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Trails: A Western Saga
TRAILS depicts the turbulent decades from 1830-1870, a period of painful growth on the American Frontier, rife with tragedy and desperation, yet tantalizing in promise and new beginnings. Incidents of hope and courage mingle with dynamics so daunting that many strong men are reduced to pawns of fate and circumstance. The characters are diverse, and include Whit Brody, a pioneer visionary; the Chase brothers, heroes of the Civil War; Annalise Ollimore, a freed slave on a dangerous quest; Herkimer Grimes, a reluctant gunfighter; Bird/Three Doves, an Indian fighting for dignity in a white man’s world; Reverend Jonah Brooks, a champion of the oppressed; Hank Rosbottom, a musician trying to cope with a life-altering tragedy; and the murderous Dooley brothers. These characters and scores of others, both fictional and actual, struggle through the impacts of historical events, leading to a bloody denouement on the streets of Abilene, Kansas, America’s first “cow town.”
AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY:
Don Ross is a retired high school English teacher and coach from Springboro, Ohio. He has written in a variety of venues for over fifty years, as a sports editor, columnist, and feature writer for newspapers and magazines in southern and central Ohio. He also wrote the script for “Trail of Hope,” a nationally-acclaimed documentary on the Underground Railroad, and for a monthly talk show, “The Bob and Don Show,” which he co-hosted on cable television. A series of coffee table books on Springboro area history were authored by Ross in the mid-Nineties, followed by scripts for Underground Railroad tours for the Springboro Historical Society and the Kelton House Museum in Columbus, Ohio. In 1995 he co-founded and performed in “The Family Tree,” a folk band, which played dates throughout Ohio, released two CD’s, and did the background music for two documentaries. A lifelong fan of the Cincinnati Reds, he now resides in Pickerington, Ohio.
AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY:
Don Ross is a retired high school English teacher and coach from Springboro, Ohio. He has written in a variety of venues for over fifty years, as a sports editor, columnist, and feature writer for newspapers and magazines in southern and central Ohio. He also wrote the script for “Trail of Hope,” a nationally-acclaimed documentary on the Underground Railroad, and for a monthly talk show, “The Bob and Don Show,” which he co-hosted on cable television. A series of coffee table books on Springboro area history were authored by Ross in the mid-Nineties, followed by scripts for Underground Railroad tours for the Springboro Historical Society and the Kelton House Museum in Columbus, Ohio. In 1995 he co-founded and performed in “The Family Tree,” a folk band, which played dates throughout Ohio, released two CD’s, and did the background music for two documentaries. A lifelong fan of the Cincinnati Reds, he now resides in Pickerington, Ohio.
408 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 1, 2014
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
July 1, 2024
I was gifted this book by a relative who met the author and had him sign it. The school he retired from is about 30 minutes from where I live. It sat on my bookshelf for several years, and once I read it, I regretted letting it sit so long. The book covers many different characters from 1830 - 1870, and the many hardships that people in those days dealt with. Some real, and some fictional. Overall, it was hard to tell which was which.
Pros - An engaging book with a very diverse group of characters and places. While the civil war raged during part of the book, it was more of a side note than anything else. The character development was very thorough and really allows the reader to get a great understanding of each of the characters. His description of the trials and tribulations they all had to endure where very real. With some of the characters being actual historical figures and some not, the interchange between them made you wonder who was real. The author made sure that all of the characters came together in the end, and that made a very long book, very worthwhile. Starting from about page 200 until the end, I couldn't put it down. It read more like a work of history, rather than fiction. You really got a sense of life in that time period.
Cons - The transitions from one character to another, or one scene to another, were not laid out well. In several cases, I had to go back and re-read a prior page so that I could see where the scene changed. There was nothing to indicate this change. It could just be that the next sentence was a different storyline. There were so many characters and different stories going on that I struggled to keep up in the first half of the book. Trying to keep track of each character and what was going on with them was difficult early on.
Overall, it was a great read. Especially from the mid-point on. I would highly recommend it for anyone, but especially those who enjoy history.
Pros - An engaging book with a very diverse group of characters and places. While the civil war raged during part of the book, it was more of a side note than anything else. The character development was very thorough and really allows the reader to get a great understanding of each of the characters. His description of the trials and tribulations they all had to endure where very real. With some of the characters being actual historical figures and some not, the interchange between them made you wonder who was real. The author made sure that all of the characters came together in the end, and that made a very long book, very worthwhile. Starting from about page 200 until the end, I couldn't put it down. It read more like a work of history, rather than fiction. You really got a sense of life in that time period.
Cons - The transitions from one character to another, or one scene to another, were not laid out well. In several cases, I had to go back and re-read a prior page so that I could see where the scene changed. There was nothing to indicate this change. It could just be that the next sentence was a different storyline. There were so many characters and different stories going on that I struggled to keep up in the first half of the book. Trying to keep track of each character and what was going on with them was difficult early on.
Overall, it was a great read. Especially from the mid-point on. I would highly recommend it for anyone, but especially those who enjoy history.
August 3, 2014
Call it a western, but Don Ross’s powerful historical novel transcends the genre in its broad sweep of geography and subject matter. Set in the turbulent period between 1830-1870, Ross’s saga takes us from the Texas plains to the Louisiana bayou, from Civil War battlefields to Southern cotton fields, from Mississippi River cities to rough-and-tumble frontier towns.
We follow the paths of multiple memorable protagonists whose destinies, propelled by opportunity or misfortune, lead them inexorably westward: the indefatigable Choctaw Three Doves, a survivor on the run from an abusive past; fiddler-turned-physician Hank “Doc” Rosbottom; Texas Ranger and penny-novel hero Herkimer Grimes; progressive minister Jonah Brooks, a champion of the Underground Railroad; the valiant yet humble Chase brothers; Annalise Ollimore, a former slave obsessed with solving the mystery of her mother’s disappearance; and kind-hearted Whit Brody, on whose ranch many of these lost souls find employment and, more importantly, a kind of extended family.
The characters’ backgrounds are fleshed out in the shorter early chapters. More than vignettes, these sections constitute several excellent, stand-alone stories in their own right (the tale of Rosbottom and his beloved, ill-fated wife Angeline is particularly affecting). The author patiently weaves together these separate storylines against the backdrop of some very real and often tragic events—the Indian Removal, the Regulator-Moderator conflict, the Civil War, to name a few.
Along the way we encounter some actual historical figures (there is a wonderful scene involving a conversation between Jefferson Chase and a young Gen. Custer). However, Ross’s unforgettable fictional creations carry the day. His skill at rounding out characters extends to the bit players as well: one of my personal favorites is Weasel, the affable, brain-addled kleptomaniac whose fierce loyalty to storeowner Joshua Chase (“Jozwah”) is a crucial factor in the story’s outcome. And in Lester Dooley, Ross has created a truly sinister, cold-blooded killer whose trademark calling card—a seemingly innocuous greeting—typically precedes the recipient’s violent death.
There is a lot going on in this novel, but all parts contribute to the whole. The author clearly is in control of plot and pacing. Befitting an adventure, the battle scenes—such as a tense rendering of the Battle of Fredericksburg—are especially well-done. Yet, this is an adventure with darker, naturalistic undertones, and we as readers ride an emotional coaster throughout. Characters build new lives, love passionately, give selflessly; they also struggle, sometimes suffer or die, cruelly and unexpectedly.
Central to the novel is the conflict between order and lawlessness, between good people endeavoring to build new lives and those dark-hearted individuals who, as Lincoln might have said, remain untouched by the better angels of our nature. At every corner, order threatens to break down into lawlessness, and this tension between opposing forces reaches its symbolic apotheosis on the Kansas frontier: the Brody Ranch, a metaphor for the ideal of America-as-melting pot, where individuals co-exist harmoniously under the banner of freedom and opportunity; contrasted with the nearby town of Abilene—the flip side of the ideal--where greed, self-interest and vice hold sway.
The novel wends its way to the climactic gunfight, in which our protagonists face down a perfect storm (or swarm) of bad-guy vengeance. This scene, or sequence of scenes, has a cinematic quality—I couldn’t help but envision it in wide split-screen. It culminates in a fist-pumping moment when one reluctant hero truly becomes a legend, throwing caution to the wind in a selfless act of courage and—possibly—sacrifice.
Ross has crafted something special in Trails. It is deserving of a wider readership, although the author must be prepared for the inevitability of requests for a sequel. Personally, I’d love to see it adapted into a TV miniseries.
If you enjoy historical fiction, you must read this book.
We follow the paths of multiple memorable protagonists whose destinies, propelled by opportunity or misfortune, lead them inexorably westward: the indefatigable Choctaw Three Doves, a survivor on the run from an abusive past; fiddler-turned-physician Hank “Doc” Rosbottom; Texas Ranger and penny-novel hero Herkimer Grimes; progressive minister Jonah Brooks, a champion of the Underground Railroad; the valiant yet humble Chase brothers; Annalise Ollimore, a former slave obsessed with solving the mystery of her mother’s disappearance; and kind-hearted Whit Brody, on whose ranch many of these lost souls find employment and, more importantly, a kind of extended family.
The characters’ backgrounds are fleshed out in the shorter early chapters. More than vignettes, these sections constitute several excellent, stand-alone stories in their own right (the tale of Rosbottom and his beloved, ill-fated wife Angeline is particularly affecting). The author patiently weaves together these separate storylines against the backdrop of some very real and often tragic events—the Indian Removal, the Regulator-Moderator conflict, the Civil War, to name a few.
Along the way we encounter some actual historical figures (there is a wonderful scene involving a conversation between Jefferson Chase and a young Gen. Custer). However, Ross’s unforgettable fictional creations carry the day. His skill at rounding out characters extends to the bit players as well: one of my personal favorites is Weasel, the affable, brain-addled kleptomaniac whose fierce loyalty to storeowner Joshua Chase (“Jozwah”) is a crucial factor in the story’s outcome. And in Lester Dooley, Ross has created a truly sinister, cold-blooded killer whose trademark calling card—a seemingly innocuous greeting—typically precedes the recipient’s violent death.
There is a lot going on in this novel, but all parts contribute to the whole. The author clearly is in control of plot and pacing. Befitting an adventure, the battle scenes—such as a tense rendering of the Battle of Fredericksburg—are especially well-done. Yet, this is an adventure with darker, naturalistic undertones, and we as readers ride an emotional coaster throughout. Characters build new lives, love passionately, give selflessly; they also struggle, sometimes suffer or die, cruelly and unexpectedly.
Central to the novel is the conflict between order and lawlessness, between good people endeavoring to build new lives and those dark-hearted individuals who, as Lincoln might have said, remain untouched by the better angels of our nature. At every corner, order threatens to break down into lawlessness, and this tension between opposing forces reaches its symbolic apotheosis on the Kansas frontier: the Brody Ranch, a metaphor for the ideal of America-as-melting pot, where individuals co-exist harmoniously under the banner of freedom and opportunity; contrasted with the nearby town of Abilene—the flip side of the ideal--where greed, self-interest and vice hold sway.
The novel wends its way to the climactic gunfight, in which our protagonists face down a perfect storm (or swarm) of bad-guy vengeance. This scene, or sequence of scenes, has a cinematic quality—I couldn’t help but envision it in wide split-screen. It culminates in a fist-pumping moment when one reluctant hero truly becomes a legend, throwing caution to the wind in a selfless act of courage and—possibly—sacrifice.
Ross has crafted something special in Trails. It is deserving of a wider readership, although the author must be prepared for the inevitability of requests for a sequel. Personally, I’d love to see it adapted into a TV miniseries.
If you enjoy historical fiction, you must read this book.
July 20, 2014
This book was a page turner! The author was my high school English teacher; by the 4th chapter I had totally forgotten this while reading. I was thoroughly engrossed in the story. Throughout I found the character development very good. I ended the book caring about the heroes and loathing the bad guys. The history woven throughout was also very good, entertaining, and I even learned some history details I did not know before.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews