Lonesome Dove

by Larry McMurtry

Book Overview

The Pulitzer Prize--winning American classic of the American West that follows two aging Texas Rangers embarking on one last adventure. An epic of the frontier, Lonesome Dove is the grandest novel... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0671623249
• ISBN13: 9780671623241
• Release Date: August 1986
• Publisher: Pocket Books
• Length: 945 Pages
• Weight: 0.85 lbs.

Customer Reviews

One of the beat books of all time

The characters, the writing, the storyline...brilliant. I've loved this book since I was a teen. Mature content warning.

The greatest piece of Western fiction ever written

Some claim that Lonesome Dove is the greatest piece of Western fiction ever written. After finishing this book, I can see why. Lonesome Dove is a rewarding slow burn of a book. But once the action picks up, I would not be able to put this book down. It was that good. Lonesome Dove has a way of sticking with the reader long after they finish reading. The characters are unforgettable and well fleshed out. The adventure is grand. And the tale is unique. Larry McMurtry has a way of writing out in great detail each character's background. When I first started, I thought I was going to be bored to death. Yet, I later learned to appreciate McMurtry's efforts in character development. What also stuck with me was how every character had their own struggles to deal with and their own arcs. Almost everyone had past traumas that drove them forward in their own arcs. Past regrets made the motivations for their actions more clear. A criticism I do have to give to this book is its portrayal of Native Americans as savages. There were few thoughts on why they behaved the way they did or positive NA characters. Though some positive pieces here and there, it felt like it wasn't enough. Was this a sign of the times depicted in the novel? Or was it the fault of the author? There were some other languages in the novel I don't approve of based on race and women. Yet, I can (sadly) say that these were a sign of the times at this point in American history. I do not read Westerns. I rarely explore the genre in film or books. Yet, I am glad I picked this one up. Lonesome Dove is an emotional, grand experience. The tale and characters are memorable. And one will feel a sense of being there with Gus, Call, and the crew as they read along. A great experience that one should read even if they aren't into the genre. 5/5.

Great book

Great character driven story that really envelopes you. While it was a slow starter for me once I got into the book I couldn't put it down.

A Must Read!

It has been years since I read it(& my whole family & friends, everyone was reading it!)& it is an iconic classic. The mini-series is also extraordinary with perfect casting of Robert Duvall as Gus, TommyLeeJones as Woodrow, RobertUrich as Jake, DianeLane as Laurie & many more. The book is sensational reading & it paints its own vivid picture with such extraordinary writing.

I ordered a paperback priced at a regular paperback but received a Mass Market Paperback version.

There shoul be clear if the paperback version is large paerback vs MMP when purchasing. It’s not the first time that happened. I bought 4 Picirrili books classified as “paperback” but what shipped were MMP.

A modern American classic

An epic story full of all the aspects that make a story riveting: love, friendship, betrayal, courage, and heartbreak. All written in prose that is effectively descriptive, beautiful, and accessible. After reading it for the first time it immediately became one of my favorite novels and I bought more works by Mr McMurtry.

Love my used hard cover of Lonesome Dove I had the pocket book years ago but it it got destroyed in

It's a great book, and it's with my special collection.

I enjoy the books written by Larry McMurty.

This seller sells great used books at very reasonable prices. When I need additional reading material, I always check this site first. I have purchased many books from them and have always been happy with them. They are now my go-to site for books.

Lonesome Dove. (HC)-

I am trying o buy multiple copies of L D to send to my family. Being 92 Ineed not mention that's almost too many to count. It seems that I get cut off after each purchase; HELP! Lee

100 times better than the mini-series

Although I am not a "westerns only" reader, I read the book a few years before the mini-series came out and fell in love with the book. It is SO much better than the fantastic mini-series. The book gives the depth to each character and setting that the mini-series did not have the luxury of time to, although the mini-series did a great job. I laughed and cried throughout the book. I have this book on the shelf with my all time favorites. I have read other books, though not all, the author has written and was truly disappointed as none compare, or even come close to, Lonesome Dove.

An Awesome Story

This is a book that I found hard to put down. The book is very well written and seeing the mini series on TV prior to reading the book truly helps picture the individual characters and the scenes where the story takes place . Truly a great read and I will move into the next McMurtry western now.

McMurtry is an authors author!

I had never read any Larry McMurtry Prior to "Lonesome Dove," In fact, If it was not for meeting author James Brumfield at the National Finals Rodeo last week I would still be ignorant of how wonderfull McMurtry is. Brumfield was signing his newest book when he informed that the best book he ever read was "Lonesome Dove." He was more interested in seeing me read "Lonesome Dove" than his own book! I figured this book had to go on my must read list. I finished the book in 3 days, which is an accomplishment considering it is over 800 pages long! I have never been so sad to turn the last page of a book, it is that good. If a book ever deserved the title of the great American novel it is "Lonesome Dove!"

One word: magnificent

I have never been a fan of the literary western genre and confess that I read this book solely because I watched the movie based upon this book. Incredibly, the book supercedes the movie and McMurtry's characterization of Woodrow and Gus are truly stunning. It's the characters that turn this book into a compelling classic, rarely does the reader encounter such deftly-drawn and intriguing men as McCall and McCrae. You feel as if you are in Lonesome Dove with these men, and with them every step of the way from Texas to Montana. It's a magnificent journey and McMurtry is a superlative writer.Even if you've never read a western book in your life, this is a literary masterpiece, the Shakespeare of the range, so to speak.

Hamlet on horseback

Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry has been knocking around for more than a decade and is recognized by many as a classic of American Western literature. And no wonder. If you like a good cowboy story; if you're an aficionado of the West, in love with its history and geography; if you want your heart torn out and kicked from Texas to the Teton, then Lonesome Dove is the book you're looking for. Augustus McRae, Woodrow Call, and Jake Spoon, three has-been Texas Rangers, hatch a half-baked scheme to abandon their dusty lives in the un-town of Lonesome Dove on the Rio Grande, and embark on a cattle drive to the upper reaches of Montana. They depart with two thousand head of re-stolen cattle along with a misbegotten crew of sometime ranch hands, lost and found Irish brothers, green local kids, a Mexican cook who can't, and the town whore Lorena -- with hair of gold even though her heart isn't. They struggle north to untamed country none of them but Jake has ever seen -- and him a liar. They cross the Neuces, the Colorado, the Red, the Canadian, the Arkansas and up and up, fighting desperados, Comanches, sandstorms, water moccasins, bad food, bad water, bad luck and bad news. Multiple plots weave and braid and separate and double back upon you again like all the streams and rivers descending from the High Plains. But it is into the strange landscape of the human heart which the reader has been lured. For while this story concerns a pilgrimage to Montana, it is, on another level, a journey in understanding what human life amounts to, balanced as it is between hope and hopelessness, and in the words of Gus McRae, "rich with hardship." It is McMurtry's characters, as much as the route they take, which define this journey. With all their quirkiness, these characters are mind-stickers, all. We're talking Dickens 'n dogies, here. Hamlet on horseback. From the raping, torturing Comanche renegade Blue Duck, so evil as to be devoid of humanity, to the feisty widow who has her way with the the deputy sheriff, a man who finds her "almost as scary as wild pigs", to the tragic young whore Maggie, who asks only to hear her name spoken once by the man she loves, it is a haunting group we travel with. Snake attack on the Neuces to sneak attack on the Musselshell, Lonesome Dove ropes the reader, drags him through hell and high water, and leaves him feeling that the one certain thing is love, the existence of which is proven only by the size of the hole it blasts in the human heart.