Wrap-Up Discussion: Lonesome Dove Part 1

Alright cowboys (and girls), howdy partner, yeehaw, and never squat with your spurs on.

This month, in The Big Book Club, we had our first discussion on Larry McMurtry’s timeless western, Lonesome Dove. But first let me set the scene.

It’s a Sunday mornin’, and it’s hotter’s than… the devil’s backside. But we don’t mind none, because we’ve got mimosas, flapjacks with bacon, two types of homemade cornbread, fresh fruit, pecan caramel pie, cowboy caviar (don’t ask), and chocolate chip cookies (special points to the the ones that had whiskey inside). So yeah, we were sittin’ pretty.

Ok enough with the cowboy speak.

We had a great discussion about the moral code and ethics of cowboys, as well as what can happen when a hardened cowboy/ retired Texas Rancher has an existential crisis. What happens when the legend becomes old; when the sun sets on triumph, glory and fame? What happens when they have to look at the bottom of a whiskey bottle and ask “What's my purpose?”

We also talked about, of course, the depictions of the Native Americans throughout the novel, and while some of us thought it was a bit refreshing to move away from the “wise old chief who can commune with nature” trope, we still agreed that some of the indigenous characters fell a bit flat. McMurtry seems to revert to violence to depict a strong male indigenous character, rather than focusing on something else. The main villain (so far) named Blue Duck does seem to be a bit of a token figure who consists of violence and rage, but that could just the necklace of human fingers he wears. Again, Larry, a bit heavy handed (pardon the pun.)

Speaking of tropes and breaking away from them/ not doing that at all, we discussed his female characters quite a bit as well. While there are some really strong women who stick their middle fingers up at society, (looking at you Janey, Louise and Elmira), Duda brought up the good point that a lot of times, male authors cannot, for the life of them, write a strong, interesting woman without her background being explicit sexual abuse. And Larry is not off the hook. But, we’re only half way through, so we’ll see what happens to the women folk.

I’m sure it’s going to be totally fine.

Stay tuned for our next discussion and don’t forget, if you’re interested in signing up for The Big Book Club (next book will begin in October), you can message me at my email address down below, or DM Pile of Books on Instagram.

Happy Trails, everyone.