Lonesome Dove has been bouncing around in my mind for years. I had a friend recommend it years ago, and I have consistently seen it discussed here as being a favorite of many.
About a month ago, my mother was in town, and I offhandedly mentioned that I was going to check it out from the library soon. She looked at me wide-eyed and said “You know that was Dad’s favorite book, right?” My dad passed away when I was 10, and I had no idea of his love for this book.
So clearly, I was primed to fall in love with this book. I took it out from the library the following day. I was a bit worried that it wouldn’t live up to the hype that I had built up around it in my head. I’m about halfway through and am relieved to say it is everything I hoped for. It has been like a warm blanket for me. The way in which the plot advances without hurry. The attention McMurtry pays to every character. The subtle humor and refusal to take itself too seriously. The feeling of nostalgia it evokes, even if for something I never really knew.
I’ve been talking about it every chance I get. I was on the phone with one of my dad’s good friends, John, this last weekend (John and my dad, David, worked together for years, and John took over my dad’s landscaping company after he passed away). John asked if I was reading anything good, and I said “Funny you mention that, because I am reading Lonesome Dove, which my mom just told me was my dad’s favorite book.” John got all excited and responded with “Your dad LOVED that book. He was so excited about it that he got a bunch of us \[at the landscaping company\] to read it as well. We even took to calling him Gus around the yard.” Gus McCrae, the captivating and complicated main character of Lonesome Dove.
I have never felt a cosmic connection with a book quite like this. Eight years ago when my wife and I had our son, years before picking up Lonesome Dove (or knowing my dad’s connection to it) we decided to name him August. We like to call him Gus, and I’ve always said that I feel like he will be Gus as an old man. Full circle.
I’m not usually cosmically-inclined, but the deep connection I feel with this book right now is really blowing me away. I would say I’m afraid to finish it, but it is comforting to know that it will always be here.
by DockEllis