High Lonesome: A Novel

The blurb on the older editions of this book--the one I have--always stated that Louis L'Amour writes stories that "take off like a bullet". And they do; that is no lie. This ones does that. Considine robs a bank on the second page of the book and hurries toward the Mexican border. But he has seen this girl and when he sees her agains he knows she is the one for him. Only she is surrounded by Apaches. He does the right thing and drops the gold and sets out to rescue her. Behind him of course is a posse. He has few chances in succeeding in either saving the girl or getting away with the money. A typical L'Amour product worthy of being read.

This book was assigned to me to read for 8th grade and was the first Louis L'Amour book I read. I can't really say it's my favorite yet but I really liked it alot! It's about a small group of outlaws led by a man named Considine and as they escape from one of the biggest, most carefully planned bank robberies ever and how Considine meets up with an old friend along the way, named Dave Spanyer, who has a very pretty daughter that he would like to marry.

The solidarity of men of the "frontier" to save a woman at risk is the central node of this magnificent history. Faced with the danger expressed by Apaches, a band of outlaws will sacrifice and forget his loot. A very beautiful story.

This has to be one of the best in the Western genre I have read. It is short, full of action and packs a real punch. Considine has been a bank robber for the last decade or so and is getting jaded. Together with Dutch, Hardy and the Kiowa they decide to make one last hit, on the bank at Obara which has proved impossible to hit in the past. Everyone in town is prepared to fight for it, and they are all top marksmen. The four in the gang meet up with a man and his daughter, Lennie, on the trail into town - they are heading west. Considine feels a spark with Lennie and it is reciprocated but her father doesn't want her taking up with a no account gunslinger, even though he was one. So they part ways - Considine and the gang to do the bank, and lennie and her father to 'californy' The bank job goes ok, but making their escape for Mexico they cut Lennie's trail and see that they are on one horse, and that there are indians stalking them. Considine hears shooting the distance, he knows the town posse is after him, but he has to decide between Mexico and saving the woman who is holed up and making at stand at High Lonesome. This is a great story about the grey areas of life, of making decisions, of retribution and forgiveness. It moves along quickly and was a great read - highly recommended. There are some great lines in here.

This has to be one of the best in the Western genre I have read. It is short, full of action and packs a real punch. Considine has been a bank robber for the last decade or so and is getting jaded. Together with Dutch, Hardy and the Kiowa they decide to make one last hit, on the bank at Obara which has proved impossible to hit in the past. Everyone in town is prepared to fight for it, and they are all top marksmen. The four in the gang meet up with a man and his daughter, Lennie, on the trail into town - they are heading west. Considine feels a spark with Lennie and it is reciprocated but her father doesn't want her taking up with a no account gunslinger, even though he was one. So they part ways - Considine and the gang to do the bank, and lennie and her father to 'californy' The bank job goes ok, but making their escape for Mexico they cut Lennie's trail and see that they are on one horse, and that there are indians stalking them. Considine hears shooting the distance, he knows the town posse is after him, but he has to decide between Mexico and saving the woman who is holed up and making at stand at High Lonesome. This is a great story about the grey areas of life, of making decisions, of retribution and forgiveness. It moves along quickly and was a great read - highly recommended. There are some great lines in here.

Riding the outlaw trail, Considine, Dutch, Hardy, and The Kiowa rob the bank at Obaro, where Runyon, an old partner of Considine's, is sheriff. With the posse hot on their trail, the fugitives encounter Spanyer, the tough old frontiersman, and his daughter, Lennie. Sparks fly between Lennie and Considine, much to Spanyer's dismay. To further complicate things, marauding Apaches stalk the area. Finally, outnumbered and outgunned, the motley crew makes a heroic stand up on High Lonesome. As the rifles fire, the ground is covered with the dead.This is a good action-adventure story from Louis L'Amour. It's always troublesome to make heroes of killers and thieves, of course, but don't let good taste get in the way of a rousing Western story. The writing is fast-paced and lean. Character development is evident, but limited by the brief 150+ page length, and the emphasis on action. Louis L'Amour breathes new life into the familiar Western cliches. This is good escapism for down time reading. Recommended. ;-)