{"id":8781,"date":"2020-08-11T17:50:54","date_gmt":"2020-08-12T00:50:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/exhaustnotes.us\/blog\/?p=8781"},"modified":"2026-04-12T07:56:35","modified_gmt":"2026-04-12T14:56:35","slug":"lonesome-dove","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/exhaustnotes.us\/blog\/index.php\/2020\/08\/11\/lonesome-dove\/","title":{"rendered":"Lonesome Dove"},"content":{"rendered":"

The greatest story ever told:\u00a0 That’s Larry McMurtry’s blockbuster work, Lonesome Dove<\/a><\/em>\"\".\u00a0 We’ve touched on it before with our book review on Revolver – Sam Colt and the Six Shooter that Changed America<\/a>\"\"<\/em>.\u00a0 This is another book review, and a movie review, too, as Lonesome Dove<\/a>\"\"<\/em> was also made into a four-part TV special<\/a>\"\" three decades ago.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

McMurtry wrote Lonesome Dove<\/em> in 1985.\u00a0 It was loosely based on the true story of Charles Goodnight and Oliver Loving, and their third cattle drive north.\u00a0 I have a copy of Lonesome Dove<\/em> that I bought when it first came out, and I’ve probably read it a half dozen times.\u00a0 Sometimes a few years will go by before I see it tucked away in the bookshelf, and I’ll pull it down and take a few days to read it again\u00a0 \u00a0Even though I know what’s coming next (I almost have it memorized), I still enjoy reading it.\u00a0 It’s that good.<\/p>\n

Motown Productions did the Lonesome Dove<\/em> four-part television mini-series in 1989.\u00a0 Most of the time a movie based on a book gives up a lot, but this one did not.\u00a0 When it pops up as a re-run, I’m in.\u00a0 I’ve probably watched it no fewer than five times.<\/p>\n

The scenes in both the book and the TV series (which stayed faithful to the novel) are well crafted and memorable.\u00a0 Several stood out, including the river crossing water moccasin attack, McCrae’s taking out a group of renegades while rescuing Lorena, Call’s horse-collision-takedown of an arrogant and abusive cavalry officer, and the bar room scene in which McCrae puts his Colt Walker to good use teaching a surly bartender western etiquette (that one is my favorite).<\/p>\n

If you’ve read the book or seen the TV series, you know what I’m talking about.\u00a0 If you haven’t, you need to. Trust me on this one one, folks.\u00a0 The next time Lonesome Dove<\/em> is on TV you’ll want to see it, and if you have a chance to grab a copy of Lonesome Dove<\/em>, you should do so.<\/p>\n

\n

More ExNotes reviews are here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n