Seven Rivers West

I bought a copy of Seven Rivers West at a used books sale at my own public library & just happened to start reading it a few days ago. Wow! What a rare find, what a treasure! A swashbuckling, no holds bared, uncensored, wild, exciting, deeply rich tall tale of the West in the early 1880's. I real slots of Westerns and have started to write some, too, and once in a while I come across a writer, new to me, one that I greatly admire. The author, Edward Hoagland, is such a writer, one that I'll be searching out, looking for more of his Westerns to read. A combination of fact and fiction, of fantasy and reality, Hoagland in some way kind of reminds me of the great fiction of Isaac Singer. The book too, in a way, reminds me of Lonesome Dove...at any rate, it is the story of a bunch of very odd characters who are headed into the wild mountains of the Rockies, in search of love, gold, adventure, and grizzly bears to catch and tame. Each character in the book is flawed, is real, is quite human, and Hoagland's writing is packed with interesting detail that only one who has lived close to the wild could appreciate and put on paper. I highly recommend that anyone who happens to see this review of mine, that they get a hold of a copy of Seven Rivers West, then put aside some serious time, as you'll need it. This book will hook you, hold you, and charm you.