Brave Cowboy (1956)

In this novel of the modern west, an old fashioned cowboy finds himself at odds with modern society. This book is a stark look at the decisions people make, and how those decisions lead to tragedy. ( )

Abbey, Edward (1992). Brave Cowboy. Harper Perennial.
Cowboy Jack Burns travels to Albuquerque to aid his best friend, Paul Bondi. Bondi is in the County lockup and will soon be sent to a federal penitentiary. Burns plans to help Bondi escape and takes steps to also get arrested and sent to the same jail. Burns finds that his friend does not want to run from his sentence, but the cowboy cannot spend another day in lockup. Jack Burns breaks out and lawmen take up pursuit.

The second of Abbey's novels, this is a tale of a dying breed - - the wandering cowboy of the West. It's about resistance to modern regulations, changing technology, and growth and development. It's about a looming collision between law, lawmen and fierce individual independence. It's about a possible escape - freedom. It's heading toward a wreck; it's a western classic. Served as the basis of the Kirk Douglas movie, 'Lonely are the Brave.' lj (Mar 2011) ( )

One of the few Abbey books made into a movie: "Lonely are the Brave," this is indeed, a parable of the cowboy in the American west today. Sold by ELBOE along with the movie on tape. ( )

I wanted to like this book. I really love Abbey's imagery. It felt too much like a parable, though. I thought it was too heavy-handed, and that the characters were too extreme. In my opinion, it does not compare to The Monkey Wrench Gang. ( )