Dorothy M. Johnson (1905–1984)

This caught my eye in the reshelving area of one of the libraries where I work. I hadn't read a western in a while, and I have fond memories of watching the movie version of "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance," so I thought I'd take the book out for a ride. This is a rare short-story anthology where I really enjoyed every story: no nags here, just hardy little mustangs. The spare writing style kept me a little removed from the characters, but pulled me along swiftly through the tightly-built plots. I was pleasantly surprised to find a theme of love (familial and romantic) running throughout the tales.… (més)

This book by Dorothy M. Johnson is actually a collection of three short stories and one novella. The short stories are “A Man Called Horse”, “The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance”, and “Lost Sister”. The novella is “The Hanging Tree”. “Lost Sister” was obviously based on the story of Cynthia Ann Parker and detailed her return to her family after thirty some years with the Comanche Indians. The other three stories have all be made into movies starring the likes of Gary Cooper, John Wayne, Jimmy Stewart and Richard Harris.

I liked all the stories from the sadness of “Lost Sister”, the hopefulness of “A Man Called Horse”, to the classic western story “The Hanging Tree”. “The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance” was the most unlike the movie that was made from it, with the characters not being so noble or with such good intentions. It was a small slice of life about a man letting his reputation rest on another man’s deeds, all the while being eaten up with remorse and guilt.

A good collection of western stories.… (més)