Craig S. Barnes (1936–2015)

There is a category of book I love (I'm not the only one) that might be hard to accurately describe, but here are the main ingredients: small town or rural setting, preferably western; personal story, whether fiction or non fiction; peopled with characters I know or wish I did; simple integrity shining through with words or more often deeds; and an immersion into a bygone age that's not so bygone that modern authors can't write first-hand accounts. Coming-of-age is nice too, but optional.

I'm thrilled to read a book that fits into this category; those books are food for my soul, so my soul is happy indeed to have read Growing Up True: Lessons from a Western Boyhood. Even better: this lovely memoir takes place in nearby Littleton, Colorado when it was not the suburb of Denver that it is today, but Eastern Plains farm and ranch land. Denver, while nearby, was irrevocably, irredeemably city, its residents possessing all the unfortunate defects of character and constitution that country life and especially country work usually prevent. Young Craig grows up true, under the guidance of two serious minded older brothers, a mother who finds natural gold in all things, various farm animals that are his responsibility, and especially a good, hard-working father as true as Atticus, though far quieter.

In this world, neighbors are for helping, rain can keep a family together (not only is it good for crops, but it brings the family inside for milk tea and stories and games around the fire), anger serves no purpose, the less said the better (especially complaining or in praise of yourself), a quarter inch matters, whether measuring or stringing fence at the proper height, and "only doing it will get it done." From these humble and rural beginnings, Mr. Barnes has built an impressive international career in writing, politics, and law, but that is only book-jacket information: the narrative focuses only on the youth and the lessons of youth. Wonderful.

Writing this review made me think back on books I've read recently that match the category I've attempted to describe. I'm sure there are more, but the ones that jump to mind include:

Little Heathens by Mildred Armstrong Kalish (memoir)
Montana, 1948 by Larry Watson (fiction)
Plainsong and Eventide by Kent Haruf (fiction)
Jim the Boy by Tony Early (fiction)
The Whistling Season by Ivan Doig (fiction)

and two standouts/favorites:
The Witness of Combines by Kent Meyers (memoir)
The Meadow by James Galvin (a compelling, beautiful mix of poetical nonfiction and fiction that is in my top 10 favorite books of all time)… (més)