September RandomKit--"The Wild, Wild West!"

(Images courtesy of Google Images)

For September’s challenge, readers are asked to find a selection related to the Western genre of literature. Wait, wait, read on, pardners! You might think this is not your cup of coffee, but you will be surprised at what might work for you.

Western Fiction can be described as a genre of literature set in the American Old West frontier, according to Wikipedia. Western fiction began as “penny dreadfuls,” “dime novels,” or “pulp fiction.” Many of these offerings were fictionalized stories about real people, such as Billy the Kid, Buffalo Bill, Wyatt Earp, Wild Bill Hickok, Annie Oakley, and Jesse James. Non-American authors also picked up the genre, making it popular in continental Europe.

Although the genre peaked around the 1960’s due to popular TV shows like Bonanza, readership began to drop off in the 1970’s. The selection of western novels at bookstores seems small, but copies of westerns can easily be found online in print and digital format. Western authors are represented by the Western Writers of America and Western Fictioneers. Spur Awards and Peacemakers competitions are offered by these organizations.

This challenge could include historical fiction, sci-fi/space westerns, children’s books, western novels or short stories, comics or graphic novels, or nonfiction selections.

In case you are scratching your head (under your ten-gallon hat) or wondering how to fulfill this challenge, here are some tips for you.

Try topics such as railroads, the Gold Rush, mail order brides, horses, frontier romance, biographies, education, Native Americans, immigrants, women of the west, cooking, animals, lumberjacks, industry, cowboys, ranchers, farming, pioneers, mining. You can select a book with a cover illustration that fits this challenge in some way, a book set in a region west of the Mississippi, or even an author with the first or last name West.

Common tropes:
The “Lone Wolf”
Railroads
Gunfights, shootouts, bar fights
Bounty Hunting
Native Americans
Frontier Justice
Trusty Steeds
The Sheriff

Authors:
Max Brand
Willa Cather
James Fenimore Cooper
Chet Cunningham
Marilyn Durham
Edna Ferber
Bret Harte
Tony Hillerman
William Johnstone
Louis L’ Amour
Jake Logan
Larry McMurtry
Janette Oke
Charles Portis
Roy Rogers
Mark Twain
Laura Ingalls Wilder

Jump into the saddle, rope in some titles, have fun, and remember to update the wiki! Hi Yo Silver and away!
https://wiki.librarything.com/index.php/2023_RandomKIT

Perfect! Just took a BB for The Good Luck Girls and The Sisters of Reckoning, so I am all saddled up for this one!
I also loved Upright Women Wanted if traditional westerns are not your thing.

>2 JayneCM: Thank you! These are interesting additions to the conversation.

I can recommend Willa Cather's A Lost Lady (1923), which is about the lure (real and imagined) of the West. It's fairly short (under 150 pages).

I must admit when I read the introductory post my heart sank, Westerns not being my thing but in fact I do have something which might fit: The 19th Wife by David Ebershoff. I gather at least some of it takes place in 19th century Utah - does that come within the definition?

A couple more Western authors are Wallace Stegner and Mark Spragg.

I recently read/listened to Westering Women by Sandra Dallas which would also fit here. I'll have to think about what I'll read.

ETA: Actually, I realized that I still haven't read Epitaph by Mary Doria Russell so I think that will be my book.

A book that would fit is One Thousand White Women by Jim Fergus. I read this a while back and found it very good and it isn't a Western in the traditional sense. And another that might work for somebody is The Brothers Sisters. It might be time for me to finally read Willa Cather and I have some to pick from including A Lost Lady.

>1 LadyoftheLodge: You've suggested so many good ideas.

I did pause initially, but even before reading your ideas, I got thinking - I bet there's some nonfiction or something that might peak my interest. I'm sure there's even some fiction, possibly/likely historical.

>8 Kristelh: Oh! I'm just about to read that for THIS month! Shoot! (One Thousand White Women) Likely in the next week or two.

Depending on how much time I have I'll either read Doc by Mary Doria Russell or listen to one of the many Firefly audiobooks on my TBR pile.

I don't read a lot of westerns but these books were either 4.5 or 5 star reads for me:
High, Wide and Lonesome: Growing Up on the Colorado Frontier - Hal Borland
Angle of Repose - Wallace Stegner
The Power of the Dog -Don Winslow

I do have a couple of options:

Lone Women / Victor LaValle
Let Him Go / Larry Watson

I really want to read "Let Him Go" over the other one, but the other one also fits V for AlphaKIT, so it likely will be that one (assuming my library has it).

I love "westerns" and I had a hard time deciding what I was going to read for this but I finally zeroed in on Fair Land, Fair Land by A. B. Guthrie. This is the third book in his Western Sequence.

For those that are interested in One Thousand White Women by Jim Fergus, it is a trilogy so there are two more books: The Vengeance of Mothers and Strongheart.

I've still got a few unread westerns by Luke Short on my TBR...

I just finished Silver on the road, an alternative history and fantasy set in the ‘territories’ between the US and the Spanish colonies. Recommended.
Other recent fantasy westerns is the charlaine Harris ’s Gunnie rose series.

I'll jump back in to also recommend One Thousand White Women. One of my favorite books. And he has a couple of stand-alone novels too that would work.

I have many from which to choose:

A Lady's Life in the Rocky Mountains (The Western Frontier Library Series)
The Blue Tattoo: The Life of Olive Oatman (Women in the West)
MARY--raised in a whorehouse by a Blackfoot Spirit Woman: A tale of the Wild West of long ago

Other suggestions:
Most of the novels of Bess Streeter Aldrich in the Bison Series
The novels of Laura Ingalls Wilder
Mary Donoho: New First Lady of the Santa Fe Trail a great autobiography
The Pioneers: The Heroic Story of the Settlers Who Brought the American Ideal West by David McCullough

I second One Thousand White Women

>11 VioletBramble: Hal Borland also wrote When the Legends Die.

I used to think that I wouldn't like the "Western" genre, but there are a few good authors out there who do it well.

In about 1987 I was at the public library, wanting something interesting to read. I picked up one of John LeCarre's books, started reading and put it back, too graphic. Right next to it was a book Jubal Sackett with an Indian maiden and young man in buckskin clothing on the cover. It was written by a Western author, Louis L'Amour, and I wasn't interested in THAT genre, but that book looked different so I borrowed it. And I loved it. And since then I've read just about every book that L'Amour every wrote. Some are meh, some are good, and some are very good. He wrote historical fiction in The Walking Drum and modern espionage in The Last of the Breed (which I highly recommend). L'Amour was a story teller. If anyone wants a recommendation just let me know, but my absolute favorite is Conagher, made later on into a movie starring Sam Elliot and Katherine Ross.

Conrad Richter wrote many books about the west and frontier life. He's probably best known for A Light in the Forest, and its lesser sequel of sorts A Country of Strangers (but just as good). I'd pretty much recommend any of his works, but highly rate The Sea of Grass and The Rawhide Knot, short story collections. His The Trees is superb, too.

True Grit by Charles Portis is a wonderful read, about a girl trying to bring her father's killer to justice. It's better than the first and the sequel movie, though I like the latter one much better than the one with John Wayne.

Follow the River by James Alexander Thom is based upon a true story about a woman trying to get home to her family after being abducted by Indians.

Fans of Mary Doria Russell might appreciate Doc, a retelling of Doc Holliday's story.

Sarah Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan should fit this category, and it's a wonderful story, too.

Others worth mentioning:

Indian Captive: The Story of Mary Jemison by Lois Lenski

Appaloosa by Robert B. Parker (yes, that Robert B. Parker)

Savage Sam by Fred Gipson (sequel to Old Yeller, better book in my opinion, no spoilers!)

In case anyone is concerned about "Indian" stereotypes, I don't like them either. The native Americans in these books are not two dimensional criminals, they are portrayed as real people.

Addendum:

My Friend Flicka by Maureen O'Hara is NOT a children's book, though I did read it as a youth. It takes place in Montana, I believe, on a horse ranch.

I don't read many Westerns, but I have absolutely loved some books in the genre, including Doc by Mary Doria Russell and News of the World by Paulette Jiles. Maybe I'll try another Jiles book for this challenge!

Also, for a slightly unconventional take on the theme, I highly recommend The Road to Roswell by Connie Willis. It's set in present-day New Mexico, but there are a LOT of allusions to classic Western films, so I think it fits the spirit of the challenge. :)

I'm a big fan of Cormac McCarthy and have never gotten around to his Western series, the Border Trilogy that starts with All the Pretty Horses, so this seems like a good time for that one!

>5 Robertgreaves: That will work!

Here are some of my books that fit this category:

The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing and Dutch Uncle by Marilyn Durham
Comstock Lode and Bendigo Shafter by Louis L'Amour
Death Comes for the Archbishop and O Pioneers by Willa Cather
Women's Diaries of the Westward Journey by Lillian Schlissel
The Amish Cowboy's Homecoming (Honey Brook Book 2) by Ophelia London
The Amish Christmas Cowboy by JoAnn Brown

When Calls the Heart and Love Comes Softly and other novels by Janette Oke (including Canadian West novels). Her biography A Heart for the Prairie is also interesting.

Good Night, Mr. Wodehouse by Faith Sullivan

The Calder saga and others by Janet Dailey

>19 christina_reads: Thanks for the recommendation. When I saw this topic, I immediately thought maybe News of the World fits here. Glad to know it does. It's been on my TBR for years. Maybe this month!

If you like Christian fiction, you might want to check out Jane Kirkpatrick. Although I have only read one of her books, she's a favorite of my sister's.

A mention must be made of Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry. I think it is still the only Western to win the Pulitzer Prize (1986).

A shout out to True Grit by Charles Portis. It's good, and it also takes place when it's in a town, in my hometown.

There is Doc by Mary Doria Russell and I'll probably read her book Epitaph: A Novel of the O.K. Corral, it's one of several I could choose from on my shelf though.

For nonfiction readers, Tom Clavin is very popular now but I've only read short pieces he's written.

>24 clue: I second recommendations for True Grit and Doc, and to a certain extent Epitaph, but recommend you not read the last chapter of that sequel. Someone else suggested the same to me, and I was sorry I didn't listen.

I did read Lonesome Dove after watching the mini-series, but it was a bit of a slog, and, personally, I wasn't impressed. Others might disagree.

I'll probably read Dinosaur Drive by Clark Wilkins. It's a western set on another planet where they herd dinosaurs.

>26 SilverWolf28: That sounds interesting!

I think I am going to read a children's book Scrib by David Ives. It has been on my shelf for years. Another one I thought of is By the Great Horn Spoon by Sid Fleischman, which is about the Gold Rush.

>24 clue: Another author who won a Pulitzer Prize was A. B. Guthrie who was awarded a Pulitzer in 1950 for The Way West.

>28 DeltaQueen50: I've got the first book in that series, The Big Sky. Maybe I'll get to it!

I have a few to choose from but I'd really like to read The Sisters Brothers by Patrick deWitt again. I don't think I appreciated it enough when I read it about ten years ago.

>29 fuzzi: I read The Big Sky for the first time many years ago and then recently re-read it - I was very impressed. Guthrie is a great storyteller!

>31 DeltaQueen50: I guess I'll move it up the queue, then. Thanks!

Six-Gun Snow White and Murder on the Red River plus the two sequels are the only western books I've read. Both are good, with Snow White being a retelling and the Red River series a crime/mystery novel with a native woman as the lead character.

I will probably also read something by C.J. Petit. Maybe North of Denton or Grip Taylor.

>24 clue: Thanks, if I ever knew that I'd forgotten it. I should reread Guthrie, it's been a long time.

>13 DeltaQueen50: Hi Judy, thanks for the tip about the sequel to One Thousand White Women, I'm going to read the second book.

>36 lsh63: I hope you enjoy it, Lisa. I loved the first book but didn't think the second one quite measured up to it. I also have the third book but didn't choose it for this challenge - decided to go with A.B. Guthrie instead.

I am thinking I might read The Personal History of Rachel DuPree. I think this will work for Western theme. Homesteading in the Dakotas. I might also read Days Without End.

>38 Kristelh: I am planning on reading Days Without End next month but didn't mention it here - I am really looking forward to it! I read The Personal History of Rachel DuPree a year or so ago and thought it was very well done. So I don't think you can go wrong with either of the books you are considering.

>38 Kristelh: I really liked The Personal History of Rachel DuPree and it does take place out west.

>38 Kristelh: That one definitely fits! (Rachel Dupree) Enjoy!

The Sisters Brothers by Patrick deWitt
This was my second reading and more enjoyable than the first when the book was in the throes of publicity hype, which only points to my contrariness. I enjoyed the humour more this time, and appreciated the fine qualities of the good-natured Eli, a generally kind and generous man. His appreciation of the new toothbrush and powder was delightful. However, the contrasting violent scenes keep this from being a sweet, sleep-inducing account. Not only was this a well told story, filled with wonderful characters, but the relationship between the brothers is remarkably complex. Both are hired guns, and while Charlie is belligerent and violent, Eli can pull his weight with a gun yet is understanding of his brother's malevolence. I'm glad I gave this entertaining book a second chance.

Although started much earlier, today I finished Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry. Definitely a 5-star read!

Reserved The cold eye by Laura Anne Gilman at the library. Second book in The Devils west, taking place in the Wild West in an alternative history where Spain has colonized part of the US.
Crossing fingers it will be available for this months challenge.

COMPLETED The 19th Wife by David Ebershoff

A dual timeline book with the 19th century section describing the Mormon migrations and eventual settlement in Utah

I read Kit McBride Gets a Wife by Amy Barry, a romance set in 1880s Montana. It's a fun book, and I liked the setting of the frontier town, complete with colorful locals and a dangerous blizzard that gets the main characters snowed in!

Read both The cold eye and red water rising #2 and 3 from The devils west series. Alternative history, taking place in the northern American territories, where the devil has made an agreement with the land and the people that keep the peace between natives and settlers, and keep the US, and the Spanish and other colonial powers out. Ok read. The quality of writing and plot has gone downhill from book one.

I have finished Fiddlefoot from my shelves, almost 40 years old and battered. It's not one of his best, so I'm parting with it.

I can probably find something that will fit here. Not sure what yet.

ETA: I'm leaning toward something by Sandra Dallas. I've read Westering Women so I'm leaning towards True Sisters or Where Coyotes Howl. She also has some juvenile (grades 4-6 level) books that fit the category, such as The Quilt Walk, Hardscrabble, and Tenmile. Then she has some non-fiction, like The Quilt that Walked to Golden: Women and Quilts in the Mountain West-- from the Overland Trail to Contemporary Colorado and No More than Five in a Bed: Colorado Hotels in the Old Days. A lot will depend on what is most accessible to me. Another option might be the Willa Cather mentioned above that I haven't read, A Lost Lady.

Volkswagen Blues, by Jacques Poulin, fits this theme: although the main characters are crossing North America in the 1980s, their journey makes many references to the Wild West.

October thread is up
https://www.librarything.com/topic/353666

I have completed my read of Fair Land, Fair Land by A.B. Guthrie. This was the third volume in his series that he wrote about the American West. This book brought closure to many of the characters from the other two books. I found it to be very well written and engrossing.

I read The Whistling Season by Ivan Doig (2006), which is set in a homestead area in Montana during the 1909-1910 school year. Told from the point of view of sixth-grader Paul, it centers around his family, their neighbors and the area's one-room rural schoolhouse.

I completed The Personal History of Rachel DuPree by Ann Weisgarber. Set in homestead area of the Badlands in South Dakota 1910 to 1917 by a Black couple.

>54 Kristelh: Good choice!

The First Four Years / Laura Ingalls Wilder
4 stars

This is the last in the Little House series, looking at the first four years of Laura and Almanzo’s marriage. They homesteaded during this time and tried to get a farm going, and they had a daughter, Rose.

This was published after Rose’s death. The book was an unfinished manuscript. I still really enjoyed it, even if it wasn’t as Laura would have published it if she’d ever taken time to finish it. There were still plenty of brilliant descriptions of things. During the four years, their farm (at least the crops) never did flourish, though they did well with their animals. The weather (as it often is with farming) was the culprit – hail, a tornado (or cyclone, as Laura called it), drought, fire. Also blizzards in winter factored into their lives, as it did with anyone on the prairies. I have a beautiful “full color collector’s edition”, which has very nice glossy colour illustrations.

I have read Westering Women by Sandra Dallas. I'm also reading Epitaph by Mary Doria Russell but may not get it finished before the end of this month.

Completed Days Without End - Sebastian Barry. A new Western. The writing is excellent.

I finished Letters of a Woman Homesteader by Elinore Pruitt Stewart. It was originally published in 1914. Through her letters, Stewart tells about her adventures homesteading in Wyoming starting in 1909.

>58 Kristelh: I also read Days Without End by Sebastian Barry and I thought it was excellent!

>59 NinieB: I remember liking that one quite a bit.

I didn't get to my main choices for this challenge, but found enough time to reread a L'Amour, The Empty Land. It was a little bit better than a 3 star.

For this month's challenge I read the Historical Fiction Zeke and Ned by Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana

I should be able to finish The Solace of Open Spaces by Gretel Ehrlich before the end of the day.

Thanks to everyone who participated in this challenge. I know "westerns" seems to be a genre that not everyone likes, but we all made it work!

I finally finished All the Pretty Horses last night, and I'm really glad this challenge pushed me to finally get around to picking it up :)

Attempting to catch up, so finally read The Good Luck Girls for this. Really enjoyed it.