Opinions wanted: Best Western/Cowboy writer ever?

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[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Opinions wanted: Best Western/Cowboy writer ever?

Posted: 5/31/2008 7:56:25 AM EDT

If you want to read a western/cowboy novel or short story, who do you pick up to read?

Posted: 5/31/2008 8:02:51 AM EDT

[#1]

Larry McMurtry

Posted: 5/31/2008 8:25:02 AM EDT

[#2]

J. Frank Dobie

ETA: How many schools and university buildings does Larry McMurtry have named after him?

Posted: 5/31/2008 8:27:32 AM EDT

[#3]

Louis Lamour hands down no questions

Posted: 5/31/2008 8:35:13 AM EDT

[#4]

Quoted:
Louis Lamour hands down no questions

End of thread.

Posted: 5/31/2008 8:37:06 AM EDT

[#5]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Louis Lamour hands down no questions

End of thread.

Yup.

Posted: 5/31/2008 8:53:43 AM EDT

[#6]

Quoted:
Louis Lamour hands down no questions

FTW

Posted: 5/31/2008 9:01:32 AM EDT

[#7]

Quoted:
Louis Lamour hands down no questions

+another 1.

Posted: 5/31/2008 9:13:42 AM EDT

[#8]

Gotta disagree, McCurty was 100x better than Lamour.

Posted: 5/31/2008 9:16:40 AM EDT

[#9]

Quoted:
Louis Lamour hands down no questions

Since I am from North Dakota, I must agree.

Posted: 5/31/2008 9:19:00 AM EDT

[#10]

Quoted:
Louis Lamour hands down no questions

It took 3 replies to get the correct answer?

I think my mother has ALL of his books.

Posted: 5/31/2008 9:45:19 AM EDT

[#11]

William Johnstone

ETA Ralph Compton wrote a lot of good books

Posted: 5/31/2008 10:12:58 AM EDT

[#12]

Larry McMurty's "Lonesome Dove" is the finest Western ever written.

Unfortunately he is very erratic and a lot of his other stuff is awful.

Lamour is rubbish... (ducks to avoid incoming rounds)

Posted: 5/31/2008 10:16:14 AM EDT

[#13]

Quoted:
Louis Lamour hands down no questions

Posted: 5/31/2008 10:24:09 AM EDT

[#14]

Quoted:Louis Lamour hands down no questions

My thoughts exactly.

Posted: 5/31/2008 10:27:50 AM EDT

[#15]

Elmer Keith's autobiography,Hell I was there

Interesting read IMO

*eta Yes I know he was'nt a Writer

Posted: 5/31/2008 10:35:24 AM EDT

[#16]

Louis Lamour = win

Larry McMurty = Brokeback Mountain

Nuff said

Posted: 5/31/2008 11:03:01 AM EDT

[#17]

Louis Lamour!!

Posted: 5/31/2008 11:23:30 AM EDT

[#18]

Any fans of Elmore Leonard?

Posted: 5/31/2008 11:39:41 AM EDT

[#19]

Lamour FTW. Between my mom and uncle they have everything he's ever written. I've read a handful and haven't come across anything but brilliance yet.

Posted: 5/31/2008 11:40:27 AM EDT

[#20]

Quoted:
J. Frank Dobie

ETA: How many schools and university buildings does Larry McMurtry have named after him?

Dobie for the win.

Posted: 5/31/2008 11:41:26 AM EDT

[#21]

Quoted:
Any fans of Elmore Leonard?

The black guy from the '60's??

Posted: 5/31/2008 11:42:23 AM EDT

[#22]

Quoted:
Louis Lamour hands down no questions

I concur absolutely.

Posted: 5/31/2008 11:42:47 AM EDT

[#23]

Quoted:
Larry McMurty's "Lonesome Dove" is the finest Western ever written.

Unfortunately he is very erratic and a lot of his other stuff is awful.

Lamour is rubbish... (ducks to avoid incoming rounds)

But Lamour has like eleventy gillion books- everyone a masterpiece.

I wonder how many ghost writers they employ?

Posted: 5/31/2008 1:13:54 PM EDT

[#24]

Lonesome Dove sucked.

Louis L'Amour for the win.

Posted: 6/2/2008 10:45:27 AM EDT

[#25]

I've already replied Lamour (L'Amour, ftw, thanks to Ohio), but has anyone read Zane Grey? A lot of his stuff is non-fiction accounts, mostly of his own adventures. Some of his novels are pretty darn readable.

Posted: 6/2/2008 10:57:27 AM EDT

[#26]

Quoted:
Louis Lamour hands down no questions

Yep, all others are just good. He was the best.

Posted: 6/2/2008 3:15:16 PM EDT

[#27]

Quoted:
Larry McMurtry

Him and also Ralph Cotton.

Posted: 6/2/2008 3:18:19 PM EDT

[#28]

Anyone ever read "Education of a Wandering Man?"

Posted: 6/2/2008 3:23:52 PM EDT

[#29]

Quoted:
Anyone ever read "Education of a Wandering Man?"

Yup.

I also have all Louis Lamour's books

Another fun author is Jonas Ward. Totally worthless action thats fun.

Posted: 6/2/2008 3:25:53 PM EDT

[#30]

Quoted:
Elmer Keith's autobiography,Hell I was there

Interesting read IMO

*eta Yes I know he was'nt a Writer

The two best non-fiction books about the west that I've read are Keith's HELL I WAS THERE
and JOURNAL OF A TRAPPER by Osborne Russell.

For fiction, it's Lamour hands down, Lonesome Dove is cancelled out by Brokeback Mtn.

Posted: 6/2/2008 3:26:25 PM EDT

[#31]

Quoted:
Louis Lamour hands down no questions

Yup...

Posted: 6/2/2008 3:29:54 PM EDT

[#32]

Elmore Leonard

Hombre

Book in 1961, movie in 1966....

Posted: 6/2/2008 3:31:36 PM EDT

[#33]

Quoted:
Louis Lamour hands down no questions

+1

Posted: 6/2/2008 4:18:57 PM EDT

[#34]

Anybody ever read "The Scout" and also "Brules" by Harry Combs ? Two excellent western books.

Posted: 6/2/2008 4:34:52 PM EDT

[#35]

Quoted:
Lonesome Dove sucked.

Louis L'Amour for the win.

I agree L'Amour is by far the best, but I'd rethink that first statement.

Posted: 6/2/2008 4:50:37 PM EDT

[#36]

Quoted:
Larry McMurtry

He did a great job with "Brokeback Mountain".

Posted: 6/2/2008 4:56:22 PM EDT

[#37]

Quoted:
I've already replied Lamour (L'Amour, ftw, thanks to Ohio), but has anyone read Zane Grey? A lot of his stuff is non-fiction accounts, mostly of his own adventures. Some of his novels are pretty darn readable.

Zane Gray was a one of the best. The Lone Ranger

L'Amour was the Jack London of wester writers. He had a lot of life experience to draw from, kicking around in TX.

Posted: 6/2/2008 4:59:48 PM EDT

[#38]

Quoted:
I've already replied Lamour (L'Amour, ftw, thanks to Ohio), but has anyone read Zane Grey? A lot of his stuff is non-fiction accounts, mostly of his own adventures. Some of his novels are pretty darn readable.

Yes, and I have a few ZG books. Wanderer of the Wasteland is the only one I like. I have a difficult time getting into the extreme detail.
I'm working on completing my Louis Lamour collection my father started me on.
Not a western, but I'm working on Walking Drum for about the 5th time.

Posted: 6/2/2008 5:00:09 PM EDT

[#39]

I have an uncle that took Louis Lamour all over SE utah for background. He was the greatest western writer ever IMHO

Posted: 6/2/2008 5:05:35 PM EDT

[#40]

Started several ZG books never got interested in them. Lamour was good, but got into a pattern and tended to copy himself, but did have a few great ones.

Wade Everett wrote a very few good ones.

Never really got much into westerns, must have read about 20 Lamour for lack of anything better around.

Posted: 6/2/2008 5:11:02 PM EDT

[#41]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Lonesome Dove sucked.

Louis L'Amour for the win.

I agree L'Amour is by far the best, but I'd rethink that first statement.

It was so boring I couldn't finish it.
Terrible writing.

Posted: 6/2/2008 5:12:36 PM EDT

[#42]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Louis Lamour hands down no questions

End of thread.

Yep. There isn't even a close second.

Posted: 6/2/2008 7:10:17 PM EDT

[#43]

I thought I read in one of Elmer Keith's books that he said he met Zane Gray and didn't think too much of him. Like he was all talk and no action. Someone here probably read EK's book recently and knows the story better. I read it about 15 years ago.

Posted: 6/2/2008 7:15:42 PM EDT

[#44]

Quoted:
Yes, and I have a few ZG books. Wanderer of the Wasteland is the only one I like. I have a difficult time getting into the extreme detail.

a la Hemingway. Papa got a little carried away with details, too. I remember a paragraph in The Green Hills of Africa that was one sentence long, probably contained 200 words.

Posted: 6/3/2008 7:47:59 PM EDT

[#45]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Louis Lamour hands down no questions

End of thread.

Yep. There isn't even a close second.

HOLY CRAP WE AGREE ON SOMETHING!

There are some other very good writers but all in all Lamour kicks tail

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Opinions wanted: Best Western/Cowboy writer ever?

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