Western American Literature

Reviews 347 an ideal husband and father he has lost his freedom. In these and other competently written pieces, Mormon authors recognize that life, even among the Saints, has perplexities and insoluble problems. The literature of the Mormons, as we see it in this collection, is very much like the literature of early New England, and it should be read for the same reasons that we read the literature of the Puritans, not because it has unvarying literary or intellectual quality, but because it accurately reflects the mind of an important and energetic people. The editors of this anthology are to be congratulated for a thorough documentation of the Mormon mind. Their work will obviously appeal to the faithful Latter-day Saint reader. But it will also appeal to the non-Mormon reader who wishes to see the Mormons as they see themselves. Even the reader who insists that any writing worthy of the name “literature” must interpret life in humanistic terms and reflect strong artistic competence will be pleased to find in this anthology that just such literature is beginning to emerge among contemporary Mormon writers. LEVI S. PETERSON, Weber State College Country Music. By C. W. Smith. (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1975. 305 pages. $7.95.) Cry Macho. By N. Richard Nash. (New York: Delacorte Press, 1975. 302 pages. $7.95.) Dolly Purdo. By M. M. B. Walsh. (New York: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 1975. 253 pages. $7.95.) I, Tom Horn. By Will Henry. (Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Co., 1975. 339 pages. $7.95.) The Terrible Teague Bunch. By Gary Jennings. (New York: W. W. Norton & Co., 1975. 256 pages. $7.95.) These five novelists with their varied writing abilities and interests, brought together by the circumstance of their novels being published earlier this year and sent to this reviewer, provide an interesting spectrum illustrat­ ing the literary exploration of “the West.” Two of the authors evidence slight interest in the matter, one is quite serious, and the remaining two are less easily categorized. Such questions as “What is the West?” and “Has the West ended?” are raised quickly. For example, is a novel con­ cerned to great degree with adventures in Mexico, adventures including the capturing of mustangs, to some degree western? Taken in alphabetical order of the titles, which may be as good as any 348 Western American Literature other approach, the following paragraphs provide brief views concerning each of the works. An honest evaluation must be that none is a candidate for the great literature category. More disturbing to this reviewer is the realization that not all are even good reading. Country Music is the most serious literary effort of the five titles. C. W. Smith’s first novel, Thin Men of Haddam, evoked considerable praise, although reviewers were not unanimous. This second novel is the story of a high school dropout in a town not too distant from Midland and Odessa in West Texas —the only real link with the West— with the story mattering all too little. Smith’s novels provide surprisingly slight attention to physical setting. Country Music causes one to recall Clifford A. Ridley’s statement of several years ago in The National Observer that “the contemporary novel doesn’t materially augment our understanding of either ourselves or our place and time— and, perhaps more to the point, it’s not much fun.” Ridley was indicting several major contemporary novelists, but Smith’s latest work forcefully recalls the earlier statement. Cry Macho is more interesting, and, indeed, some fun. N. Richard Nash is identified on the dustjacket as the author of “The Rainmaker” and “other international award-winners.” His novel relates rather skillfully the adventures of a broken-down rodeo cowboy who heads south from Texas with the aim of returning a boy to his father. There is both story and character development. Fun is what Dolly Purdo is all about. This first novel is described on the dustjacket as possessing “the reckless exuberance of Cat Ballou, the warmheartedness of True Grit, and the zaniness of Little Big Man.” This reviewer lacks detailed knowledge of those works, but zany and exuberant adventures, plus some warmth are found in...