelatory for the boys and us readers! The Wild West was more interesting and less heroic in truth than the movies show!
Beloved (❤️) characters and best friends Augustus 'Gus' McCrae and Woodrow Call were introduced in a previously published novel, [b:Lonesome Dove|256008|Lonesome Dove (Lonesome Dove #1)|Larry McMurtry|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1559668037l/256008._SY75_.jpg|3281465]. That book is about their lives when they were older experienced ex-Rangers who had settled down to run a business in Texas. But they both were once young men unknown to each other who were eager for adventures in the West. That is where 'Dead Man's Walk' begins.
The two greenhorns meet and decide to sign up with the Texas Rangers together. Despite the fact the two young men appear to Texans to be like young pups, and that they are almost completely ignorant of horses, camping outdoors and hunting, tracking, the Indian nations, guns, and what killing is like, the Rangers accept them. They take anybody.
Gus and Call are thrilled! However, what follows is greatly shocking to the boys and very entertaining for us! It soon becomes clear rangering is dangerous business for the characters, gentle reader. The excursions are often led by crazy and incompetent 'generals'. There is no training or planning. Almost none of the Rangers ever know what is happening around them or why they are going on a journey, or where they are going, or how to get there, or how long the journey will be (no maps, no skills at 'reading' the landmarks), whenever they are contacted and invited to come along on some harebrained scheme. Some of the invited scouts fortunately know how to track, hunt and can speak the languages of local tribes.
The boys endure their first Indian attack and see their first scalping on one excursion. In other excursions, they experience for the first time the deaths of their fellow Rangers from attacks - not only from Indians, but from crazed plainsmen. They see mistakes in judgement from panic and drunkenness and lack of planning. They find the bodies of children murdered by Indians or psychopathic White men or Mexicans. They discover a very lucrative business in slave trading by Indians, Mexicans and White men. They find murdered Indians. Dead horses are everywhere, and not because of being shot or accidents, but because the animals are mistreated and are in poor shape. Their guns do not fire because they are old and wrecked, but even if they have a working gun, they don't shoot because of the shock of attacks. Horrible sudden deaths and mutilations freeze them like statues. Some of their company die slowly from shootings and injuries from spears and arrows when they are miles and weeks from any town. Walking is often their only option since they lost their horses in attacks and nighttime thievery and plain ordinary negligence. Starvation and thirst kills many of their fellow Rangers on trips because the men do not carry canteens or even think to plan for long stretches between watering holes. Many of the men do not have proper shoes, blankets or slickers and only one change of clothes. Meeting the disciplined Mexican troops for the first time shocks them as they had heard only racist gossip about Mexicans. The Mexicans quickly educate the ridiculously ignorant Rangers about the laws of Mexico in regards to American yahoos assuming they can overthrow Mexico with a hundred Rangers.
Call and Gus realize they have a lot to learn! It is pure luck Gus and Call survive. Wow.
'Dead Man's Walk' is very entertaining and somewhat graphic. It starts slow, but by the end it is exciting and awesomely revelatory for the boys and us readers! The Wild West was more interesting and less heroic in truth than the movies show!