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I have always thought that it was a little unfortunate that in this modern age of mass media some of Larry McMurtry's better works - Lonesome Dove, The Last Picture Show, and Terms of Endearment - are better known for their Hollywood adaptations than their original forms. This is particularly troubling when it comes to Lonesome Dove. Sure, the critically acclaimed mini-series starring Robert Duvall and Tommy Lee Jones was excellent, but the novel, which won the 1986 Pulitzer Prize, is perhaps one of the best books written in the last twenty-five years.

The plot follows a cattle drive from the sleepy Texas town of Lonesome Dove to the wide-open wilderness of Montana. Tied to this main-thread are a series of sub-plots, each one extremely interesting on its own. The book almost reads like a series of short stories, except each story is flawlessly connected to the whole. There is always something new to keep your interest, but the plot is never overly complicated or hard to follow.

While the novel is filled with dozens of characters, each one fully and richly developed, the two that stand-out are the leaders of the cattle drive: Gus McCrae and Capt. Woodrow Call. McMurtry originally intended to create Lonesome Dove as a screenplay, with John Wayne playing the role of stoic Texas Ranger turned cattle man Call, and Jimmy Stewart as his partner, the much less serious, fun-loving Gus. Gus and Call are living legends who manage to be both larger-than-life and completely real at the same time. Older now, and removed from their days of bringing law to the frontier as Rangers, the cattle drive is their last grand effort at adventure.

The other characters in the book fill the roles of just about every Westerns archetype you could imagine: idealistic settlers, ruthless outlaws, tough-as-nails cowboys, flashy gamblers, the bumbling deputy, and the prostitute with the heart of gold - just to name a few. These characters manage to be familiar without falling into stereotypes. Reader may get the feeling that they have met all these people before, but now they have added dimension and depth.

What amazes me most about the book is that McMurtry tries to do so much with it and manages to succeed at every turn. It is an adventure story and serious novel all rolled into one. That is what impresses me the most about Lonesome Dove. Yes, Duvall and Jones turned in great performances in the mini-series, and I am sure that a film version starring Wayne and Stewart would have been classic, but for me, nothing can compare to the excitement, humor, and emotion I experience when reading Lonesome Dove.

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(Submitted 5/22/01 by Cleveland lawyer Julio.)