H.L. Davis (1894–1960)

There was a run-down old tollbridge station in the Shoestring Valley of Southern Oregon where Uncle Preston Shiveley had lived for fifty years, outlasting a wife, two sons, several plagues of grasshoppers, wheat-rust and caterpillars, a couple or three invasions of land-hunting settlers and real-estate speculators, and everybody else except the scattering of old pioneers who had cockleburred themselves onto the country at about the same time he did.

Honey in the Horn starts off with this show more shaggy, homespun sentence that sets the tone for the whole pioneer-themed story. H. L. Davis's classic coming-of-age novel about homesteading in Oregon in the early 1900s has charm enough to still win over readers with its continuous movement and steady introduction of quirky characters.

The story follows orphan Clay Calvert on a series of adventures around Oregon, from his first job on a sheep ranch, through the forests of the rain-sodden Columbia Gorge, to high deserts and wheat fields east of the Cascade Mountains. Davis celebrates the beauty of the Pacific Northwest and the diversity of her citizens and settlers.

Honey in the Horn won the 1936 Pulitzer Prize -- the only Pulitzer for an Oregon novel. Some of its social views don’t fly today, but it captures the pioneering spirit and history of its time. The new reprint edition from OSU Press features an introduction by Richard W. Etulain. show less

I'm participating in the Massachusetts Center for the Books's 2025 Reading Challenge, and January's is to "read a book published on or about the year you were born". 1952 it is, and my choice is a slow-moving story about a young Oregon sheriff's deputy, Amos, who travels with an old rancher and a herd of semi-wild horses, accompanied by a Mexican man accused of killing a wealthy landowner. Amo's intent is to investigate the possible involvement of the landowner's widow in the death. show more Hendricks, the old man, has progeny scattered all over the wild lands, but refuses to tell Amos why he abandoned them. There are encounters in Native settlements, contrasting with cars, trucks, and Greek immigrants building railroads in the late 1920s. But mostly there's the land, the rushing freezing rivers that the horses balk at crossing; the broken down barren homesteads, and the hardy pioneer-types Amos encounters. It's an American tragedy, with little dialogue and a lot of exposition, and it will remain with me. show less

I'm surprised at how much I enjoyed this book - I picked it up because the author won the Pulitzer Prize, so I was curious. And I was suprised at just how good this book was - set in the time, when the Western United States was still wild (but getting tamed) - the law was stretched thin- and vigilante justice was common. The story follows Amos, a young man working for the Sheriff, tasked with handing out notices, following up on witnesses, basically, doing whatever the sheriff needs him show more to.

When Amos needs to get out of site for a few weeks because he brought in a murderer that has ties to the local business community, he's sent to help an old man move a herd of horses to less settled land (and off the railroad). As the horses are moved, he finds out about the history of the area, how the area has changed since its settled... as well as being on the cusp of change.

Where the book shines is it describes a world in change - settlers replacing Indians. Cars replacing Horses, and the settler way of life is going away for something more modern. This book is both a look into the past, and a look into the future. show less

I used to have this long speech I'd give about 'literature' and how much more concerned with quality of content I am than the topic of the content. I used to say that I'd read a 1,000 page book written on the history of a couch, if the writing was done interestingly enough, because I am not typically very concerned with plots, suspense or other manipulative techniques that are typically used to make me forget / not notice that the writing is sub par.

It's been a long time since that speech show more and a long time since I've read something on a topic that bored me to tears, yet I remained completely absorbed. This book did manage to do that for me though.

Honey in the Horn takes place in the Pacific Northwest, when it was still half overrun by indigenous people and almost everyone in the area was transient. There was a lot of farming business, killing of people business and jail-breaking business. None of these topics are ones that I'm ever particularly interested in, but H.L. Davis held my attention well.

I am typically anti-flowery descriptions in books. I am typically anti-two-pages-of-description-about-a-character-we're-only-going-to-read-one-line-of-dialogue-from-and-then-never-see-again. However, H.L. Davis could write a 1,000 page book about the history of a couch and I'd read it.

What I'm trying to tell you is that the man has his chops and I dug it. show less