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"Each of us must find wisdom in his own way. Mine is one way, yours another. Perhaps we each need more of what the other knows." . . . The Lonely Men
The Official Louis L'Amour Discussion Forum
dseanmat
Member since 1-14-11
463 posts |
01-24-12, 08:06 AM (Pacific Time) |
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8. "RE: "BEST" LL book"
In response to message #0
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Terrific choices all! My favorite for a long time was Dark Canyon, but this year I read one which actually surpasssed it: HIGH LONESOME. For richly delineated characters, white-knuckle action scenes, and top-notch storytelling in every way, this is my favorite one so far. But I have many, many LLs to go, and I look forward to finding one which can outdo this one! |
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 "BEST" LL book [View All],
Tennessee Dave, 12:01 PM, 01-23-12, (0)
- RE: "BEST" LL book,
Phyllis, 01-23-12, 01:27 PM, (1)
- RE: "BEST" LL book,
UnknownSackett, 01-23-12, 07:49 PM, (6)
- RE: "BEST" LL book,
dseanmat, 01-24-12, 08:06 AM, (8)
- RE: "BEST" LL book,
Longrifle Joe, 01-24-12, 09:42 AM, (13)
- RE:,
RickAbreu, 01-24-12, 11:34 AM, (14)
- RE:,
Tennessee Dave, 01-24-12, 02:14 PM, (15)
- RE:,
DocKaty, 01-25-12, 09:55 PM, (18)
- RE: "BEST" LL book,
EthanHunt, 02-18-12, 07:44 PM, (20)
- RE: "BEST" LL book,
Pineywoodsbow, 03-15-12, 08:16 PM, (22)
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FuwaFuwaUsagi
Member since 11-26-07
69 posts |
01-23-12, 03:00 PM (Pacific Time) |
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2. "RE: "BEST" LL book"
In response to message #1
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Hondo huh. I listed it under the top 10 LL books thread. But, and I mean no disrespect here, I thought Hondo went like this. The Gift of Cochise -->Screenplay --> Hondo, which was the novelization of the screenplay based on L'Amour's Gift of Chochise. So they question is, when you novelize a screenplay (I believe how the West was Won woudl be another example of this) how much credit goes to the author of the book and how much to the screenplay writer? I have never written a screenplay nor converted one so I do not know, but my instincts tell me the screen play sketch out a lot of the story line for you. And once again, I mean zero disrespect to Mr. L'Amour, but this is a medium sized novel and it seems that his works suffered a bit beyond the novelette. This one carries itself well and seems better plotted than most L'Amour works. I distinctly remember reading it and immediately trying to find out if someone else had co-authored it, which is why I know the lineage revealed above. Anyways, if anyone says this is 100% L'Amour and he deserves full credit than I am with Phyllis - I believe then that Hondo stands as his finest work. |
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MURPHY MBAR
Member since 8-30-05
1748 posts |
01-23-12, 10:16 PM (Pacific Time) |
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7. "RE: "BEST" LL book"
In response to message #3
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Todo I would agree that my vote would be for "Flint". Some years ago my Sons and I hiked into to Flint's malpais hideout southeast of Grants NM and camped overnight in a rain storm. The pasture and hideout was much as L'Amour described it..No signs of occupation and no running stream but a water cource where a streem probily ran at one time. We have visited many other L'Amour sites and found them to be very much what L'Amour wrote. Good and Safe Trailing Bert Murphy .. L'Amour fan and author of several books trailing L.Amour's stories Murphy/MBAR |
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FuwaFuwaUsagi
Member since 11-26-07
69 posts |
01-26-12, 00:18 AM (Pacific Time) |
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19. "RE: "BEST" LL book"
In response to message #9
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You wrote: Your posts are consistently thought-provoking! I would like to ask you a follow-up question: if you are not comfortable with Hondo because of the screenplay, what would be your next choice for your favorite LL? My reply: First of all, thank you for the kudos. I try to further the conversation as best I am able. I mentioned this in another post, but will repeat part of if it since it is germane to your question. I believe L'mour wrote five distinct themes in terms of western fiction. 1) The quintessential loner
2) Group cooperation stories
3) The historiography
4) Coming of age stories
5) Pure entertainment/Yarns/tales (mostly the short stories) I think you could go about and classify most of L'Amour's westerns in one of those 5 categories. and I feel it is only fair to judge his works with a theme and not so much cross theme as the purpose and therefore the expectation is different. I travel on business a great deal and I usually tuck several L'Amour westerns in my bag along with several serious factual books. The L'Amour books are intended by me to serve as relaxation and frivolity, pure joy. So my favorites tend not to be rated in terms of quality of plot and consistency, but rather pure enjoyment. Stated differently, if you asked me what I believe are L'Amours best works you would get a very different answer than if you asked me my favorites. To me they are two different things. In addition a over the years I have hosted a couple of conservative radio shows and now and then I reference the works of Louis L'Amour. In fact the post where I made inquiry about historical tidbit in one of L'Amour's books was because I wanted to use the information in an upcoming broadcast. What I am getting at is, if you asked me what book had more educational value you would get yet another answer to a favorite of mine. But to answer your question, "Passin' through" is probably my favorite L"Amour light read as it encompasses a few elements I really like, though I thought the overall mystery plot(poisoning) was a bit weak. Once again I do not think it is L'Amour's finest work but I find it very enjoyable for a host of reasons. Kindest regards... |
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dseanmat
Member since 1-14-11
463 posts |
01-24-12, 08:06 AM (Pacific Time) |
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8. "RE: "BEST" LL book"
In response to message #0
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Terrific choices all! My favorite for a long time was Dark Canyon, but this year I read one which actually surpasssed it: HIGH LONESOME. For richly delineated characters, white-knuckle action scenes, and top-notch storytelling in every way, this is my favorite one so far. But I have many, many LLs to go, and I look forward to finding one which can outdo this one! |
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Longrifle Joe
Member since 9-6-05
932 posts |
01-24-12, 09:42 AM (Pacific Time) |
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13. "RE: "BEST" LL book"
In response to message #0
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It is difficult for me to cite just one book as the "best"--however, I will say that, "To Tame a Land", "Flint", and "Reilly's Luck" all strike a chord within me. They all start with the loss of parents and then being befriended by an older man who teaches them skills they need to know. While I did not lose my parents, I did become the constant companion from about age 4 until graduation from High School of my Aunt and Uncle. My parents were so busy earning a living and caring for 4 other children that my aunt and uncle sort of just adopted me and I spent more time in their environment than I did in the house of my parents. They lived in a small cabin on the corner of our farm and my aunt taught me all about cooking good old southern style food in cast iron cookware (Much of which I inherited from her and use today), and my uncle taught me about working with tools, using guns and hunting. He encouraged my interest in handguns, long range pistol shooting and reloading. The first handgun I remember firing was his old original Colt Navy .36 cal revolver. He also taught me about archery and making archery equipment from scratch. In a sense, I identify with the characters in my favorite stories and feel there are some parallels between my own experiences and many of theirs. When you read a story and are able to say, "yes, that makes sense and feels real to me" then you are more likely to enjoy or appreciate that story. I have that feeling about the characters in the stories I listed. However, as was posted by someone else above, it takes "different strokes for different folks" and our views of what seems real is uniquely an individual thing. It is a good thing we're not all alike IMO. LRJ Longrifle Joe |
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RickAbreu
Member since 1-3-11
235 posts |
01-24-12, 11:34 AM (Pacific Time) |
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14. "RE:"
In response to message #13
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LAST EDITED ON 01-24-12 AT 12:28 PM (Pacific Time)
Overall "best"? I don't know possibly Flint or Hondo; you've got to admit the Gift of Cochise is an excellent piece in all it's initial flavor and brilliance compared to other writers of the time.
I'd never believe, and thus don't think, LL ever had a ghost writer at any time polluting his works though. The Gift's length was just right in it contained just enough words...LL didn't need to prove a darn thing to me by writing longer pieces with multiple brought together later on type run "off at the mouth" full-length novels to impress me with his abilities. LL kept it simple enough for a dummy like me to fully enjoy the story line.
Over the past 40 years of reading LL's works, listening to them, and including reading them to my wife...I've never minded re-reading some of them just to gather some more of the story or it's ambiance sometimes putting together simple pieces better for me about it in my mind. I've proudly read them all and surely wish there were more out there to whet my appetite for LL. I liked them all including the strangely shaped ones.
Other than LL having Mrs. L'Amour albeit conduct simple editing duties for him as a much needed favor no doubt to keep grammar and punctuation in order for the story to flow for the reader, and rightly so because it seems that this would be a basic need for any well known bard before it went out.
It seems as if LL was what you see and what he wrote was, "as is", and what you read is what you get.
I'll bet anything the man and his self was solely focused intent upon wholehearted efforts to put out a good story; it looks like LL tried hard to please the audience that he was catering to delve into at the specific era in the light/time of his writings.
Writing excitement and action articles with good plots I must say for pulp mags, I loved those boxing metaphors and detective scenes brought together well, his poetry, novelettes, novels, television's movie industry works/re-writes (dare I say for Hollywood? that had to be tough), and later audio and radio drama-type genre's after 70+- years of putting all he's got inside of him out there for all of us to see.
I'm still daily impressed by the man's work output and what he accomplished before the age of 50 was/is incredible to say the least...and then what he worked at so hard for and did after 50? You got to be kidding me.
LL: a legend in my own mind...
I dare not attempt to either try to place any criticisms nor critical thinking pseudoscience in explaining this Louis L'Amour man...simply because to me he's phenom, and he's one of the best storytellers - with a hint of the romantic too.
I get him and LL gets me, and got me, a long time ago with my 1st favorite-The Daybreakers |
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Tennessee Dave
Member since 1-2-11
1207 posts |
01-24-12, 02:14 PM (Pacific Time) |
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15. "RE:"
In response to message #14
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'The Daybreakers' being my first LL novel did, I'm sure, have something to do with my choice. But 'To Tame A Land' and 'Flint' were so very good, too. And others, again, to many to name. It's just that I see 'The Daybreakers' as something "more". That simple.
And about 'How The West Was Won', the way I see it is that to make a novel, one simply MUST know what they are doing, no matter where it comes from. And LL most certainly could, as we all agree, put a book together in a fascinating and intersting way.
And, really, this isn't about a vote, just your 'personal favorite'.Tennessee Dave "Change is inevitable, growth is optional."
Author unknown |
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10987654321
Member since 1-15-11
485 posts |
01-24-12, 06:46 PM (Pacific Time) |
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17. "RE: Gift of Cochise"
In response to message #16
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LAST EDITED ON 01-24-12 AT 06:56 PM (Pacific Time)
Freeman,If I got my facts straight, "The Gift of Cochise" was the short story that which LL's "Hondo" originated from. A quite well-written piece indeed. LD Pederson
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DocKaty
Member since 12-6-09
620 posts |
01-25-12, 09:55 PM (Pacific Time) |
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18. "RE:"
In response to message #0
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It's kind of like trying to choose which pie is the best on Thanksgiving at my sister-in-laws home - about 15 different pies that all look soooo good. But like Phyllis, I have one that sticks with me. Westward the Tide. ****************************************** May we live to learn well, and learn to live well.
May you live as long as you want,
and never want as long as you live.
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ChrisEngland
Member since 4-17-08
1049 posts |
03-16-12, 08:50 AM (Pacific Time) |
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25. "RE: "BEST" LL book"
In response to message #24
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I've deliberately steered away from this thread because it is so hard to choose one 'best' book. And I'm going to cheat now and name 3 as the best LL titles, as I can't narrow it down further than that - Comstock Lode
The Daybreakers
Flint Best I can do! C |
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