Customer Reviews

A Distant Trumpet (Nonpareil Books)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(5)
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2 star:		(1)
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When my grad school exams concluded last week, I found myself restlessly searching for something "fun" to read. Paul Horgan's "A Distant Trumpet," a historical novel about 1880s cavalry duty in Arizona, sat on my bookshelf where it had been for over two years, unread. Cautiously, I skimmed the preface and then began to read the first chapter. I'm glad that exams were over, because the novel quickly enthralled me with its stately style, vivid characterizations and rich evocation of the physical--and moral--landscape of the American southwest following the Civil War. Military, social and spiritual codes of behavior provide the psychological framework for the novel's characters and scenario. And Horgan evidently writes from experience as a former Army officer and military school instructor. He also does a superb job of balancing historically accurate attitudes regarding the campaign to "pacify" the Apache natives with a classical sense of morality that transcends race and religion. Eccentric Major General Alexander Upton Quait is the central character in matters of policy and commentary, while a triptych of officers and their wives allow Horgan to explore, with devastating clarity, the costs, rewards and consequences of love, ambition, duty and honor. I would encourage fans of Larry McMurtry--particularly those who have read Comanche Moon--to discover this alternative, somewhat more sophisticated, approach to Western fiction. In my enthusiasm, I finished this lengthy novel as quickly as I could. In recollection, the characters of "A Distant Trumpet" will probably remain with me for a lifetime.

I grew up in southern Arizona, on an army base that had started as a calvary post in the 1800s. I picked up "A Distant Trumpet" in a used book store for no other reason, since I generally have no interest in western-themed books. It turned out to be wonderful. I couldn't put it down and finished it in a couple of days. It goes from civil war hospitals to the parlors of Washington DC's elite to the mountains of Arizona, in a perfect combination of military, social and personal history. If the book has any fault, it's that the good guys are always very good and the bad guys are very bad. But, though they lack something in complexity, the characters are exciting and vividly drawn.

I have read "A Distant Trumpet" so many times I"ve lost count. I find it refreshing to see characters that are believable, realistically drawn, humanly flawed and humanly lovable. I consider, being a New Mexican, that Paul Horgan was a great gift to/from our state and that this novel is a great precursor to "Dances With Wolves". For the first time that I know of, Indian people are presented as real, dimensional people--and that is refreshing in a world the seems to idolize the B-western stereotypes of Indians as cultureless, faceless savages out to murder white people without cause or provocation. I was also delighted to see the balance used to present the military experience. Military life can be good, but it is definitely NOT all glamor and glory. Horgan's characters define that concept.
After having read "Trumpet" I actually almost looked for Jessica, Laura, Matt or Col. Prescott to appear on the street. The characterizations are THAT truly believable. It was very good to see the characters mature and develop through the story, they didn't remain static.
Most of all, I think it is a good look at what the ordinary soldier of the western frontier experienced. Much of it was dead, flat boring, some of it was exciting, and some of it I"m sure was revelatory. People often overlook the fact that our predecessors had real experiences and emotions --we sort of reserve that right for this present generation--but "Trumpet" awakens the reality that people are people in all times and frames of reference. Sometimes disgusting, sometimes wonderful and always fascinating in their endless incarnations.

A big, sprawling historical novel set mainly in the Arizona Territory after the Civil War about an army officer, Matthew Hazard, and his wife, Laura. It begins when Hazard as a child meets Abraham Lincoln during the war after his father has been killed and is told by the President to go to West Point and become a soldier. He does, meets and marries Laura, and both go to Arizona to deal with the Indians. Other major figures include General Alexander Quait and the Indian White Horn. The major event of the book concerns Hazard, with the help of White Horn as his Apache scout, and his triumph over the Apache renegade Rainbow Son. For this he is given the Congressional Medal of Honor, which Hazard refuses because White Horn has been sent as a prisoner to Florida with the other Apaches. The book is overly long mainly because Horgan gives a complete biography of his three main characters, and some of it feels like padding. But he writes well and his characters are intriguing and definitely noble. If you like historical fiction and/or the Old West, you will surely enjoy this novel.

This book was recommended to me by my uncle, a former active duty officer. I am also in the military, and thought this to be an excellent read. It is well written, and captures modern-day aspects of miltary life. I think anyone who enjoys history and has a liking for a romantic epic will enjoy Paul Horgan's story immensely. Happy reading.....

As a silent, shy teenager trying to learn more about life, myself, and a huge fan of all Western books or movies wherein I could immerse myself into the characters found in each page. I picked up this book and within a few pages found that I could not stop reading it. I instantly became part of each character's life. I felt within my whole being the thoughts and feelings that the Apache must have felt, and yet feeling and understanding how life for the American soldier must have been. The characters were real and daring and became a part of my life something that alot of other books only hinted too.

While thoroughly loving the story and having read the book 3 more times. Wishing to have lived in that era and being a western hero, I found that life was not always easy nor simple as I had thought it to be. Instead of escaping this world, by way of reading, I found that this book actually brought me back to reality and gave me advice on how to be a sincere young man struggling for his own identity. This book I recommend to all ages. Whether you are 15 years old or 95 years old, this book has something to offer you. There are many lessons taught in this book...some that I still apply in my everyday life. I have refered to it many times and still ponder over its pages and messages which were written by Paul Horgan. This is an awesome book to read. If you don't believe me, just pick it up and read it. It could change your life as it did mine.

I first read A Distant Trumpet in elementary school, when I found it in my mom's library. I was riveted, and felt the characters were more real than some people I knew, in particular White Horn and Jessica Prescott. It's a book that has stayed with me all my life, and when I found a hard bound copy in a used book store, I finally gave Mom's back to her. I've re-read it so many times that both copies are very well worn.

Although told predominantly from the cavalry's point of view, it still makes the Apache viewpoint clear and sympathetic, without going overboard either way. I once asked my grandfather, a pre-WWI cavalry veteran who also liked the book, just how close to real the book was. He said the old cavalry veterans who'd served in the Apache wars described situations, scenes, and attitudes that were very much as depicted in this book. That was recommendation enough that Paul Horgan had really captured the time about which he wrote.

I strongly recommend this book. It's a keeper.

Because the other books I have read by Paul Horgan (Conquistadors in North American History [read 2 Oct 1974], Lamy of Santa Fe: His Life and Times [read 1 May 1976], Great River: The Rio Grande in North American History Volume One: Indians and Spain [read 25 Nov 1993], Great River: The Rio Grande in North American History Volume Two: Mexico and the United States [read 27 Nov 1993], and Things As They Are [read 8 Feb 1994])were all great reading, I decided to read this book, and it held my interest. It is good to read fiction wherein the characters--even the bad ones--have a conscience. The book tends to be a bit long, but it is action-filled and while not as good as the other books by Horgan it still is, as indicated by my caption, worth reading.

This is the first review I submit to this site. I read a good deal of fiction (much more amusing than real life) and I have to say though the settings are interesting, character developemnt is trite.