Synopses & Reviews
By the author of
The Homesman, now a major motion picture The Shootist is John Bernard Books, a gunfighter at the turn of the twentieth century who must confront the greatest Shootist of all: Death. Most men would end their days in bed or take their own lives, but a gunfighter has a third option, one that Books decides to exercise. He may choose his own executioner.
As word spreads that the famous assassin has incurable cancer, an assortment of human vultures gathers to feast on the corpse—among them a gambler, a rustler, a clergyman, an undertaker, an old love, a reporter, even an admiring teenager. What follows is the last courageous act in Bookss own legend.
This classic, Spur Award-winning novel was chosen by the Western Writers of America as one of the best western novels ever written and was the inspiration for John Waynes last great starring role in the acclaimed 1976 film adaptation. The Bison Books edition includes a new introduction by the authors son, Miles Swarthout, in which he discusses his fathers work and the making of the legendary film.
Review
“This is definitely more than a Western; the characterization is flawless, the plot absorbing and convincing.”—Library Journal
Review
“A taut, leathery, masterful tale.”—Los Angeles Times
Review
“A treasured addition to my library.”—Ronald Reagan
Review
“A classic—an incredible tale about an incredible man by an incredible author. . . . Its a fascinating tale, and once started, is difficult to leave until the final sentence has been absorbed.”—Arizona Republic
Review
“Chilling . . . grisly . . . extremely exciting to the very end.”—Times of London
Synopsis
Here is a rich and serious novel of the violent West. Full of the authentic sounds and colors of Wyoming cattle country in the late nineteenth century, it tells the true story of a long-vanished time—the era of the cowhands and the bloody Johnson County range wars.
Riders of Judgment centers on the three Hammett brothers and their cousin Rosemary, whom all three love. To the oldest brother, Cain, falls the lot of avenging the murder of his father, grandfather, and brother. Cain—who is in a sense a cowboy Hamlet—is torn by conflicts within himself. He desires peace yet is forced to wear a gun. He is a law-abiding man by instinct yet has to take the law into his own hands. He is loved by a woman but rejects her because he feels unworthy of her love.
Then one spring morning the cattle barons invade his territory, and Cains hesitancy vanishes. One mans inner struggle becomes a fight to turn the cattle kingdom into a free country for the small stockman.
Riders of Judgment is the final book in Frederick Manfreds five-volume series, The Buckskin Man Tales.
Synopsis
Hunter, trapper, resourceful fighter, and scout, Hugh Glass was just a rugged man among other rugged American frontiersmen until he was mauled by a grizzly bear and left for dead by his best friends. Hughand#8217;s rage drove him to crawl two hundred miles across dangerous territory to seek revenge until he was no longer Hugh Glass but had become Lord Grizzly.and#160;Lord Grizzly is the second volume of Frederick Manfredand#8217;s acclaimed five-volume series, The Buckskin Man Tales. For this Bison Books edition, poet Freya Manfred provides a new introduction.
About the Author
Frederick Manfred (1912and#8211;94) grew up on a farm in Iowa with six brothers, attended Calvin College in Michigan, and then hitchhiked for two years across America, which provided him with rich material for his novels. He is the author of twenty-four novels, including a five-volume series, The Buckskin Man Tales, which includes Lord Grizzly, a finalist for the 1954 National Book Award, Conquering Horse, Scarlet Plume, King of Spades, and Riders of Judgment. He also published volumes of poetry, short stories, and essays. John R. Milton (1924and#8211;95) taught at the University of South Dakota and is the author of several works, including The Novel of the American West, South Dakota: A Bicentennial History, and The Tree of Bones and Other Poems. Freya Manfred is the author of the memoir Frederick Manfred: A Daughter Remembers and six books of poetry, including My Only Home and Swimming With A Hundred Year Old Snapping Turtle.