Synopses & Reviews
The Real Western Canon Larry McMurtry, the preeminent chronicler of the American West, celebrates the best of contemporary Western short fiction, introducing a stellar collection of twenty stories that represent, in various ways, the coming-of-age of the legendary American frontier.
Featuring a veritable Who's Who of the century's most distinctive writers, this collection effectively departs from the standard superstars of the Western genre. McMurtry has chosen a refreshing range of work that, when taken as a whole, depicts the evolution and maturation of Western writing over several decades. The featured tales are not so concerned with the American West of history and geography as they are with the American West of the imagination -- one that is alternately comic, gritty, individual, searing, and complex.
Contributors
Wallace Stegner * Dave Hickey * Dao Strom * Dagoberto Gilb * William Hauptman * Jack Kerouac * Ron Hansen * Diana Ossana * Robert Boswell * Tom McGuane Louise Erdrich * Max Apple * Mark Jude Poirier * Rick Bass * Jon Billman * Richard Ford * Raymond Carver * Annie Proulx * Leslie Marmon Silko * William H. Gass
Review
Sybil Downing The Denver Post It has been said that good short stories create a single impact that sticks with the reader. Every story in this anthology qualifies.
Review
Adam Woog The Seattle Times A fine collection....Every contributor, famous author or not, is strong and sure-footed.
Synopsis
The Real Western Canon Larry McMurtry, the preeminent chronicler of the American West, celebrates the best of contemporary Western short fiction, introducing a stellar collection of twenty stories that represent, in various ways, the coming-of-age of the legendary American frontier.
Featuring a veritable Who's Who of the century's most distinctive writers, this collection effectively departs from the standard superstars of the Western genre. McMurtry has chosen a refreshing range of work that, when taken as a whole, depicts the evolution and maturation of Western writing over several decades. The featured tales are not so concerned with the American West of history and geography as they are with the American West of the imagination -- one that is alternately comic, gritty, individual, searing, and complex.
Contributors
Wallace Stegner * Dave Hickey * Dao Strom * Dagoberto Gilb * William Hauptman * Jack Kerouac * Ron Hansen * Diana Ossana * Robert Boswell * Tom McGuane Louise Erdrich * Max Apple * Mark Jude Poirier * Rick Bass * Jon Billman * Richard Ford * Raymond Carver * Annie Proulx * Leslie Marmon Silko * William H. Gass
About the Author
Larry McMurtry is the author of twenty-nine novels, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning Lonesome Dove. His other works include two collections of essays, three memoirs, and more than thirty screenplays, including the coauthorship of Brokeback Mountain, for which he received an Academy Award. He lives in Archer City, Texas.
Table of Contents
ContentsIntroduction
Wallace Stegner, Buglesong
Dave Hickey, The Closed Season
Dao Strom, Chickens
Dagoberto Gilb, Romero's Shirt
William Hauptman, Good Rockin' Tonight
Jack Kerouac, The Mexican Girl
Ron Hansen, True Romance
Diana Ossana, White Line Fever
Robert Boswell, Glissando
Tom McGuane, Dogs
Louise Erdrich, The Red Convertible
Max Apple, Gas Stations
Mark Jude Poirier, Cul-de-sacs
Rick Bass, Mahatma Joe
Jon Billman, Indians
Richard Ford, Rock Springs
Raymond Carver, The Third Thing That Killed My Father Off
Annie Proulx, Brokeback Mountain
Leslie Marmon Silko, Lullaby
William H. Gass, The Pedersen Kid