Customer Reviews

Journal of the Gun Years (Thorndike Large Print Western Series)

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While browsing through the bookstore, my eye caught this blurb on the cover of this novel. "The best novel I read last year." The quote is from Stephen King, no less. When I saw that the author was Richard Matheson, I was very surprised since I primarily know Matheson as a writer of horror. Westerns have not been an element of my previous reading history but I decided to give it a try. God, was I glad that I did! I now rate this novel as one of my top three all time favorites. Matheson's approach is to take the traditional story of the life of a gunslinger in the old West and look at it from the inside out. The novel takes the form of a journal written by Clay Hauser from his beginning as a frightened soldier in the Cival War to his inevitable destiny in a small mining town. From outlaw to lawman (and sometimes back again) during this ten year period, Matheson does a wonderful job in depicting the deterioration of a potentially great man. I felt genuinely sad at the end of this powerful novel. I've been recommending this novel throughout the Internet whenever I get the chance. I think that it's time that people began to realize that the modern Western is a 'new' genre filled with interesting writing and stories. I would have thought that people would have been more influenced by the success of Lonesome Dove. (Another of my top three favorites, by the way.) C'MON, people, get on the ball and stop being afraid to explore new avenues of literature. Because that's exactly what this novel is, Great Literature!!

Richard Mattheson is arguably best known for his novel(la) I AM LEGEND, a classic horror novel which much has been written about by fans, critics, and peers. I bring this up because some authors write in a genre very well and experiment or cross over to another genre and even if the story is as strong are not as successful in their second writing category. Even master Stephen King's Dark Tower series where he moves easily from his renown horror tales to dark fantasy isn't as critically or popularly acclaimed as his other books. Mattheson moved his horrific prose into an old west setting gracefully and smoothly. He uses the same economy of words to tell the story of Marshall Halser, who not much of a plot spoiler to add gets shot in opening chapters.

The narrotor is Halser not from beyond the grave per se but in the form of his journals in the hands of a friend and journalist who wishes to publicize them to seperate myth from man. As I said Mattheson is spare in his writing not using five pages of details where one will do, instead he writes a tight plot making this a quick fun read.

Incidentally it won the 1991 Spur award so my praise of his genre transition is a little redundant hehehe.

My admiration for Richard Matheson kicked up a notch when I came across JOURNAL OF THE GUN YEARS in the Western section of B&N. I had no idea Matheson dabbled in the western genre but, after reading this tightly-crafted, gripping account of a legendary shootist, I say "More power to him." JOURNAL OF THE GUN YEARS is a winner, actually a Spur Award winner for Best Western novel published in 1991.

Matheson's novel traces the fictional life and times - and crimes - of Clay Halser, a directionless farm boy with a talent for shooting. After serving in the Civil War, he drifts westward into a career as a desperado-turned-lawman before meeting his inevitable fate.

Though Matheson's novel tells the story of one man's checkered career, it is equally a cautionary tale on fame and the cost it extracts from that individual. The media transforms Halser into a storied, larger-than-life character, an image that eventually overwhelms the man. By the end of this affecting novel, the "great gunfighter" has been lionized and feted but is empty, lonely and scared with nary a true friend in sight.

Matheson does a wonderful job of channeling the Old West. Halser seems an amalgam of Hickok, Wyatt Earp with a little Billy the Kid thrown in. One of Halser's best friends seems a Doc Holliday doppelganger and so on. JOURNAL OF THE GUN YEARS is exciting, gritty and poignant; all in all, a great read. Recommended.


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How this hasn't been adapted into one of the best Western movies ever is beyond me. Clay Halser is, easily, one of the greatest Western characters ever created. Matheson had me googling to find out if he was based on a real person -- the portrayal was that believable.

Tabloid journalism of his day painted a picture of Halser as an unstoppable, lead-spewing gunslinger who could outdraw and outfight any given horde of Indians or outlaws foolish enough to cross his path. In reality, he damn near could, though the toll taken on the flesh and blood Halser, especially in later, tragic years, would be a mean one. In his own words, "...it was drab, and dirty, and there was a lot of blood."

Despite this, Halser's tale, told primarily by his own journal entries, is enthralling, and, at times, laugh out loud funny, with dialogue and one-liners as good as anything I've ever read or seen in a movie -- I mean, just sharp, witty, hilarious stuff. It makes for great counterpoints to the turmoil and strife Halser is often faced with during one incredible, tumultuous decade.

Regardless of the tidal forces of destiny that he often felt at the mercy of, Halser was a good man who fought for justice -- and often, simply his life -- in a time when law and order were commodities bought and paid for in bullets and blood.

I never read a western before, but after reading the reviews, and knowing that Richard Matheson wrote 'What Dreams May Come' & 'Somewhere in Time', this sounded fascinating. If you don't mind reading the truth about what gun-slinging was really like in the old west then you will not be disappointed. Written as excerpts from a journal, it is fascinating to follow the evolution of the psyche of Clay Halser from the Civil War to his 'appointment in Samara' somewhere in the mountains of Colorado. It could be as good a movie a 3:10 to Yuma ...

I'm not a fan of western books in general, but this one had my attention from page one. I fell in love with the characters and it is a very quick read. I borrowed this from the library and bought it to read again and again. The book came in perfect condition; no complaints at all.

This is the first book I've read by the author and won't be my last. It was much more than I expected from a novel set in the old west. It's written as though you are reading a gunfighter's personal journal, edited and published by a reporter after his death. It's an interesting look at how a life of fame and violence can affect a person on the inside. We all know the legends of Wyatt Earp and Bill Hikock, but what might actually have been going through their minds as they went through life as a tough-as-nails frontier lawman? There's plenty of action and Western drama to satisfy fans of that genre, but there's more depth here than some other novels might offer.

I read this book on the comments Stephan King made about it. Wow, it is an incredile book. Flavors of Lonesome Dove, Young Guns, The Dark Tower and The Good, The Bad and the Ugly all wrapped up in one fairly tight story told through the eyes of a gunslingers journal.

Great read

First off. I have always liked this author. I knew I'd like this book beforehand.

I read Western novels mostly now. I find them entertaining. This ranks right up on top with "Ox-Bow Incident" "Long Ride Home" "The Day The Cowboys Quit" and "Shane." (All novels dealing with an authentic/actual theme).

To the reader of Western non-fiction, you will see a little bit of the lives of Billy The Kid, Wyatt Earp, J.B. Hickok,and Wm. Cody in this novel.

Very enjoyable.

Well, I'm not a fan of westerns but I am a fan of Richard Matheson so I gave this a try and I think it is one of his best. It is a streamlined novel, it moves along very quickly and manages to be deeply affecting by the end. It is mostly told from the the first person, via a 'record' by the main character Clay Halser, who goes from being a young naive boy to a legendary gunfighter. He finds the excitement he was seeking out West but it's not all he imagined.
There is a lot to admire about this novel and yeah, I think someone said it, this would make a great movie.