BBM and Lonesome Dove

[belbbmfan]

I finished reading Lonesome Dove a couple of days ago and I have to say, I feel a bit like Newt, you know, left behind. These characters have been with me for a couple of weeks now and I've been thinking about them, even when I wasn't reading. I want to know what happens next. It's like I'm not ready to 'leave them be'.

At times I found it difficult to read because I've gotten so involved with some of the characters. I felt so sorry for Lorie, Deets or Clara. I wanted good things to happen to them. Like Clara said 'it's too much death'. But I guess that's just how things were, tough and tragic.

I can really see why Brokeback Mountain resonated with Larry McMurty in the way it did. There's a strong sense of 'if you can't fix it, you've got to stand it' in Lonesome Dove too.

I've enjoyed reading this book immensely. 

[mariez]

As part of "bump-fest" I thought I'd revive this thread a bit.

I've also been meaning to stop by and mention that I started reading Dead Man's Walk the other night.  I'm only about 30 pages into it so far.  And, yikes!  I have to say that so far it seems quite brutally realistic and graphic.  I know McMurtry had moments of that in LD too... but he seems to start this one off on some startling notes!

And, LOL, I notice the theme of Call trying to train a difficult mare has come back in this one.

I'm excited to learn more about how Call and Gus got started in their early years.

Hey, Amanda,

It's been a few years since I read Dead Man's Walk, so I don't remember every detail, but I do remember that it can be very raw and as you said, brutally realistic.  If I recall, that type of realism continues throughout the book. I do remember while reading, thinking "How does he think of this stuff?"    LD was my favorite of all the books in the series, but they're all well written, and it is interesting to see how and why Call and Gus developed such a strong bond. 

I finished reading Lonesome Dove a couple of days ago and I have to say, I feel a bit like Newt, you know, left behind. These characters have been with me for a couple of weeks now and I've been thinking about them, even when I wasn't reading. I want to know what happens next. It's like I'm not ready to 'leave them be'.

At times I found it difficult to read because I've gotten so involved with some of the characters. I felt so sorry for Lorie, Deets or Clara. I wanted good things to happen to them. Like Clara said 'it's too much death'. But I guess that's just how things were, tough and tragic.

I can really see why Brokeback Mountain resonated with Larry McMurty in the way it did. There's a strong sense of 'if you can't fix it, you've got to stand it' in Lonesome Dove too.

I've enjoyed reading this book immensely. 

I'm so glad you enjoyed it, Fabienne.  I figured you would.     I agree that it's the type of story that becomes a part of you while you're reading it and for a while after.  And, yes, it's easy to see why McMurtry made such an immediate connection with Brokeback Mountain - he knew the people well.   

[Brown Eyes]

*spoilers*

OMG!! Last night I just read the whole episode in Dead Man's Walk in which Gus is stalked in the pitch dark by Buffalo Hump.  Wow!  That was so well-written.  Talk about a pitch perfect way of making a reader truly experience and sense the fear that the character is experiencing.  It's sections of writing like that that I truly love about McMurtry as an author.

[mariez]

*spoilers*

OMG!! Last night I just read the whole episode in Dead Man's Walk in which Gus is stalked in the pitch dark by Buffalo Hump.  Wow!  That was so well-written.  Talk about a pitch perfect way of making a reader truly experience and sense the fear that the character is experiencing.  It's sections of writing like that that I truly love about McMurtry as an author.

Yes, I remember that part clearly!  It definitely stays with you.  Hope it didn't give you nightmares, Amanda!

[Brown Eyes]

Yes, I remember that part clearly!  It definitely stays with you.  Hope it didn't give you nightmares, Amanda!

LOL.  No, it didn't give me nightmares.  I just thought it was very, very effective writing.

The whole topic of the different Native American populations and individual Native Americans discussed and depicted in both LD and now DMW is interesting and complex.  Obviously, an individual character like Blue Duck (I don't really know enough about Buffalo Hump yet, to be able to speak too much about him), is really, really un-likable in his brutality and cruelty.  But, as a more general subject, I tend to feel so, so sorry for the Native American tribes... in terms of their land being taken over, their populations being largely eradicated, etc.  The scenario in LD describing the starving tribe that they stumble upon coinciding with Deets' death is just such a sad situation.  I have very mixed feelings about the whole topic.

[mariez]

LOL.  No, it didn't give me nightmares.  I just thought it was very, very effective writing.

The whole topic of the different Native American populations and individual Native Americans discussed and depicted in both LD and now DMW is interesting and complex.  Obviously, an individual character like Blue Duck (I don't really know enough about Buffalo Hump yet, to be able to speak too much about him), is really, really un-likable in his brutality and cruelty.  But, as a more general subject, I tend to feel so, so sorry for the Native American tribes... in terms of their land being taken over, their populations being largely eradicated, etc.  The scenario in LD describing the starving tribe that they stumble upon coinciding with Deets' death is just such a sad situation.  I have very mixed feelings about the whole topic.

Yes, McMurtry tackles the plight of the Native Americans in a lot more detail in DMW and "Comanche Moon" than he did in LD.  I think the fact that you have mixed feelings shows that he's doing his job well.  He doesn't try to sugarcoat the brutality of individual Native Americans or tribes, but he also doesn't try to paper over the fact that the Native Americans were wronged in so many ways. 

[Brown Eyes]

Yes, McMurtry tackles the plight of the Native Americans in a lot more detail in DMW and "Comanche Moon" than he did in LD.  I think the fact that you have mixed feelings shows that he's doing his job well.  He doesn't try to sugarcoat the brutality of individual Native Americans or tribes, but he also doesn't try to paper over the fact that the Native Americans were wronged in so many ways. 

To me, there's a way to see the settlers and Call, Gus, etc. as the trespassers and the dangerous figures when you think about the overall situation from the Native American perspective.

The cruelty of individual Native Americans like Blue Duck is horrifying... but the cruelty of settlers displacing and killing the Native American population is also horrifying in its own way.  It makes the consideration of the stories McMurtry tells very complex and nuanced.  And, you're right that he does a good job balancing a sense of the cruelty and brutality with a sense of the overall circumstances for the wider population of Native Americans and settlers.

[belbbmfan]

I ordered Streets of Laredo yesterday. I can't wait to read more. I'm actually hesitating starting another book while I wait for this one to arrive. I tend to get disappointed by the book I read after reading a book that I found very enthralling. It raises the bar. I just need to find a really really good one to tie me over.

*spoilers*

OMG!! Last night I just read the whole episode in Dead Man's Walk in which Gus is stalked in the pitch dark by Buffalo Hump.  Wow!  That was so well-written.  Talk about a pitch perfect way of making a reader truly experience and sense the fear that the character is experiencing.  It's sections of writing like that that I truly love about McMurtry as an author.

Oh gosh, and I already found some of the passages in LD difficult to read. I almost dreaded turning the page, wondering what would happen next (I'm thinking about the Lorena situation here). The suspense was sometimes killing me.

[Brown Eyes]

That's great that you ordered Streets of Laredo!  Whenever I think of that title, I think of Ennis humming the "Streets of Laredo" song before he encounters the bear.

That's the one book from the series that I've yet to order.  I decided I wanted to read about Call and Gus in their younger years first before I tackled the Streets of Laredo last.  So, after I read Dead Man's Walk, I'm going to read Comanche Moon.

[belbbmfan]

'Streets of Laredo' arrived today! Yeehaw. 

I've started reading it and once again, I'm having trouble putting it down. Right from the very first sentence I'm back in the world of Lonesome Dove. Well, not quite since this books starts 15 years later than where Lonesome Dove finished and lots of things have happened in that time.

I've already encountered a brokeism:

'See you for supper' 

The book is dedicated to Diana and Sara Ossana.