3.5
The Log of a Cowboy
ByPublisher Description
The most authentic account of cowboy life ever written, this compelling narrative traces the events of an 1882 cattle drive, during which 3,000 longhorns traversed the Great Western Cattle Trail from Brownsville, Texas, to the Blackfoot Indian Reservation in Montana. The author, real-life cowboy Andy Adams (1859–1935), worked as a prospector as well as a cattle driver on the Western trails. Although The Log of a Cowboy crackles with the energy and excitement of fiction, it is based on Adams' own experiences. The Chicago Herald noted, "As a narrative of cowboy life, Andy Adams' book is clearly the real thing. It carries its own certificate of authentic firsthand experience on every page."
Fascinating details of day-to-day life on the trail emerge as a team of a dozen cowhands — accompanied by a cook, horse wrangler, and foreman — set out on the long trek. Days are marked by dangerous river crossings and buffalo stampedes as well as encounters with Indians and cattle thieves. Evenings find the crew exchanging tall tales around the campfire and occasionally hunkered down at cowtown saloons. Originally published in 1903 to refute popular but unrealistic tales of the Old West, this classic adventure story remains a remarkable historical resource and portrait of American frontier life.
Fascinating details of day-to-day life on the trail emerge as a team of a dozen cowhands — accompanied by a cook, horse wrangler, and foreman — set out on the long trek. Days are marked by dangerous river crossings and buffalo stampedes as well as encounters with Indians and cattle thieves. Evenings find the crew exchanging tall tales around the campfire and occasionally hunkered down at cowtown saloons. Originally published in 1903 to refute popular but unrealistic tales of the Old West, this classic adventure story remains a remarkable historical resource and portrait of American frontier life.
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Meet readers like you in the Fable For You feed, designed to build bookish communities8 Reviews
3.5
Ryan Magee
Created 9 months agoShare
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Grim
Created over 1 year agoShare
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“Although this is a fiction, this felt more like a nonfiction in its believe-ability. So much so, I've actually read that people have made the mistake in thinking this is a nonfiction detailing the actual log of a cowboy during a long cattle drive. Given that this was written based on the author's own experiences as a cowboy, it makes sense. It was his attempt to give people an unromanticized depiction of the West.
Overall I enjoyed the book, but it's because the West is an interest of mine. I think only people interested in cattle drives and the West would find it as interesting, as things do get rather tedious and monotonous at points. Even repetitive, as the terrain rarely changed. Land, then rivers, land then rivers. I struggled in sections of the book because of this, but it makes sense that there would be lulls in a cattle drive. It'd be hellish if the entire drive was action upon action. I wished the empty chapters were less drawn out, but at the same time, it did make it feel like we were right alongside the cowboys for the ride.
The dialogue was a bit rough to get through, especially the chapters where characters sat around to tell stories at their campfire at night. It felt awkwardly written, clunky, and some of the stories told by the characters felt aimless. Thankfully that's few and far in between.
I would also like to point out, this was written in 1903. As you would expect, the language chosen for certain races is unfortunate. Including the decided name of the main character's favorite black horse. Such is the ugly truth of our history. Just as a heads up for anyone who was interested.”
Corey [Slowbrn]
Created almost 2 years agoShare
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iasa
Created over 2 years agoShare
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Anne With A Book
Created almost 3 years agoShare
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“This is such an exceptional classic western! Andy Adams was a cowboy who transported steers in the 1880s and was annoyed by the romanticized, unrealistic cowboy stories being published during his time, so in 1903 he published this book. While it is a fictional story following a young man who drives cattle from Texas to Montana in the 1880s over five months, it is based off of Adams's real life experiences, and is considered one of the best documentations of cowboy life. And I thoroughly enjoyed this book! It is not exactly politically correct as of the modern day and very much a product of its time, and yet it paints a detailed understanding of the era and place. There are so many great scenes and if you enjoy westerns, I highly recommend this book!”
About Andy Adams
Andy Adams (1859–1935) worked as a prospector as well as a cattle driver on the Western trails. Although his most popular book, The Log of a Cowboy, is fiction, it is based on the author's own experiences during a five-month drive of 3,000 cattle from Texas to Montana in 1882.
Other books by Andy Adams
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