Spanish Crossing

by Alan LeMay

BEST OF THE WESTDuring the 1950s, Alan LeMay was writing classic Western novels that were being made into equally classic films, such as The Searchers and The Unforgiven. But he was also writing brilliant short stories, published in magazines such as Collier's and The Saturday Evening Post, and the best of these are collected here.These stories include "The Wolf Hunter," a gripping tale of a loner who makes his living hunting wolves for bounty and the crafty coyote who torments him. Old Man Coffee, one of LeMay's most memorable characters, finds himself in the midst of a murder mystery in "The Biscuit Shooter." In "Delayed Action," Old Man Coffee's challenge is to vindicate a lawman who's been falsely accused. These and many other fine stories display the talent and skill of one of the West's greatest storytellers.

Genres: Westerns

242 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 1, 1998

About the author

Alan Brown Le May was an American novelist and screenplay writer. He is most remembered for two classic Western novels, The Searchers and The Unforgiven. They were adapted into the motion pictures "The Searchers" and "The Unforgiven".

He also wrote or co-wrote the screenplays for "North West Mounted Police" (1940), "Reap the Wild Wind" (1942), "Blackbeard the Pirate" (1952). He wrote the original source novel for "Along Came Jones" (1945), as well as a score of other screenplays and an assortment of other novels and short stories. Le May wrote and directed "High Lonesome" (1950). Le May also wrote and produced (but did not direct) "Quebec" (1951.

Reviews

[John Bruni · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm a huge fan of THE SEARCHERS. Alan LeMay wrote the wonderful novel that the John Wayne movie is based on. Sadly, it was the only book by LeMay I'd ever read until now. This one is a collection of decent short stories, all westerns. None of them come close to holding a candle to THE SEARCHERS, but really, how could they? Most of them are your basic pulp western tales, but there are a few that stand out. My favorite is, hands down, the first in the book: "The Wolf Hunter." It's the story of a wolf hunter getting locked into a battle to the death with a trickster coyote. The battle of wits between them is awesome, but the best part comes after one of them emerges victorious. My second favorite is the last story in the book: "Spanish Crossing." Talk about misunderstandings! I also loved the intro, written by LeMay's son, about LeMay's life and career. He was a very interesting guy who did a lot of things before dying prematurely in the 'Sixties.

[Mickey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short Stories

I didn't realize this was a collection of short stories but nevertheless I enjoyed all of them. Good, easy reading.

[Alberto Martín de Hijas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Un colección de relatos un tanto irregular, los cuentos no son malos pero la repetición de temas lastra el conjunto del libro y lo deja lejos de la altura que LeMay alcanzó en otros libros. Del conjunto me gustaron especialmente "The Wolf Hunter" y el que da título al volúmen "Spanish Crossing".

[Josh Hitch · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid collection of shorts from the guy who wrote the novel that the best John Wayne film came from, The Searchers. All these appeared in various magazines in the early 30s. LeMay focused more on a clever twist or characters then pulpy western action, which isn't a bad thing. I think the best one was And Him Long Gone, which is just a bittersweet love tale. Which just shows how great LeMay could be, since I am more of a pulpy western reader, and a description of the aforementioned tale would not of interested me but its done really well. A couple others had a character named Old Man Coffee, an old mountain lion hunter, who gets involved in mysteries since he is known to be clever.

Would recommend, none of the tales were bad. Might have been a few that didnt really grab my interest but were still worthwhile in their own way.

[D. E. · Rating 5 out of 5]

A 2nd Collection of Western Short Stories

AL has penned a collection of western short stories that were originally written for the western trade magazines of the 30,a and 40's and in some cases on into the late 30 th Century by a variety of Western authors. Alan LeMay, Louis LaAmour, Ernest Haycock, mAx Brand and Zane Grey.. These stories are excellent examples of short stories and where some are turned into novels. This is an excellent read for the genre.....DEHS

[Julie Myers · Rating 4 out of 5]

All enjoyable tailes

I liked the writer's style. Much like Zane Grey or Lamour. Sadly each story ended just as it was getting started. Each would have made a novel in its own.

[Bob Cantrell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just good fish and tales

I once told that a good short story was like a kiss in the dark that left you wanting more. These stories for the most part fit that description. After reading them I wanted to know more about the people in the stories went on to do. So for me they are five star, however some readers may have a problem with the way the characters talk in the dialogue. It does take a bit of getting use to, but hey it sounds good to me. So if you like Louis L'Amour then check out LeMay.

[Harold Butts · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting storytelling!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and each story within! All was well written and easy to follow along with. Each subject opened the imagination to see it all unfold!

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Of the 14 short stories in this anthology, I considered six to be very moving! I recommend this book for those who like western books that are strong into both characterizations and plots!

[Gu Kun · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well-written stories with unsatisfactory resolutions.