Mojave Crossing

by Louis L'Amour

Book Overview

In Mojave Crossing," " Louis L'Amour takes William Tell Sackett on a treacherous passage from the Arizona goldfields to the booming town of Los Angeles. Tell Sackett was no ladies' man, but he could... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• ISBN: B000P40BAA
• Release Date: January 1981
• Publisher: Bantam Books
• Weight: 1.01 lbs.

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A JOURNEY THROUGH THE MOJAVE DESERT TO LOS ANGELES

This July, 1964, western novel transports the reader to the years 1875-1879 with a trip through the Mojave desert into Los Angeles, California. The route Tell Sackett takes out of Hardyville, Arizona Territory, leads him to Piute Wash and Rock Spring, then south to Black Canyon, then south to Granite Well, then southwest to Willow Spring and the Sheep Hole Mountains, with a side trip to Hidden Valley, then into Los Angeles (or "the Pueblo" as it was then known). Once there he stays at Pico House, an 1870 style, 3 story high, blue granite hotel on the corner of Main and Plaza. Along the way Tell meets up with Nolan Sackett and till book's end, though they are related cousins from Tennessee, seem to be on opposite sides. This book doesn't show Nolan at his best until he decides to side with his cousin. Louis L'Amour also gives us much collateral information along the way such as the place known as La Nopalera or as 'The Catus Patch' area being today's Hollywood, and Rancho Rodeo de las Aguas being modern day Beverly Hills. Rodeo drive did originally see many rodeos in its area. He also mentions the town of San Bernardino as originally being a Mormon town, and interestingly Big Horn Sheep are not sheep at all, but in the deer family. In Tell's journey we get this guided tour of a trail to Los Angeles, meet a woman who could be called a witch, seek to recapture stolen gold from Tell, and discover gold from a retired pirate, and meet several down right mean and ornery killers. In several scenes the past comes unexpectedly rushing back to haunt William Tell Sackett in both people and locale. This book once listed as number 6 in the Sackett series, is now listed in THE SACKETT COMPANION: A PERSONAL GUIDE TO THE SACKETT NOVELS by Louis as number 9. If a reader enjoys this novel it is an apt suggestion that he or she will also be interested in THE CALIFORNIOS, another book by Louis L'Amour, though that book is not in the Sackett series. But both books show California to have been equal to any western town of the time though we do not usually consider it such today. Both books help us to realign our thinking to seeing California as rough and ready as any town of the west. Semper Fi.

Mojave Crossing

Classic story by L'amour where the hero manages to struggle through extremely difficult circumstances to win in the end because of toughness, ingenuity and skill.

Occassionally confusing, about the early Sacketts - Tell Sackett

One of the early Sackett stories, William Tell Sackett is travelling to Los Angeles with a sack of gold to trade for supplies, he intends returning to town with a load of supplies to make a fortune. Only he gets caught up with having to help the oddly named woman, Dorinda Robiseau, with him. She is on the run from someone and needs to get out of town, even if that means a horror crossing of the Mojave. Tell does his best to help her, but even so they are ambushed and he is left in the open with no horse, no water, no food and no chance of help. Luckily he remembers a local outlaw hideout in hidden valley and manages to get a horse and some help. They've stolen his gold and that is what he wants back - just his gold. The confusing part of it for me was when he reached Los Angeles - there is complex cross and double-cross thing going on. An elderly man is having his farm foreclosed on and only Tell, a stranger can help. He is a pirate and has a hidden stash of gold but does not want anyone to know where it is. Trouble is, it puts Tell at risk because people now want to torture Tell to get the information out of him. Tell doesn't want anything of it. The confusing part is that you never know who is double crossing whom and why. The reasons are often unclear - there is definitely more Sackett novels that I'll have to read, I think, to understand this better. There is references to the Trelawney girls back whom, the three branches of the Sackett family and Angie, Tell's probable girlfriend who has not written. Rollicking good reading.

The Sacketts(Mojave Crossing)

I think The Sackett books are good to read because its on the western 1800s time. At first I was like why read this book but its actuly based on true places but fictional characters. Tell Sackett saves some kids so he can get his newphew back from the indians. I would say read it because it tells you suvorir skills.