Big Lonely [Audio Cassette]

Sam Brown (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1996

Casey Wills loved being a cowboy but hated taking orders from men who cared only about making a profit and nothing about the land or livestock. Tatum Stagg offered Casey a lot of money--if Casey were willing to turn his back on everything he believed in. Was Casey smart enough not to take his own integrity for granted? Contains explicit language. 2 cassettes.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Brown ( The Crime of Coy Bell ) once again makes good use of his extensive experience as a working cowboy in this elegiac novel of the late-19th-century American West. Casey Wills, the narrator, and Josh Smith are two hardworking cowboys at the XIT ranch in Texas. Smith, it seems, has spent his youth and his health looking at the south end of northbound dogies, while Casey doesn't know if his parents are alive or dead. The plot revolves around the pair's wranglings with rustlers, but takes second place to Brown's affectionate depiction of a ranch hand's life. Casey and Josh battle the elements, sickness, boredom and, as the title implies, loneliness. For relief, they drink, banter with their buddies and hope for the comforts of some dance-hall girl (Casey, for example, longs to be in the arms of a certain gal in Tascosa, one of Texas's wildest cow towns). Although Casey's voice occasionally rings false, with too modern a sensibility or too much zeal in supplying period information, Brown renders his world with realistic detail and lots of spirit.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

This Western by a poet and former cowboy is a real treat for readers who enjoy words and people. The narrator, Casey Wills, a trusted cowpuncher on the huge XIT Ranch, is offered a bribe by Tatum Stagg to turn a blind eye to Stagg's cattle theft. Casey, a man of integrity who does his job come hell or high water, refuses. The resulting hell and high water make up most of the story's action. Of equal interest is the portrayal of a cowboy's life--the drifting from job to job, without roots or security; the hard work; the low pay (lost on one night in town); and, when one is old and stove up, the inevitable ending as a swamper. Yet there is also the freedom, the wide open spaces, the much-loved work with cattle and horses, so that the cowboy--lord of all he surveys, including The Big Lonely--finally lets the chips fall where they may. Very good reading, even re-reading.
- Sister Avila, Acad. of the Holy Angels, Minneapolis
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Audio Cassette
• Publisher: Spellbinders Inc; Unabridged edition (August 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1883268354
• ISBN-13: 978-1883268350
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 4.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,513,461 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I'M NOT A COWBOY STORY PERSON, BUT ..., December 4, 2007

By 

Mohamjip - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Big Lonely (Mass Market Paperback)

I just read this book and was surprised at how much I enjoyed it, as I'm not into cowboy stuff. However, it was reminiscent of Lonesome Dove, in its realism of the times. I may look for more Sam Brown books now.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Cowboy life, September 11, 2004

By 

Michael Schramme (Raleigh) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Big Lonely: A Walker Western (Hardcover)

Excellent. A great read, bringing to life the daily adventures of a Texas pan-handle cowboy. Great characterisation, with an extraordinary depth of feeling and emotion. Great sense of humour. This is authentic western stuff. Much better than the average shoot-em-ups that come off the Western shelf in the bookstore. Reminiscent of Monte Walsh and Will Penny.