amos: to ride a dead horse

by Stanley Gordon West

Set in Montana in the early '60's, it is the story of one man who against impossible odds refused to give in to despair and hopelessness. Amos was a man who thought he'd experienced all that life had to offer when, with a capricious turn of fate, he fell through the cracks of society's institutions, into the merciless cogwheels of human apathy and carelessness. After a tragic accident that kills his wife and leaves him with a shattered hip, without family, and penniless, Amos is deposited in the county poor farm, Sunset Home, outside a small Montana town. He believes his life is over and he resolves to let go and die as quickly as possible, isolating himself from the other residents of the poor farm.

Under head nurse Daisy Daws's iron-clad rule, he notices small cruelties and injustices but attempts to ignore them in his refusal to accept this meaningless end to his life, until an unthinkable horror witnessed by chance in the middle of the night reawakens his deeply felt sense of justice. Ever so often, indifference and neglect mutate into unmitigated evil and then humanity goes on trial. Rarely, someone stands in the breach and shouts "No" with only courage and dignity as weapons. Amos, in spite of himself, becomes that person when he says aloud to himself in the darkness of his bleak little room, "I'm not going to die, by God, and I'm not going to let her get away with it!" The story of his struggle with Daisy Daws not only to survive but to overcome is a compelling testimony to the inner strength and irrepressible spirit of man. Albert Camus once said, "In the midst of winter, I found there was within me an invincible summer." This became Amos's credo. With a growing respect and affection for his fellow inmates, with a newfound romance with the lovely Fern, and against devastating odds and arrogant brutality, he finds a triumph he never expected.

Genres: Fiction, Book Club

Unknown Binding

First published September 1, 2000

About the author

Stanley Gordon West was born in 1932 and attended St. Paul Central High School in Minnesota. He lived in Bozeman, Montana for several years, and now resides in Shakopee, MN. All of his novels are popular book club selections: Blind Your Ponies, two other novels set in the same time and place as Until They Bring the Streetcars Back - Finding Laura Buggs and Growing an Inch - and his most recent, Sweet, Shattered Dreams. His novel Amos was made into a CBS Movie of the Week starring Kirk Douglas that stirred national controversy over abuse of the aged in America. When Kirk Douglas testified before Congress and wrote in the New York Times on the issue, he pointed out that animals had been protected by law for one hundred years before children or the aged. While Amos focused on elder abuse, Until They Bring the Streetcars Back explores the other vulnerable end of the age spectrum.

Reviews

[Chrisl · Rating 4 out of 5]

After reading Blind Your Ponies the first time, I wanted to try everything the author had written. Amos was particularly memorable. Would not have wanted to see the movie based on the book, not would have wanted to read it again. The memory of the story, particularly the ending remains.

(Here's a possibly spoiler type quote copied from the AllMovie website

Synopsis by Hal Erickson
Stars Kirk Douglas and Elizabeth Montgomery manage to rise above the melodramatic trappings of Amos. Douglas plays the title character, a fiercely independent senior-citizen baseball coach, forced to live in a retirement home after an auto accident. During his stay, Amos conducts a battle of wills with overbearing head nurse Daisy Dawes (Montgomery). This Cuckoo's Nest-derived setup has an added wrinkle: Amos suspects, quite rightly as it turns out, that Dawes has been systematically murdering her more troublesome charges. Made for TV by Douglas' own Bryna Productions, Amos first aired September 29, 1985

Read more at https://www.allmovie.com/movie/amos-v...

[Vicky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stanley Gordon West died in January 2015. It is really too bad that he did not achieve the fame of Ivan Doig, because his books are beautifully written and he is a masterful storyteller. I am not sure most people think of him as a Montana author since he was born and died in Minnesota, and three of his books compose "the St. PAul trilogy", but he lived in Montana for several years. Blind Your Ponies, the book most readers are familiar with is set in Willow Creek Montana and Amos, his first published novel is also set in Montana. I read this short novel in one sitting. It is an absorbing story, peopled with characters whose lives you learn about and who in the end succeed, through one man's strength and courage

[Dlhmoore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Before I read this book I read several reviews. They all said the book was "extraordinary," "remarkable," "unmitigated evil." But none of the reviews really said what the story was about. It was a superbly written book, that sometimes made the hair on my neck rise, and I was really shocked to learn that the story is about very elderly people in a "Home" for homeless or unwanted people.

In this Nursing Home the patients are abused, tortured, sometimes starved, stolen from and even killed. It was a heartrending story that was very hard to read, but I'm glad I finished it. In the Author's note he writes that many of the characters were based on real people who were trapped there until the end of their lives. The Home was based on a county rest home in Montana in the mid sixties where the residents were often treated in the manner depicted in the novel. Some of it was horrifying!

[Betty · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the second book that I have read by the author Stanley Gordon West and he is becoming one of my favorite authors.....I plan to read his other books without a doubt.
West has a way of blending great characters with great writing to keep you thoroughly entertained.
While this book was about a depressing subject,old people in a county nursing home....being abused by nurse Daisy the administrator and her assistant Roland....it is full of wonderful characters,emotion,frustration,and a surprise/tragic ending.
Amos and his wife Mildred are involved in an auto accident. Mildred dies and Amos is brought to the county nursing home after hospitalization for a hip fracture uses up his savings. Here he encounters nurse Daisy and Roland who make life miserable for all of the residents but appear to be good and caring people to the outside world. Amos tries to let anyone know what is happening but when his pleas fall on deaf ears he resorts to other means to get their attention.

[Kathleen Payne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had read Stanley Gordon West's book, 'Blind Your Ponies' and loved it. He is an excellent story teller. Amos was a tough story to tell and well written. I did have a hard time reading some of the daily events at the care home he was 'trapped in' and spoiler alert, it was based on a true story of a care home in Montana in the 1960's. Dreadful conditions of elder abuse. I had to skip pages simply because it was too tough to read, but the end justified the middle of the book!

[Andy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was sort of like "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" in a sadistic senior home. The uplifting moments didn't work well enough for me to keep this from being generally too dreary.

[Jill · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a good story! As disturbing as the circumstances are, the story is well written and I really enjoyed it. No spoilers here, though. Read it.

[Maureen O'Connor · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorite kind of leadership where an individual empowers others.

[Shelly deBraga · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a good book about a group of people in a old folks home who are treated badly. It kept me turning the pages, wanting to know what happens in the end.

[Rita · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, what a fabulous book! Amos Lasher is a man in his late 70s who ends up in a Montana nursing home in the 1960s, where the abuse of the residents is horrific. He sees what is going on, and experiences it himself. The head nurse Daisy Daws challenges Nurse Ratchet (One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest) for the title of scariest woman ever! His mind is very sharp, however, and in the end… Well I guess you’ll just have to read the book yourself. Very well written, as are all of Stanley Gordon West’s books.

By the way, Amos Lasher is not a sports legend. Maybe that was the case in the movie, but not the book.

[Leslie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe I had too high of hopes for this book. Blind Your Ponies by the same author is one of my all time favorite books. This one I labored through and really had a hard time with the severity of the elder care abuse that occurred in the book. There were certainly sweet moments and a redeeming ending but the first half of the book I found slow and brutal.

[Tyler · Rating 5 out of 5]

His other books are solidly YA novels. This one not so much. Great book about folks in an old folks home in rural MT, dealing with a tough living situation. Good characterization, compelling plot, some gerontology romance if that’s your thing, and a few twists among the way. Enjoyable from cover to cover.

[Mary Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

While parts of this tale were excruciating to read, the underlying courage and fortitude the residents at Sunset exhibit kept me reading. I’ve loved West’s other novels as well. The characters from this one will stay with me for awhile.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I gotta say that it took me a little bit to get into the story but once I did it had to be captivated. I didn’t know how it was gonna turn out in the end but I sure didn’t figure on what actually happened. I’ll try to remember the story about the girl in the courtyard for when it’s my time.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book. However it made me sad too to think things like this happen. Maybe not so much now, but it could.

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Such a sad story. All too true, unfortunately.

[Margaret · Rating 2 out of 5]

Glad I read it, and glad to be done. Chilling.

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was beautifully written, with a cast of characters that will haunt you. It’s a fast read, but the content is very sad.

[Kala Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

I struggled through the middle of this book, but as it came highly recommended I kept going. I am so glad that I did. This book is a must read.

[Douglas Castagna · Rating 4 out of 5]

An amazing character study of a man who has nothing left except for his word and his desire to right an injustice. Amos is the newest resident of an "old folks home" where the people in charge have turned into a prison. Things hopefully have gotten better with the advent of patient advocates and laws and the like but I am sure things like this still happen, and know that when this book was written it was more prevalent and harder to recognize, while making this story dated it did not deter from the intensity and serious nature therein.

[Miranda Noble · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amos: To Ride a Dead Horse, by Stanley Gordon West is a fiction book. To ride a dead horse has a symbolic meaning and the main character is trying to do that.
Amos is the main character who just got in an accident that got him into a corrupt retirement home. He sees the workers at the home do terrible things to the people living there. He tries to stop it a couple times unsuccessfully, and finally has to do something terrible to himself in order to help all the others in the home.
A literary device that I found was effective in this book was the characterization. All the people in the home had very different personalities that helped the plot line of the story. It also made the story seem more lifelike because of all the personalities West uses. Also, the people working at the home had very strong character traits. This helped the reader sympathize with the residents and feel the way that Amos did in the book.
My opinion of this book was that it was good, but I thought it was boring at times. It was different from any other book I have ever read, so that is probably why it held my attention so well. My friend also read this book and it made her cry, but it didn't change my emotion at all.
If you want to read something different, then you should read this book. It is not just about some people sitting around in a retirement home, but people that are trying to change things for themselves and others.

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fabulous book--great premise, great characters, great plot, great theme, great writing. The author tends to get his ideas from real life and go from there, and he does a good job with this situation.

This story is about an elderly man who loses his wife in a car crash in rural Montana that leaves him injured and placed in a nursing home (he's estranged from his son). The situation there is dire; abuse by the head nurse running the place leaves the patients fearful and cowed. The new arrival soon inspires them to fight back...and I'll stop there because reading through to the end is so satisfying.

I laughed and cried many times in this book, and it left me fulfilled in a way all good books should--and also sad. This was, after all, based on a real-life story. Anyone starting a book club or in a book club should consider Amos. I wrote questions for my group, so if you want, contact me and I can send you the questions. Anyone could read this though--a great book.

[MissSusie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a hard book to review I think because it was hard book to read. This is my first Stanley Gordon West and I have heard great things about him as a writer and maybe this isn't where I should have started, but even though I didn’t love this book it is well written.

This was an interesting look at the abhorrent conditions that some nursing homes were in and the people working in them were sadists and thieves who prey on the weak. It was tough reading at times especially if you have a loved one in a care facility but you couldn’t help but cheer for the residents and hope their big plan would work.

I don’t want to say too much more because I had the ending of this book spoiled on me and it kind of wrecked the rest of the book for me and that may have added to me not liking it as much as I should have.

I will give this author another try as I liked his style but this one was just kind a little better than just ok.

3 stars

[Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

The subject of this book is very difficult. The maltreatment of these aged people living out their final years in a county home is not an easy read by any means. That being said there is a feeling of hopefulness as well. Amos comes to the home determined not to be involved with anyone and gradually becomes attached to his fellow residents. The love that blossoms between Amos and Fern is very sweet. As things progress Amos finds a new strength within himself and a way to bring hope to his fellow residents as well. Mr. West has a wonderful way of writing that draws the reader into the story with characters who have depth and are totally believable. I would recommend this book to anyone.

[Alline · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amos ends up in a nursing home, much to his surprise. Which leads readers to contemplate - does anyone really intend to end up in a nursing home? What must it be like to feel dumped, alone, helpless? When confronted with an abusive administrator Amos does what he can, using the skills and mobility left among his fellow residents to take action. Incredibly touching, well written, suspenseful, never maudlin or sappy. Highly recommended.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had previously read and enjoyed "When they bring the Street Cars back" so thought I would try another one of his books. Equally well written with a quirky cast of characters locked and abandoned in a nursing home in Montana. Not easy reading but moments of tenderness and joy kept it from being a complete downer and a twist or two kept me turning pages. I would call it a definite "to read" but not if you're depressed or struggling with how life could turn out!

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this in book club a few years ago, and wish I had read it sooner. Just before we chose it, West had appeared at our local library, and I had not taken the opportunity to say hello to him. It was a grand opening and there was so much going on. I just thought he was a nice old man who was writing in his retirement. Then I read Amos. Oh. my. Years later, this story has stayed with me, from its wonderful main character to its shocking ending. I highly recommend this book to everyone.

[Daphne · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't like this book and I'm disappointed that I had to buy it. The only good message that I could find was the story it kept repeating about the girl looking over the edge of the building to see if her dad was going to catch her when she jumped. That was a really great story...among the rest of the stories of the book which were all very depressing and disgusting.

[Pat Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This a powerful story by one of my favorite authors. It deals with an elderly man put into an institution becaue there is no one left in his family to take care of him. Some of you may not have any idea what "old folks homes" were like. This is an emotional story where you find yourself rooting for the old timers. A great read.

[Barb · Rating 5 out of 5]

West has taken a tragic situation and breathed life into it with the character of Amos. I love Stanley Gordon West because he can use language in a powerful way and bring characters to life. I have read every novel he has written and would recommend any of his books, especially anyone with a Minnesota and/or Montana connection.