Lonesome Dove
// January 29th, 2009 // Reviews
Written by Larry McMurtry
Read by Lee Horsley
I watched the TV miniseries some 20 years ago, but it’s been so long that I had completely forgotten the story. I’ve always had a special place in my heart for Westerns…so I thought I’d wade into this Pulitzer Prize winner once again.
Captains Woodrow Call and Augustus McCrae (Tommy Lee Jones and Robert Duvall owned these roles in the miniseries) are former Texas rangers who’ve been living a quiet life in the small Texas border town of Lonesome Dove. Both are getting up there in age…in their 70s…and are about as different as two people can be. Yet, they’ve had a 30-year friendship and have tremendous respect for each other. Gus is also somewhat infatuated with the town whore (Diane Lane in the miniseries) named Lorena. But she’s very young (early 20s, maybe) and very jaded from being badly treated by men.
An old friend shows up one day and tell Gus and Captain Call that that they should grab some cattle and move up to Montana, where there are plentiful pastures and people are still just arriving during the westward expansion. The story covers this journey and the events and interpersonal relationshipsalong the way. It’s filled with adventure, passion, jealousy, violence and courage. Lots of great cowboy and Indian stuff…although the Indians, by this time, are diminishing as a presence….except one named Blue Duck.
I’m SO glad that I made this purchase. At over 36 hours, it was absolutely a full ride.
While I was a fan of Matt Houston in the Eighties, I wasn’t sure what to expect from the actor who portrayed him (Lee Horsley) as an audiobook reader. I needn’t have worried. He was “spot on”. His voice always was as smooth as silk…and it still is…plus, his reading is near-perfect and his rich characterizations held up really well over this long trek. I would love to hear him read some other stuff. I checked his personal web site, and it looks like he’s done some other books as well.
On a technical level, there were some minor annoyances. Poorly executed editing involving one of the characters’ names which was obviously decided on after the initial recording sessions (hah-vee-AIR became eggs-A-vee-uhr). Not all the instances were caught during the re-record, though. And one mistake was missed completely. But these detracted little from the overall impact.
If you’re a fan of Westerns, you’ll want to HEAR Lonesome Dove!
nice post, i had forgotten all about this series, i think it could be good to look at how it all started, thanks for the reminder.
I like western stories like this because westerns are generally romantic and passionate. and based on your review, I will definitely check Lonesome Dove very soon!
My father passed away a couple years ago and this was his favorite tv series. When I read or see anything about Lonesome Dove it reminds me of him.
Great review! I recently listened to this audio book and enjoyed it even more than the TV mini-series I watched years ago.
I did not know they had made an audio book out of the tv series.
Great post! Robert Duvall is without a doubt one of the best actors of our time.. Tommy lee is just as good..and all the others..The whole cast was perfect for their parts!!… This used to be pretty popular back in the day..Bless you Robert Urich…..
thanks for your review, i like western novels, i’ll be checking Lonesome Dove soon..
Good catch! its a very passionate and romantic like the old western. I already read some of each chapters and it really touched my heart. Hope to finish it soon.
This makes me yearn for the good old days, when things were simpler and more, I don’t know… open. Maybe I will go hug my girl too. Thanks.
Your post motivated me to give it a try and.. It’s interesting
I’m not a fan of westerns, but for myself it is a nice way to challenge my english skills. Cheers!
Books are really useful if we forgot the
movie then we go to our books and read what’s its all about,
The scenes, the plot.
Oh this series is great and the thing i like the most about it is theme that is a widely acknowledged epic story of normal men who rise to be larger than life, and goes to the challenge to do things no one has ever tried before.
I also was not a fan of Westerns but McMurtry is a craftsman with language that speaks to the genre. My introduction to Westerns was actually a nonfiction book on Billy the Kid written by Robery Utley.
Like so many TV shows/movies, I always end up being disappointed after reading the book first. Lonesome Dove is a perfect example of this. I just wish people could do better adaptations of books.