Customer Reviews

Sacagawea's Nickname: Essays on the American West

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We all know Larry McMurtry best as fine, and successful, novelist whose work revolves around and in the American West. Perhaps he no longer has the stamina or time for fiction as he seems to have turned more and more to the essay form. "Sacagawea's Nickname" is a collection of twelve essays originally published in the most non-Western The New York Review of Books. The irony of their original appearance aside, these are simply wonderful essays. In one essay McMurty declares "The Journals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition" (available in a newly published edition) to be the American Epic. In a companion piece he speculates about the expedition's guide Sacagewea's place in the company, wonders about her relationship with William Clark and laughs at her bumbling husband Charbonneau. In another essay he heaps scorn upon the pulp Western writers Zane Grey and Max Brand, while in another he waxes ecstatically upon a dinner with writer and poetess Janet Lewis. Whether writing about Western water issues and John Wesley Powell or about the professional anthropologists who tried to make their name off the Zuni tribe, McMurtry is always fascinating, provocative and highly readable. He, himself, is a Western treasure.

Sacagawea's Nickname purports to be McMurtry's essays on the Old West. Well, yes and no. Maybe half the book is that and it's really good! McMurtry is extremely insightful on this theme. His views on Bill Cody as a businessman, Annie Oakley as America's original liberated woman,Lewis and Clark, western pulp fiction, the Missouri River, Oh and Sacagawea and her various names...all great stuff.But the other half is the author commenting on other author's comments on the West. Dull.

If you are familiar with many of the topics discussed in this collection, you will likely find this to be well worth your time. Anyone who has delved into western lit is undoubtably familiar with LM's inimitable style. It is readily apparent here, as is his incredible breadth of literary and historical knowledge. However, if you haven't read much of Stegner and Limerick (to name just a couple of writers LM explores),or you don't know a lot about Lewis and Clark, this may not be the place to start. As these pieces were originally written for the NYRev, the level of background needed to fully appreciate these essays is high. All in all, a thoughtful, funny and wideranging collection worth having on your bookshelf. One final note: I wish the introductory piece on western lit was longer; good as it was, it left me wanting to hear more.

In Sacagawea's Nickname, McMurtry provides a well-reasoned, persuasive argument designed to induce contemporary writers and historians to take into account all theoretical aspects of Western history while making their interpretations. While it might seem, at first glance, that the author is exceedingly critical of authors whose take on Western history skews to the revisionist, this is not necessarily the case. Generally, McMurtry praises the scholarship of such individuals but alludes to their failure to consider anything but the evils of manifest destiny. McMurtry argues that such individuals are so hell-bent on dark revisionism that they have lost sight of the fact that Western mythology has become an intricately woven part of the equation.
Conversely, McMurtry also warns against those who would mythologize for the sake of financial gain alone, such as in the spirit of Ned Buntline, Buffalo Bill Cody, Zane Grey, or even Time-Life books. This rather fuzzy delineation between fact and fiction is, perhaps, best demonstrated by McMurtry's essay Inventing the American West. McMurtry writes of Kit Carson's attempt and failure to save a woman who had been kidnapped by Indians. Carson tells of how a dime novel was found in possession of the murdered woman, which portrayed Carson as a hero in slaying hundreds of Indians.
McMurtry fully embraces neither the revisionists nor the traditionalists, but alternately praises and critiques both in an attempt to bring them closer together for the betterment of Western historical scholarship. It is remarkable that a book comprised of twelve separate essays should conduct such a strong central theme.
It is difficult to be critical of such a subjective work as this for, in fact, McMurtry is only espousing his own subjective views on existing literary works. It would be easy to dismiss this as merely a collection of thoughts and reviews. However, McMurtry is clearly one of the most respected authorities on the American West, and his arguments should be given great consideration.
The pages of Sacagawea's Nickname carry not only McMurtry's theories on the state of Western scholarship, but also the caveat of an acute historical observation. As described in the above summary of his essay Sacagawea's Nickname, McMurtry hypothesizes that Clark and Sacagawea may have harbored an unknown degree of romantic feelings for one another - A hypothesis daringly based on one word written by Clark and to be found only once in over twelve volumes of the expedition's edited notes. The word, the reference for the essay and the book's title, is Janey.
McMurtry suggests that the Journals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition should be a starting point for anyone interested in pursuing the study of Western History. I argue Sacagawea's Nickname should be a primer for anyone who is interested in or already studying Western history. Its pages provide a wholly entertaining and cognitive basis for academic research and writing of Western history from an historical and literary perspective.

I'm on record stating that LONESOME DOVE is the greatest fictional story of the Old West that I've ever encountered, and the 1989 film adaptation is one of my very favorite movies of all time. Therefore, it was with more than a little giddy anticipation that I picked up Larry McMurtry's SACAGAWEA'S NICKNAME, a collection of his essays on the American West.

The twelve chapters in this short (178 pages) hardback cover diverse topics, the unifying thread being McMurtry's insight into what has shaped, for better or worse, the modern public's perception of our nation's frontier heritage. He does this by examining the influence of some well-known icons - Buffalo Bill, Annie Oakley, Zane Grey, Lewis and Clark, and Sacagawea - as well as some that are perhaps not so widely famous - authors Patricia Limerick and Janet Lewis, historian James Wilson, geologist John Wesley Powell, and anthropologists Frank Cushing and Matilda Stevenson.

Because of the great pleasure I've derived from McMurtry's novels, I looked forward to what I hoped would be a series of humorous, scintillatingly clever, and informative insights. It pains me to say that I found the volume as a whole to be like this review, somewhat lackluster. (It isn't one of my best.) His chapter on Buffalo Bill was rambling, and the one on the Zuni tribe and the anthropologists who studied it too esoteric. His criticism of Western pulpmeister Zane Grey so lacked definition that I can't say even now what McMurtry's objection to the former is except perhaps that he wasn't capable of editing his own prose (but left it to his wife). His essay on John Wesley Powell was positively boring. And, except that Janet Lewis is apparently one of McMurtry's favorite writers, I cannot fathom why the author included a chapter on her at all. Perhaps it's because she lives in the West. Only the chapters on the Lewis and Clark expedition, and the second to last that lends its title to the book, provided any return on my investment of time and money. Lastly, McMurtry's dry humor was all too infrequent, as in:

"... William Clark served as Thomas Jefferson's fashion eye, delivering copious reports on the dress of the various tribes the party met. In some cases the skimpier the female costumes, the more copious Clark's notes become ... quite a few of those wild western women seemed to run around half undressed." Yeah, some of those nights on the prairie probably seemed awfully long.

Did you know that Sacagawea's nickname, coined possibly by Captain Clark, was ... well, you'll have to find out for yourself. It's a fine nugget of party trivia.

In this collection of essays for the New York Review of Books, McMurty applies his word-herding skills to themes centering on the American West. Like many cattle drives, there is lots of rambling, usually with a general destination in mind. Sometimes the rambling leads to interesting places, sometimes to dry gulches. Along the way, a few strays run off that the reader will wish the author had chased down.

McMurtry is preoccupied with the ongoing signficance of Western myth. While praising revisionist historians for correcting some entrenched misconceptions about the West, he gently chides them for believing that the Marlboro Man can be deconstructed into oblivion. One might go further and point out that the Western values of individualism and self-reliance still have value for us because they speak to enduring aspects of human experience. As long as conflicts simmer between the desire for law and order and the yearning for a life free of restrictions and regulations, between community and wide-open spaces, between us and nature, in some form the Western will continue to strike a chord with thoughtful readers. Yes, there will probably always be pulpmasters like Zane Grey, but opportunities remain for more sophisticated writers to lead the Western in new and exciting directions. The work of authors like Cormac McCarthy, James Galvin, Larry Watson, and James Welch attests to this.

McMurtry is at his best introducing us to little known talents who deserve a wider audience. After reading the essay on Janet Lewis, I wanted to read some of her novels. I also gained an appreciation for the pioneering research of historian Angie Debo. By contrast, I found the essay on John Wesley Powell less stimulating, largely because McMurtry fails to clarify the relevance of Powell's achievments for land and water disputes today. And McMurtry's assertion that the Journals of Lewis and Clark constitute an American literary epic comparable to the Iliad or Don Quixote seems badly overblown. Whatever its merits, the text Lewis and Clark left us is not high poetic art.

Writing of the Zunis, McMurtry makes the unsuprising point that these Puebloans have had to endure a slew of rude archaeologists. But when he likens archaeology to a mirror that reflects the archaeologist's cultural assumptions, one wants to hear more. Does McMurtry think archaeology never, or only rarely, uncovers objective truths about different cultures? Is it merely an elaborate form of projection? Why or why not? Some tentative answers would have been welcome, but we don't get any.

If you've been engrossed in Western fiction and want to take a non-fiction break while sticking with the subject, you might find Sacagawea's Nickname an entertaining diversion that is occasionally insighful--otherwise, horseman, pass by.

Sacagawea's Nickname is a splendid little volume consisting of twelve essays on the American West authored by Larry McMurtry and previously published in the New York Review of Books. McMurtry arranges each essay around one or more books so that each piece works as both a book review and exploration of the topic at hand.

McMurtry grew up in the West and clearly loves the West. He observes that, "The West, to me, was always a place to look at...." McMurtry has captured the essence of the West in that sentiment. McMurtry is not, however, enthralled by books about the West. He comments that the West produced little fiction of note between Willa Cather's O Pioneers! and Other Tales of the Prairie (New York Public Library Series) and My Antonia (Signet Classics) and the "mature" Wallace Stegner. I must register a dissent at least with regard to the first two books of A.B. Guthrie's Old West trilogy (The Big Sky and The Way West).

Despite his reservations, however, McMurtry provides references to numerous works of and about the West that deserve reading. Two of these books concern "that moment of turning in western history when myth arises out of epic conflict" (Custer's defeat at Little Big Horn): Thomas Berger's Little Big Man and Evan S. Connell Jr.'s Son of the Morning Star: Custer and The Little Bighorn. Other books worthy of note include Patricia Nelson Limerick's The Legacy of Conquest: The Unbroken Past of the American West, in which Limerick sets herself the task of establishing a new paradigm of the West to replace Frederick Jackson Turner's `frontier thesis' and Angie Debo's Geronimo: The Man, His Time, His Place (Civilization of the American Indian Series).

My favorite essays were `Inventing the West', which focused on Buffalo Bill Cody and Annie Oakley (Sitting Bull's Little Sure Shot), the eponymous `Sacagawea's Nickname', and Old Misery (about the cantankerous Missouri River). McMurtry heaps high praise on the The Journals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, 13-Volume Set, if you have the time and money.

Consistent with the attitude expressed in the Introduction, McMurtry reduces Zane Grey's body of work to the size of postage stamp (paraphrasing Heywood Broun) and he did not think much of Stephen May's studies of the prolific Grey. Similar, if less harsh, treatment is given to James Wilson's The Earth Shall Weep: A History of Native America and others.

The main attraction to this thin volume, however, is McMurtry's own writing. As he has demonstrated in fiction (Lonesome Dove Complete Set (Lovesome Dove / Streets of Laredo / Comanche Moon / Dead Man's Walk) (Lovesome Dove Saga, Vols. 1 - 4)) and nonfiction (The Colonel and Little Missie: Buffalo Bill, Annie Oakley, and the Beginnings of Superstardom in America (includes 16 pages of B&W photographs)), McMurtry knows how to write. Highest recommendation.

McMurtry is an excellent and witty writer; one whose work I enjoy very much. Sacagawea's Nickname is a series of well crafted essays dealing with topics that ranged from fascinating to boring for this particular reader.

The theme of the book is the West and how it was and how it is portrayed and understood in popular culture. McMurtry's breadth of interests extend beyond mine which is why I give this three stars. The writing is consistently excellent, but the essays either fascinated me (ones dealing with the history and historical characters of the West such as Buffalo Bill, the Mountain Men, Lewis and Clark and Sacagawea, and the great artists of the 1830's and 1840's who captured the people and scenery of the then "new" West), or bored me to the point that I skipped over some paragraphs. The author's musings on the meaning of the West and how its portrayal and reality differed are provocative and interesting.

Less fascinating for this reader are the essays dealing with authors I have never heard of nor found particularly interesting. I can understand McMurtry's interest in the specific literary characters he describes but those writings just failed to elicit much interest in this reader. I will freely admit the fault is mine as all of the essays are well and warmly written. Some of the chapters just bored me, in spite of finding many of the essays captivating and filled with tidbits that were new to this reader.

Referencing history, books, authors, people, and events, Larry McMurtry weaves around facts, myths, and personal insights and forms a collection of essays that both satisfies curiosity and whets the appetite for even more information. Though each essay is unique and deals with one particular subject, taken as a whole, the essays are intentional and supportive of accurate scholarship of the history of the West. Absent of extensive, and often unnecessary biographical detail, yet emphasizing concise and precise presentation of truth, there is something for everyone in this collection.

McMurtry's style of foregoing excessive descriptive detail finds fruition in his non-fiction by giving the reader an excellent sense of goal-direction and purpose. Especially enjoyable were the essays on pulp fiction (unusual in its ruggedly honest appraisal), Lewis and Clark, the Zunis, and the discussion of Sacagawea. Perhaps the finest essay in the book is titled Janet Lewis, a warm tribute honoring an outstanding author, poet, scholar, and person.

At times humorous, other times brutally honest, Sacagawea's Nickname--Essays on the American West is an important addition to the literature on the West. McMurtry's love of books, knowledge, and historical events shines forth throughout each essay, and his ability to write in such a way as to connect the reader to the circumstances without emotional excess is to be admired and commended.

This fine volume receives a strong recommendation for history buffs, Western fans, and anyone fascinated with the literary contributions of Larry McMurtry. As in all his non-fiction works, the writing style is intelligent without pompousness and engaging without shallow entertainment. Definitely worth reading for its perceptions, literary references, and honesty.

The mistake that most readers will make when picking up SACAGAWEA'S NICKNAME by Larry McMurtry is expecting something identical to LONESOME DOVE, THE BERRYBENDER NARRATIVES or BOONE'S LICK. I suspect that most of the negative responses to this book have come from readers who made this unfortunate, though understandable, error.

Nonetheless, SACAGAWEA'S NICKNAME, a collection of essays by McMurtry, is an essential read for any true McMurtry fan, providing an in-depth look into the mind of arguably the preeminent author of the West. After reading this book you will definitely have a better and clearer handle on where McMurtry is coming from when he applies his encyclopedic abilities to writing the next great western novel.

Essays include evaluations and critiques of western authors and introductions to some that need to be rediscovered, including Angie Debo and, as indicated by the title, stimulating overviews of Lewis and Clark's expedition west and their affinity for and appreciation of Sacagawea.

McMurtry also tackles subjects that mainstream western literature readers may find difficult. Despite the years that have past McMurtry eloquently handles the question of our treatment of Native Americans and asks the continuing and unanswered questions regarding what needs to be done if we are to do the right thing after all.