Book: The Virginian - OUTSTANDING

[JohndeFresno]

I am not as well read as some others on this forum. With that disclaimer, one of the very best books I have ever read that presents a vivid and true view of the Old West is “The Virginian” by Owen Wister.

You can purchase it, download it as a Kindle book for about a buck, or (since it is in Public Domain) download the free .pdf file from my server at:
https://app.box.com/s/w5or0sld06iry4fu7zabvaxilzcqidr2

I am currently enjoying re-runs on Cable TV of "The Virginian" that ran from 1962-71. Those busy years provided very little TV time for me, so I had never seen this series before. I liked it - it was different than other Westerns - so curiosity drove me to read the novel.

“The Virginian: A Horseman of the Plains” was written in 1902, is acknowledged as the first true "Western" novel. At that time, the Old West reading material was highly romanticized and overly sensational pulp fiction sold as dime novels or printed in various magazines.

This book gives us a better look than that fare and what Hollywood has presented throughout the decades. It helps that it was penned and printed very soon after the demise of the cattle drives and final sunset of the “Old West.” The author traveled to the areas that he wrote about and interviewed those who had recently lived the life that he describes, and the book – entirely fiction – comes across as very real. An interesting side note: The great Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt, Wister's friend, had a hand in editing this work. Although Mr. Wister had a variety of interests and wrote in several genres, this is the novel he is remembered for. Deservedly so.

Like Elmer Keith’s fascinating book, “Hell I Was There!”, it paints an outstanding canvas of the culture, early towns, people and life in general. Even some of the word usage and phrases were an education for this 21st Century reader. Thankfully, I had the Kindle version with an accurate dictionary to explain some Western and archaic words that were otherwise a bit vague or confusing. Have a good dictionary at hand.

Unlike the TV series, "The Virginian" himself is at times very, very funny, and some passages of his pranks reminded me of the narrative in the timeless humorous story, “The Story of The Old Ram” by Mark Twain. So as a plot counterpart in the TV series, Trampas is the comic relief and a pal of The Virginian, who is always stone sober in the TV shows. In the book, however, Trampas is a less than friendly character; a bit of a villain; who the Virginian always has to vie with.

Given those differences, I have noted several incidents on TV that were taken from the book, albeit with some modifications.

There is a gunfight in the end, but otherwise this is basically a great adventure narrative with cowboy type action and some surprising views of what the West was like. There is humor and stuff about pretty girls and faithful hosses and some great historical views that I have never read elsewhere (or seen on the screen). For instance, as I witnessed in my early years living in the foothills of Yosemite, Wister describes the early homes along the road as you near a town. The traveler first sees a mountain of empty tin cans, tossed nonchalantly outside each dwelling, then the house – with the unneeded explanation that there was no municipal trash service back then. You never see THAT in a Western movie! But there is much more.

To say more would ruin the book.

Knowing some of the regulars here by their comments and choices in reading matter, I would say that this is a "must read" for you! It is a true treasure, and one of the best Westerns I have ever read, if not indeed the best.

(Corrected Typo - Author's First Name)

[claybob86]

I read that years ago and really enjoyed it. Think I might like to read it again!

[Griff]

Read it just a couple of years ago.

[KWK]

Project Guttenberg has a Kindle version for free, as well as a plain .html version (for a browser). I just downloaded my copy. I'll have a look at it one day.

[JohndeFresno]

Project Guttenberg has a Kindle version for free, as well as a plain .html version (for a browser). I just downloaded my copy. I'll have a look at it one day.

There are several .pdf offerings on the Web, and there are some other types, like .mobi (Kindle type reader files), for instance. But several are flawed.

So when I located a good one from Toronto, complete with some picture plates, I uploaded it to my archive site (as offered above).

You might want to skim through some pages and try the "Search" function to make sure that you have a complete and bug-free novel.

[GunnyMack]

I think all of us here enjoy those old shows, The Rifleman, The Virginian, Bonanza, Gunsmoke all have their merits. I'm a sucker for John Wayne movies, my favorite is The Quiet Man, don't ask my why...
I have read just about Louis Lamour, have a complete collection of Zane Grey, only read a few of these as if I read I fall asleep...

[longranger]

Owen Wister wrote the "Virginian" here in Buffalo WY at the Occidental Hotel, reading the book the vision of this part of Wyoming is very real.The best man's love story ever written in my opinion.