Lonesome Dove
by Larry McMurtry · first published 1985
75% recommend25% neutral
Why HN recommends it
Absorbing, grim epic about aging Texas Rangers on a cattle drive, with deeply drawn characters and beautiful writing; recommended even for readers who think they dislike Westerns, and worth the 850 pages.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
Lonesome Dove, by Larry McMurtry, the author of Terms of Endearment, is his long-awaited masterpiece, the major noel at last of the American West as it really was. A love story, an adventure, an American epic, Lonesome Dove embraces all the West--legend and fact, heroes and outlaws, whores and ladies, Indians and settlers--in a novel that recreates the Central American experience, the most enduring of our national myths. Set in the late nineteenth century. Lonesome Dove is the story of a cattle drive from Texas to Montana -- and much more. It is a drive that represents for everybody invo
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Try somewhat off-beat American novels: 1. Lonesome Dove, by Larry McMurty 2. The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, by Carson McCullers 3. A Confederacy of Dunces, by John Kennedy Toole They are great novels, and sadly, are less known than they should be. If you…
on “Larry McMurtry has died” ↗If you have any interest whatsoever in Westerns as a genre you should read Lonesome Dove. It's about 850 pages but I'd be surprised if it took you more than a week to read. For the longest time I had no interest in reading it because, of all the things, the title put me off (I thought it…
on “Larry McMurtry has died” ↗I recently finished Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry. I highly recommend it, even if you aren’t usually into westerns. I saw it recommended a few weeks ago here on HN and bought it on my Kindle, then kept reading until it was done (stopping…
on “A Prophet at the Barbecue: Larry McMurtry, 1936–2021” ↗He’s probably my favorite author. Full tangent, but anyone who likes western novels should also check out Lonesome Dove (Larry McMurtry) and Paradise Sky (Joe Lansdale). Both are extremely moving and beautiful stories about the Wild West.
on “Cormac McCarthy’s tips on how to write a great science paper (2019)” ↗Lonesome Dove
on “Ask HN: What book have you re-read 3x or more?” ↗I agree in principle, but there are exceptions to that rule. Lonesome Dove, the example he uses in that article, is one of those exceptions. He clearly hadn't read the book before writing the piece, and now I'm waiting for a retraction along the lines of "I was so wrong, I wish…
on “Good riddance to long books” ↗One thousand percent agree. I can't even bring myself to finish Streets of Laredo because I cannot say goodbye to the world McMurtry created. I haven't teared up at a book since I was a kid, but Lonesome Dove made it happen. I feel like all I've wanted to do since finishing Lonesome Dove in July... is talk about Lonesome Dove. It catapulted itself into my top 3 books list. I have to re-read Anna Karenina to…
on “Good riddance to long books” ↗Technical: Paradigms Of Artificial Intelligence Programming by Peter Norvig Fiction: Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry
on “Ask HN: Please name two of your most favorite books.” ↗…the comments for new book recommendations if I see a match. Also, hopefully this can show people how great fiction is. I've seen comments that shun people for liking fiction compared to non. For me: Lonesome Dove 100 Years of Solitude Catch-22 The Sellout (very relevant again) East of Eden Kafka on the Shore (and all the stories in Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman)
on “Ask HN: Which books have you read more than once?” ↗- The Master and His Emissary - Personality (Nettle) - Lonesome Dove - A First-Rate Madness - Slouching Towards Bethlehem - Dune - At the Existentialist Cafe Currently working on "The Hot Zone."
on “Ask HN: What books have you read recently?” ↗…for Mr Biswas by VS Naipaul: explores themes of belonging, ownership, home, independence, escape, freedom. - Love in the time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez: explores love in it's many forms. - Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry: about love, the absurdity of life, beginnings and ends. - Miles by Miles Davis, Quincy Troupe: about jazz and the life of it's greatest creator. - Prometheus Rising by Robert Anton…
on “Ask HN: What is the best book you have read with the greatest impact on you?” ↗I didn't realize until recently that singer-songwriter James McMurtry is Larry McMurtry's son. It makes sense--the guy can write. I was familiar with James's music before reading Lonesome Dove, and in hindsight, you can definitely tell he's cut from the same cloth when it comes to weaving a narrative.
on “Lawrence Wright on Larry McMurtry” ↗…As I understood it, McMurtry wasn't either. He wanted to write a story about people living miserable lives, so he chose the Old West setting because he thought it suited his aim. The surprise came when Lonesome Dove was a hit with people who liked Westerns. Although McMurtry's attitude toward the genre wasn't what Western fans normally wanted, the writing was just so good that it drew you in. With the tremendous…
on “Lawrence Wright on Larry McMurtry” ↗I'm wrapping up a read of Lonesome Dove, by Larry McMurtry. What an amazing "epic" book. It will certainly go down as one of the great pieces of American literature. I strongly recommend it.
on “Ken Follett Says Readers Still Like Epic Books” ↗Either David Copperfield by Charles Dickens or Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry. Both are very long novels that get better and better with every page.
on “Ask HN: What were the best books you read this year?” ↗