rich story telling

Horseman, Pass By by Larry McMurtry
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Having seen the film "Hud" recently, I wanted to experience the story on which it was based. I just completed reading McMurtry's travel book entitled "Roads" and had an idea of the setting for this story. "Horseman, Pass By" is a richly layered and textured story of life on a ranch in central Texas, near the fictional town of Thalia, which based on the town where McMurtry grew up. The characters are 3D and real, their conversations feel authentic, especially compared to my similar rural early years in the Ozarks of Missouri. The personal dynamics between the family members, ranch hands and towns folk all feel as if they were real. The descriptions of the country and landscape are as picturesque as words can make them. The story is told by the teenage grandson of the family patriarch. Step-parents and siblings add to the complication of the relationships and color of the story. Based on my rich experience with this book and the film, I want to read the remaining two books that complete what is informally known as the Thalia Trilogy, the last of which is "The Last Picture Show", which was made into another excellent film. McMurtry's writing and story telling is warm and rich, which makes for a great reading experience.

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