Customer Reviews

Lige Langston: Sweet Iron (Literature of the American West)

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Every now and then a book comes along that is so well written, so unique, so marvelous that it stays with you long after you have laid it aside. This book is like that. If there is any justice in the publishing world this book will be a best seller and earn a place in the classic catagory. It's that good. Henry Elijah "Lige" Langston was born in 1908 in the Great Basin outback on a homestead. He worked his entire life as a wrangler and rawhide braider in the region known as the Sagebrush Corner of northeastern California and northwestern Nevada. Hussa tells his story with a mosaic of memories blending oral history, storytelling and poetry. Interspersed throughout are Lige's own words which fill in the gaps in an honest, unflinching, matter of fact manner. The character that emerges from the experiences of love, fear, courage, and pride in overcoming adversities of every stripe is one you will never forget. The story of individuals growing up in the West has been told many times. But never like this. This is a gentle, respectful, lyrical book that quietly tells the story of a real man, living in a hostile environment, in a most remarkable manner. Hussa has succeeded in a way most writers strive for but never achieve. Sweet Iron? After reading this masterpiece you will never look at a horse's bridle in the same way.