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As Good as Gone
The American West is bestselling author Larry Watson’s forte, and in this, his tenth novel, he has created his most vivid, genuine antihero yet in Calvin Sidey, a man stuck in a myth.
Calvin Sidey, steely, hardened, with his own personal code, is one of the last cowboys. It’s the 1960s, and he’s living off the grid in a trailer on the prairie when his adult son, Bill, seeks his help. A mostly absentee father and grandfather, Calvin nevertheless agrees to stay with his grandchildren for a week. He decamps for his son’s house in the small town where he once was a mythic figure, and soon enough problems arise: a boy’s attentions to seventeen-year-old Ann are increasingly aggressive, and a group of reckless kids portend danger for eleven-year-old Will. Calvin only knows one way to solve a problem: the Old West way, in which ultimatums are issued and your gun is always loaded.
In the changing culture of the 1960s, Calvin isn’t just a relic; he’s a wild card. At the same time, his old-school ways exert a powerful effect on those around him, from the widowed neighbor, Beverly Lodge, who feels herself falling for him and wants to be part of his life, to his grandchildren. Ann and Will see in their grandfather a man who brings a sudden, if shocking, order to their lives, as Calvin terrorizes those who have often terrorized them.
With the crisp, restrained prose for which Larry Watson is revered, As Good as Gone is a story of a man increasingly at odds with the world. This is Larry Watson at his best.
Calvin Sidey, steely, hardened, with his own personal code, is one of the last cowboys. It’s the 1960s, and he’s living off the grid in a trailer on the prairie when his adult son, Bill, seeks his help. A mostly absentee father and grandfather, Calvin nevertheless agrees to stay with his grandchildren for a week. He decamps for his son’s house in the small town where he once was a mythic figure, and soon enough problems arise: a boy’s attentions to seventeen-year-old Ann are increasingly aggressive, and a group of reckless kids portend danger for eleven-year-old Will. Calvin only knows one way to solve a problem: the Old West way, in which ultimatums are issued and your gun is always loaded.
In the changing culture of the 1960s, Calvin isn’t just a relic; he’s a wild card. At the same time, his old-school ways exert a powerful effect on those around him, from the widowed neighbor, Beverly Lodge, who feels herself falling for him and wants to be part of his life, to his grandchildren. Ann and Will see in their grandfather a man who brings a sudden, if shocking, order to their lives, as Calvin terrorizes those who have often terrorized them.
With the crisp, restrained prose for which Larry Watson is revered, As Good as Gone is a story of a man increasingly at odds with the world. This is Larry Watson at his best.
341 pages, Hardcover
First published June 21, 2016
211 people are currently reading
2581 people want to read
About the author
Larry Watson
32 books443 followersLarry Watson was born in 1947 in Rugby, North Dakota. He grew up in Bismarck, North Dakota, and was educated in its public schools. Larry married his high school sweetheart, Susan Gibbons, in 1967. He received his BA and MA from the University of North Dakota, his Ph.D. from the creative writing program at the University of Utah, and an honorary Doctor of Letters degree from Ripon College. Watson has received grants and fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts (1987, 2004) and the Wisconsin Arts Board.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 353 reviews
September 16, 2018
”It’s been a long time since anyone expected me to think or know much of anything. I’ve drawn wages for most of my years for simple doing.”
“And do you think your son asked you to come here to do something?”
“If need be.” He flicks away his cigarette, and together they watch its sparks pinwheel down the drive. “If need be.”
it’s 1963 in the small town of gladstone, montana.
when his wife requires a surgery local doctors are not equipped to perform, bill sidey asks a rare favor of his estranged father calvin: to stay at the house while they are at the hospital in missoula and watch the two grandchildren calvin has seldom even seen.
calvin sidey is a man with a complicated reputation: once a respected town leader, war hero and businessman, he became so consumed by grief after his wife’s death that he abandoned his teenaged children and went off to live alone and unencumbered in a trailer outside of town where he drank himself into oblivion, hiring himself out as a ranch hand and living the life of a cowboy-hermit. an individual with a great “capacity for ferocity,” calvin is a taciturn man of the old school, when men were men and did what needed doing and many unsavory rumors have sprung up in his thirty-year absence, one involving a tire iron and a man who said something indelicate about calvin's wife. the selling point for me was right there in the synopsis:
Calvin only knows one way to solve a problem: the Old West way, in which ultimatums are issued and your gun is always loaded.
hell. yeah.
but now calvin is many years sober and spends his time quietly, reading poetry in latin, still scoured by pain and loss unexpressed but not unexperienced. all that time alone has stunted his social graces, and his track record with being part of a family is not awesome, but he agrees to return to the town and the very home he once abandoned to be a warm present body in case of an emergency.
and, oh, there will be emergencies.
ann is seventeen years old - a good girl who got involved with a bad boy who has not taken her breaking it off with him well and has been following her all over town in his souped-up car ever since; a silent threat she can’t bring herself to tell anyone about; a secret that is slowly grinding her down into a paranoid bundle of nerves.
meanwhile, eleven year old will is having his own problems. his friends are edging into territory he’s not ready to follow - drinking beer, sidelining the parties of older kids and ogling girls. they also engage in activities that go against his personal moral code, like frog-killing, where he pretends to participate while secretly trying to save as many as possible. like ann, he is unable to speak up for himself, and when his friends begin pressuring him to let them pervily spy into ann’s bedroom, will’s planned evasive tactic is way more destructive and short-sighted than sneaking some frogs back into the river.
calvin ambles into town while the embers of all this are just beginning to flare, bringing along his gun and a bottle of whiskey just in case, and confronting thirty years of change - his haunted past, his failures, the physical changes that have shaped the town in his absence as well as the social changes to values, behaviors, and what constitutes manhood. he also takes another shot at enjoying the company of a woman.
this is a deliciously slow burning novel that triggers an ever-increasing sense of dread as all the ingredients for full-blown tragedy are presented and their likely outcomes anticipated by a reader braced for the inevitable explosion. it’s a multi-POV novel with an excellent sense of time and place in its details and its depiction of gender, race, small town politeness running up against small town gossip, and so much smoking everywhere - not only in the hospital waiting room, but even in the hospital bed by the patient awaiting an operation because why not?
this is my first book by larry watson, but it was such a strong introduction, it will not be my last. this guy knows how to write, how to pace a story, and how to cover all angles of a situation in a really satisfying way. big thumbs-up and a big thank-you to algonquin via firstreads.
***********************************************
SCORE! i haven't won a firstreads giveaway all year, but look at me now - a winner! my headspace is bad and i have a daunting stack of books i have promised to read, but i take my firstreads vows very seriously, and this will be honored as soon as possible.
gratitude, i ooze it.
come to my blog!
“And do you think your son asked you to come here to do something?”
“If need be.” He flicks away his cigarette, and together they watch its sparks pinwheel down the drive. “If need be.”
it’s 1963 in the small town of gladstone, montana.
when his wife requires a surgery local doctors are not equipped to perform, bill sidey asks a rare favor of his estranged father calvin: to stay at the house while they are at the hospital in missoula and watch the two grandchildren calvin has seldom even seen.
calvin sidey is a man with a complicated reputation: once a respected town leader, war hero and businessman, he became so consumed by grief after his wife’s death that he abandoned his teenaged children and went off to live alone and unencumbered in a trailer outside of town where he drank himself into oblivion, hiring himself out as a ranch hand and living the life of a cowboy-hermit. an individual with a great “capacity for ferocity,” calvin is a taciturn man of the old school, when men were men and did what needed doing and many unsavory rumors have sprung up in his thirty-year absence, one involving a tire iron and a man who said something indelicate about calvin's wife. the selling point for me was right there in the synopsis:
Calvin only knows one way to solve a problem: the Old West way, in which ultimatums are issued and your gun is always loaded.
hell. yeah.
but now calvin is many years sober and spends his time quietly, reading poetry in latin, still scoured by pain and loss unexpressed but not unexperienced. all that time alone has stunted his social graces, and his track record with being part of a family is not awesome, but he agrees to return to the town and the very home he once abandoned to be a warm present body in case of an emergency.
and, oh, there will be emergencies.
ann is seventeen years old - a good girl who got involved with a bad boy who has not taken her breaking it off with him well and has been following her all over town in his souped-up car ever since; a silent threat she can’t bring herself to tell anyone about; a secret that is slowly grinding her down into a paranoid bundle of nerves.
meanwhile, eleven year old will is having his own problems. his friends are edging into territory he’s not ready to follow - drinking beer, sidelining the parties of older kids and ogling girls. they also engage in activities that go against his personal moral code, like frog-killing, where he pretends to participate while secretly trying to save as many as possible. like ann, he is unable to speak up for himself, and when his friends begin pressuring him to let them pervily spy into ann’s bedroom, will’s planned evasive tactic is way more destructive and short-sighted than sneaking some frogs back into the river.
calvin ambles into town while the embers of all this are just beginning to flare, bringing along his gun and a bottle of whiskey just in case, and confronting thirty years of change - his haunted past, his failures, the physical changes that have shaped the town in his absence as well as the social changes to values, behaviors, and what constitutes manhood. he also takes another shot at enjoying the company of a woman.
this is a deliciously slow burning novel that triggers an ever-increasing sense of dread as all the ingredients for full-blown tragedy are presented and their likely outcomes anticipated by a reader braced for the inevitable explosion. it’s a multi-POV novel with an excellent sense of time and place in its details and its depiction of gender, race, small town politeness running up against small town gossip, and so much smoking everywhere - not only in the hospital waiting room, but even in the hospital bed by the patient awaiting an operation because why not?
this is my first book by larry watson, but it was such a strong introduction, it will not be my last. this guy knows how to write, how to pace a story, and how to cover all angles of a situation in a really satisfying way. big thumbs-up and a big thank-you to algonquin via firstreads.
***********************************************
SCORE! i haven't won a firstreads giveaway all year, but look at me now - a winner! my headspace is bad and i have a daunting stack of books i have promised to read, but i take my firstreads vows very seriously, and this will be honored as soon as possible.
gratitude, i ooze it.
come to my blog!
September 12, 2019
Great book, great writer! A gritty, rather raw story about an old guy, Calvin Sidey. A loner, a tough guy, a grandfather, who has his own ways to protect his estranged family, when asked to look after the two grandkids due to an operation of the wife of his son. He leaves his trailer in the wilderness to live in the house of his son temporarily, the town he used to live too. As good as gone... The writing is clean and to the point. Great story, easy to read, keeps you going and going... Already looking forward to reading the next book of Larry Watson. Definitely solidly recommended, 4.4 rating.
December 15, 2016
This is another excellent novel from Larry Watson, the author of Montana 1948. Set in 1963, in the fictional town of Gladstone, Montana, it's a beautifully written story of family, values, and small town life at the middle of the Twentieth Century.
At the center of the book is Calvin Sidey, who was once one of the town's leading citizens. But when tragedy struck, he abandoned the town and his family to live alone out on the prairie, working for the rest of his life as an itinerant cowboy. He lives out in the literal middle of nowhere in a small trailer without any modern conveniences. He reads poetry in Latin, is totally self-reliant, and prefers his solitary life.
The normal rhythms of that life are interrupted when his estranged son, Bill, asks him to come back into town and look after Bill's children--Calvin's grandchildren--for a week. Bill's wife, Marjorie, needs surgery in Missoula, several hundred miles away. Ann, seventeen, and Will, eleven, are not quite old enough to be left alone while their parents are away. It pains Bill to have to ask his father for this favor, but he has no other alternative.
Calvin agrees to the request and shows up at the appointed time. This should be a fairly simple proposition, but both children are having problems with some of their peers and could use some adult assistance. Calvin figures this out, even though the children have said nothing to their parents. There are some other issues surrounding the family that could also use attention.
Cal Sidey is a man of the Old School who believes that you don't take crap from anyone and that the best way to deal with a threat is to confront the person who made it head-on and to make sure that he or she learns the lesson quickly. It's rumored about town that Cal once killed a man and he's pretty quick to take offence and even quicker to take action.
Add to the mix a widow who lives next door and any number of teenagers with raging hormones, and Cal Sidey will soon have his hands full. It's impossible to tell if Cal's more dangerous to himself than he is to those around him, but the story is truly engrossing. Watson burrows deep beneath the skin of this man and his extended family and creates a cast of characters that will remain with the reader for a long time to come. All in all, As Good As Gone is a beautiful book that will appeal to large numbers of readers.
At the center of the book is Calvin Sidey, who was once one of the town's leading citizens. But when tragedy struck, he abandoned the town and his family to live alone out on the prairie, working for the rest of his life as an itinerant cowboy. He lives out in the literal middle of nowhere in a small trailer without any modern conveniences. He reads poetry in Latin, is totally self-reliant, and prefers his solitary life.
The normal rhythms of that life are interrupted when his estranged son, Bill, asks him to come back into town and look after Bill's children--Calvin's grandchildren--for a week. Bill's wife, Marjorie, needs surgery in Missoula, several hundred miles away. Ann, seventeen, and Will, eleven, are not quite old enough to be left alone while their parents are away. It pains Bill to have to ask his father for this favor, but he has no other alternative.
Calvin agrees to the request and shows up at the appointed time. This should be a fairly simple proposition, but both children are having problems with some of their peers and could use some adult assistance. Calvin figures this out, even though the children have said nothing to their parents. There are some other issues surrounding the family that could also use attention.
Cal Sidey is a man of the Old School who believes that you don't take crap from anyone and that the best way to deal with a threat is to confront the person who made it head-on and to make sure that he or she learns the lesson quickly. It's rumored about town that Cal once killed a man and he's pretty quick to take offence and even quicker to take action.
Add to the mix a widow who lives next door and any number of teenagers with raging hormones, and Cal Sidey will soon have his hands full. It's impossible to tell if Cal's more dangerous to himself than he is to those around him, but the story is truly engrossing. Watson burrows deep beneath the skin of this man and his extended family and creates a cast of characters that will remain with the reader for a long time to come. All in all, As Good As Gone is a beautiful book that will appeal to large numbers of readers.
September 3, 2016
1963 Gladstone, Montana. This is a story illustrating the differences between a father and his son, and the sameness.
Calvin Sidey is one tough customer. Tall and formidable looking, hard to please. He rolls his own cigarettes, has a distinct idea of what can be tolerated and what cannot. His notion of authors is that they are scribblers. He is a reader, though, books in Latin are his choice. He's getting on in years, but still hires out as a cowboy on occasion, digging post holes, repairing fences, running cattle. He's fixin' to take on a whole different job when his estranged son asks for a favor.
This novel did not hold the magic for me that Montana 1948 and Let Him Go did. I thought the premise was shaky, but I love the author's way with words. Clean, spare, and comfortable.
Calvin Sidey is one tough customer. Tall and formidable looking, hard to please. He rolls his own cigarettes, has a distinct idea of what can be tolerated and what cannot. His notion of authors is that they are scribblers. He is a reader, though, books in Latin are his choice. He's getting on in years, but still hires out as a cowboy on occasion, digging post holes, repairing fences, running cattle. He's fixin' to take on a whole different job when his estranged son asks for a favor.
This novel did not hold the magic for me that Montana 1948 and Let Him Go did. I thought the premise was shaky, but I love the author's way with words. Clean, spare, and comfortable.
September 3, 2017
It’s the summer of 1963 in Montana as this family saga unfolds its riches. The writing is spare yet lyrical, and the dialogue exquisitely characterizes each person in the story.
Bill’s wife Marjorie requires surgery that means a trip to a city 400 miles away and although their 17 year old daughter Ann is quite capable of taking care of herself and her 11 year old brother Will, she has a summer job that is important to her. Her parents don’t want to leave Will alone for so long, so Bill reaches out to his estranged father who is living in a small trailer in the middle of nowhere and asks him to look after things.
Calvin is a man who has experienced trauma in the war, who lost his wife to an accident and alienated himself from his children via his guilt, grief, and eventually abandonment. The family history unfolds in small bits along the way as we read about the crucial moments of choices made, for good or for ill, during the week that Calvin returns to his original home to look after his grand-children.
Unknown to their parents, their children have been experiencing some rough times. Ann reaches a crisis point, as does Will, and Bill himself left some unfinished business behind – all in a conspiracy of the fates intent on testing Calvin’s resolve to look after things for his son and daughter-in-law.
Are his old demons going to win or will his resolve carry them through these tests? Will Calvin be able to restore the relationship with his son or will their great divide continue to wend its way between their lives? Life is rarely either/or but seems to flow somewhere in-between.
This book, so beautifully written and a pleasure to read, is about life in-between: between right and wrong, between strength and weakness, between understanding and incomprehension, between old patterns and new ways of being. I strongly recommend this read for anyone who may want to re-visit the in-between areas of life via this family’s story.
Bill’s wife Marjorie requires surgery that means a trip to a city 400 miles away and although their 17 year old daughter Ann is quite capable of taking care of herself and her 11 year old brother Will, she has a summer job that is important to her. Her parents don’t want to leave Will alone for so long, so Bill reaches out to his estranged father who is living in a small trailer in the middle of nowhere and asks him to look after things.
Calvin is a man who has experienced trauma in the war, who lost his wife to an accident and alienated himself from his children via his guilt, grief, and eventually abandonment. The family history unfolds in small bits along the way as we read about the crucial moments of choices made, for good or for ill, during the week that Calvin returns to his original home to look after his grand-children.
Unknown to their parents, their children have been experiencing some rough times. Ann reaches a crisis point, as does Will, and Bill himself left some unfinished business behind – all in a conspiracy of the fates intent on testing Calvin’s resolve to look after things for his son and daughter-in-law.
Are his old demons going to win or will his resolve carry them through these tests? Will Calvin be able to restore the relationship with his son or will their great divide continue to wend its way between their lives? Life is rarely either/or but seems to flow somewhere in-between.
This book, so beautifully written and a pleasure to read, is about life in-between: between right and wrong, between strength and weakness, between understanding and incomprehension, between old patterns and new ways of being. I strongly recommend this read for anyone who may want to re-visit the in-between areas of life via this family’s story.
July 2, 2016
When I first started reading this, the plot reminded me of the movie, Uncle Buck. When Bill and his wife need to travel so she can get an operation, they ask Bill's estranged father, Calvin, to come and stay in the house and keep an eye on their two children, his grandchildren. But here the similarity ends, because while the movie I mentioned was funny, there is nothing amusing in this novel. There is instead a series of problems, both children are being pressured by supposed friends, in Anna's case a very dangerous ex-boyfriend and well other equally disturbing things are happening. Calvin, in an effort to solve these problems takes to violence.
Watson's writing is wonderful, his characterizations strong, yet I could not ever really connect to this novel. I didn't like these characters which is not the end of the world but there is emotion missing in this novel. Couldn't find the heart and it is a novel that calls for feelings in order to identify with the story in anyway. Or so I believe. Plus I found the ending both abrupt and anti-climatic. Loved the author's previous book so I will definitely read him again, but despite the fine writing this one proved just okay.
ARC from publisher.
Watson's writing is wonderful, his characterizations strong, yet I could not ever really connect to this novel. I didn't like these characters which is not the end of the world but there is emotion missing in this novel. Couldn't find the heart and it is a novel that calls for feelings in order to identify with the story in anyway. Or so I believe. Plus I found the ending both abrupt and anti-climatic. Loved the author's previous book so I will definitely read him again, but despite the fine writing this one proved just okay.
ARC from publisher.
September 3, 2019
In the summer of 1963, a wife and mother, Marjorie, in Montana makes a decision to have surgery which requires a lengthy drive to the city where her sister lives, believing she will be in better hands since her sister has had the same surgery. Marjorie’s husband, Bill, drives out to the middle of an area where his father now lives in a trailer of sorts, devoid of any comforts. He wants his father, who abandoned him as a child, to come and watch over their two children while they are away.
Many rumours abound about Calvin, the father / grandfather in the place where this family lives, beyond abandoning his children, his experiences during World War I, and the French wife he brought home after the war. Majorie doesn’t even want to consider having Calvin supervising their children, but just in time for her to leave for her surgery, Calvin arrives to look after their daughter, Ann, and their son, Will. Additional characters stories add a bit of colour and depth to this story, as well, giving a stronger sense of place and time.
With some beautifully spare prose, Watson shares this story that unfolds slowly, flowing between the thoughts and ways of the grandfather’s generation, the ways of dealing with conflicts and confrontations vs. the parent’s generation, as well as the youngest generations naivety.
Families can be complicated, loyalties can be divided or conditional, and relationships can be damaged or even destroyed. Our individual ability to give love is so tied to our ability to receive love, further complicating the fragile nature of the connections that bind us together as individuals.
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August 3, 2019The Hook A Staff Pick and personal recommendation from Stan Hynds, Northshire Bookstore
The Line - ”A hawk with prey in sight could not watch more intently”.
The Sinker - It's been years since I've read anything by Larry Watson. Back in my library career days Milkweed Editions caught my attention when I read Watson's Montana 1948. Montana, published in 1993 has remained an all-time favorite of mine. So how is it that other Milkweed titles ended up on my shelves but I never read another of Watson's books until now?
Watson manages to tick off many of my appeal factors in what constitutes my list of good reads. Strong characters who are so vividly written that they leap off the page and inhabit your space, the old west brought to life in imagery, family relationships that are raw and real, solid writing that involves the reader. Watson male characters are always stellar; Calvin Sidey, the protagonist, is no exception.
It's 1963 and Sidey is content living his self-reliant, reclusive life, having been long gone from his son grandchildren, old friends and foes, the ghosts he left behind. Why and how he got to this place is for the reader to decipher. When his son comes seeking a favor from his father to return home to keep on eye on things while his wife has an out of town operation, it surprises both men that he says yes. What transpires turns out to be a telling tale, one that kept me in its grip. The story builds with a nuanced passion, violence, love, loyalty and in the end, perhaps an understanding of the man himself.
The characterization of Calvin Sidey ranks high in my fictional world. Unlike another man not necessarily respected but who drew in, Ove; Sidy is less a curmudgeon, more a man with a slow burning fuse, which could explode at any moment, a man whose justice is outside of the law, meted out quickly and without hesitation. He is a man who will stay in my memory and though this may be hard for some to understand, also in my heart.
The Line - ”A hawk with prey in sight could not watch more intently”.
The Sinker - It's been years since I've read anything by Larry Watson. Back in my library career days Milkweed Editions caught my attention when I read Watson's Montana 1948. Montana, published in 1993 has remained an all-time favorite of mine. So how is it that other Milkweed titles ended up on my shelves but I never read another of Watson's books until now?
Watson manages to tick off many of my appeal factors in what constitutes my list of good reads. Strong characters who are so vividly written that they leap off the page and inhabit your space, the old west brought to life in imagery, family relationships that are raw and real, solid writing that involves the reader. Watson male characters are always stellar; Calvin Sidey, the protagonist, is no exception.
It's 1963 and Sidey is content living his self-reliant, reclusive life, having been long gone from his son grandchildren, old friends and foes, the ghosts he left behind. Why and how he got to this place is for the reader to decipher. When his son comes seeking a favor from his father to return home to keep on eye on things while his wife has an out of town operation, it surprises both men that he says yes. What transpires turns out to be a telling tale, one that kept me in its grip. The story builds with a nuanced passion, violence, love, loyalty and in the end, perhaps an understanding of the man himself.
The characterization of Calvin Sidey ranks high in my fictional world. Unlike another man not necessarily respected but who drew in, Ove; Sidy is less a curmudgeon, more a man with a slow burning fuse, which could explode at any moment, a man whose justice is outside of the law, meted out quickly and without hesitation. He is a man who will stay in my memory and though this may be hard for some to understand, also in my heart.
January 28, 2020
“No matter how long they’ve been there, the people who live out here believe that whatever life demands of them they can meet it on their own.”
*****
As Good as Gone is not as good as it could have been nor as good as I hoped. That is not to say that I disliked the book, but that I have high expectations – perhaps unreasonably high – for Larry Watson novels, and this one did not meet my expectations.
It does share many of the good things that characterize his previous novels. For one thing, there is the setting on the plains of northeastern Montana, in and about the town of Gladstone; the same setting as Let Him Go, though no characters from that novel make an appearance. And once again, Watson demonstrates his love for the area and his affection for its people.
The prose as usual is unpretentious and spare, but nevertheless descriptive of the landscape and its inhabitants. And as he has demonstrated in the past he knows how to tell a story and build suspense.
Furthermore, in the person of Calvin Sidey, Watson has created a memorable protagonist; one who takes matters into his own hands; who acts, then asks questions later. He is a man with some admirable qualities, but there are also major flaws in his character. The title of the book describes one such flaw, as described by one of the other characters:
So far, so good. So what is the problem?
The problem is the other major characters and thus the plot. They are not as well-developed as one comes to expect in a Watson story. Furthermore, none of them acts in a believable fashion, and by that I do not mean rational, but authentic fashion. Calvin is so irrational at times that he is out of control, but given his character his actions are believable, and thus authentic. And the other characters, all of whom have to deal with their own conflicts, often act in ways that could also be viewed as irrational, but the problem is that their actions – the important ones – do not strike me as being believable.
This is my seventh Watson novel and I have never awarded one less than four stars – until now.
*****
As Good as Gone is not as good as it could have been nor as good as I hoped. That is not to say that I disliked the book, but that I have high expectations – perhaps unreasonably high – for Larry Watson novels, and this one did not meet my expectations.
It does share many of the good things that characterize his previous novels. For one thing, there is the setting on the plains of northeastern Montana, in and about the town of Gladstone; the same setting as Let Him Go, though no characters from that novel make an appearance. And once again, Watson demonstrates his love for the area and his affection for its people.
The prose as usual is unpretentious and spare, but nevertheless descriptive of the landscape and its inhabitants. And as he has demonstrated in the past he knows how to tell a story and build suspense.
Furthermore, in the person of Calvin Sidey, Watson has created a memorable protagonist; one who takes matters into his own hands; who acts, then asks questions later. He is a man with some admirable qualities, but there are also major flaws in his character. The title of the book describes one such flaw, as described by one of the other characters:
Calvin Sidey is always ready to run and it doesn’t take much to set him in motion. As a young man, he ran from this block, from Gladstone, from Montana, from this country, from his family and the family business. He ran from sadness, and he ran from responsibility. If the gossip was true, he ran from the law.
So far, so good. So what is the problem?
The problem is the other major characters and thus the plot. They are not as well-developed as one comes to expect in a Watson story. Furthermore, none of them acts in a believable fashion, and by that I do not mean rational, but authentic fashion. Calvin is so irrational at times that he is out of control, but given his character his actions are believable, and thus authentic. And the other characters, all of whom have to deal with their own conflicts, often act in ways that could also be viewed as irrational, but the problem is that their actions – the important ones – do not strike me as being believable.
This is my seventh Watson novel and I have never awarded one less than four stars – until now.
November 18, 2022
This is the second novel by Watson in the last few months that disappointed me. The first was Orchard and I thought it was because of the Wisconsin setting instead of Montana. However, this one took place in Montana in 1963, and again, not what I've come to expect from an author that I've loved. If I hadn't previously read 3 excellent books by him, I wouldn't give him another chance.
Calvin Sidey is asked by his son to stay with his teenage grandchildren while their mother has surgery in another part of the state. Things don't go well, as Calvin tries the cowboy way to solve perceived problems, and only makes things worse.
The premise was great but Calvin was an unhappy, unlikeable man. Too many characters with their own side stories and agendas, too many problems, unbelievable people and decisions that didn't fit their personalities or age......I could go on, but I won't.
I know Watson is a good writer because I've read some of his better work. He seems to be inconsistent, so if I read any more of his work, I'll stick with the tried and true. The third star here is because I know he's better than this.
Calvin Sidey is asked by his son to stay with his teenage grandchildren while their mother has surgery in another part of the state. Things don't go well, as Calvin tries the cowboy way to solve perceived problems, and only makes things worse.
The premise was great but Calvin was an unhappy, unlikeable man. Too many characters with their own side stories and agendas, too many problems, unbelievable people and decisions that didn't fit their personalities or age......I could go on, but I won't.
I know Watson is a good writer because I've read some of his better work. He seems to be inconsistent, so if I read any more of his work, I'll stick with the tried and true. The third star here is because I know he's better than this.
July 7, 2016
Ernest Hemingway famously said, “Write the truest sentence you know,” and had he been around today, he might have been addressing this advice to Larry Watson. I’ve had the pleasure of reading nearly all of Mr. Watson’s books -- Montana 1948 is near perfection and his last book, Let Him Go, touched my heart – and his prose is always authentic, insightful, and graceful.
Yet in this, his newest book, Larry Watson asks us to buy into a premise: Bill Sidey -- the middle-aged son of Calvin Sidey, a recalcitrant old-fashioned cowboy who deserted his family years ago -- asks his father to come back to Gladstone and stay with his grandchildren for a week. It is unlikely the request would have been made and even more unlikely that the request would have been granted. So for the first 75 pages or so, I found myself struggling with the premise.
Eventually, though, the sheer power of the writing took hold and I found I couldn’t turn pages fast enough. Calvin is an anachronism, a wild card, who would rather escape from emotions than stand firm and face them. In his small Montana town, he has become near mythic with rumors of murders and beatings, yet Calvin lives by his own set of Old West rules and ethics.
The secondary characters – Bill and his wife Marjorie, who must leave town for a hysterectomy (hence Calvin’s visit), 17-year-old Ann and her younger brother Will, and Beverly Lodge, the next-door neighbor who finds herself inexplicably attracted to Calvin, are all well portrayed. The intimate scenes – and yes, there are intimate scenes – of the physical passion between Calvin and Beverly are beautifully portrayed and firmly demonstrate that passion is not just the domain of the young and beautiful.
Larry Watson does not take the easy way out; the book does not progress or end the way one would suspect it should. Put another way, he remains true to the essence of who Calvin Sidey really is. Still, there are times when he seems to want it both ways, portraying his character as a self-absorbed Old West cowboy who lives and acts off the grid and as a man who is actually quite caring. So rating this is particularly hard. For personal enjoyment, at least 4 stars. Yet when measured against the rest of Larry Watson’s oeuvre, perhaps 3.
Yet in this, his newest book, Larry Watson asks us to buy into a premise: Bill Sidey -- the middle-aged son of Calvin Sidey, a recalcitrant old-fashioned cowboy who deserted his family years ago -- asks his father to come back to Gladstone and stay with his grandchildren for a week. It is unlikely the request would have been made and even more unlikely that the request would have been granted. So for the first 75 pages or so, I found myself struggling with the premise.
Eventually, though, the sheer power of the writing took hold and I found I couldn’t turn pages fast enough. Calvin is an anachronism, a wild card, who would rather escape from emotions than stand firm and face them. In his small Montana town, he has become near mythic with rumors of murders and beatings, yet Calvin lives by his own set of Old West rules and ethics.
The secondary characters – Bill and his wife Marjorie, who must leave town for a hysterectomy (hence Calvin’s visit), 17-year-old Ann and her younger brother Will, and Beverly Lodge, the next-door neighbor who finds herself inexplicably attracted to Calvin, are all well portrayed. The intimate scenes – and yes, there are intimate scenes – of the physical passion between Calvin and Beverly are beautifully portrayed and firmly demonstrate that passion is not just the domain of the young and beautiful.
Larry Watson does not take the easy way out; the book does not progress or end the way one would suspect it should. Put another way, he remains true to the essence of who Calvin Sidey really is. Still, there are times when he seems to want it both ways, portraying his character as a self-absorbed Old West cowboy who lives and acts off the grid and as a man who is actually quite caring. So rating this is particularly hard. For personal enjoyment, at least 4 stars. Yet when measured against the rest of Larry Watson’s oeuvre, perhaps 3.
November 15, 2016
I enjoyed Larry Watson’s writing a great deal. In As Good as Gone he clearly exhibits a “show me” rather than “tell me” style of characterization and atmosphere, and has ensured that I will be reading more of his work. Straight shooter, this one.
The story started out strong but ended up going in a direction I just couldn't follow. The end felt like a brick wall to me, where any progress that could have been made was suddenly lost. I’m not a reader who requires a happy ending by any means, but I generally want the story to at least feel worthwhile.
The story started out strong but ended up going in a direction I just couldn't follow. The end felt like a brick wall to me, where any progress that could have been made was suddenly lost. I’m not a reader who requires a happy ending by any means, but I generally want the story to at least feel worthwhile.
September 26, 2016
Really pulls together family multi-generations together. Makes grandfather valuable again after he abandoned family when his wife died.
July 22, 2016
Calvin Sidey is an old cowboy who abandoned his two children when his wife, Pauline, died. He’s living out in an old trailer, estranged from almost everyone who knew him. His son, Bill, asks him come to his house for a week or so to keep an eye on the kids while Bill’s wife, Marjorie, has surgery. What follows is quite an eventful visit from Grandpa. His 17-year-old granddaughter, Ann, is receiving unwanted attention from an old boyfriend and his 11-year-old grandson, Will, is trying to avoid a confrontation with his rowdy friends. Calvin may be old but he’s the same tough, no-nonsense man of his youth who hasn’t stopped living the Old West cowboy beliefs.
I’ve only read one other Larry Watson book, “Orchard”, and based on that experience, I had expected something much darker. This is written in a lighter manner with quite a bit of humor throughout. That’s not to say that it doesn’t have its suspenseful moments. The author is an expert at bringing his characters to life. He writes down-to-earth, very true-to-life stories and is a gifted storyteller. I couldn’t help but root for Calvin even as I cringed at some of his decisions. I loved each and every one of these characters and hated to see the book end. I will definitely be finding some time to read more of this author’s work and am very glad I was given a copy of this one. It’s funny, sad and suspenseful. Recommended.
This book was given to me by the publisher through LibraryThing in return for an honest review.
I’ve only read one other Larry Watson book, “Orchard”, and based on that experience, I had expected something much darker. This is written in a lighter manner with quite a bit of humor throughout. That’s not to say that it doesn’t have its suspenseful moments. The author is an expert at bringing his characters to life. He writes down-to-earth, very true-to-life stories and is a gifted storyteller. I couldn’t help but root for Calvin even as I cringed at some of his decisions. I loved each and every one of these characters and hated to see the book end. I will definitely be finding some time to read more of this author’s work and am very glad I was given a copy of this one. It’s funny, sad and suspenseful. Recommended.
This book was given to me by the publisher through LibraryThing in return for an honest review.
July 6, 2016
“As Good as Gone” is another brilliant novel from Larry Watson. Watson has an incredible ability to bring fictional characters to life in such a way that you feel you would recognize them if you saw them having coffee in a diner or working in a clothing store. In this story of three generations of Montana men and women, he highlights each character’s ability (or lack thereof) to adapt to changing values and societal norms. Grandfather Calvin Sidey lives the “cowboy way” with his own rigid code of conduct. He is independent and self-reliant and is determined to right wrongs, particularly those done to women and children. If it seems the only way to right those wrongs is through the use of violence, he is more than willing to engage in that. Calvin is a taciturn loner who chooses not to discuss problems because he doesn’t trust words. Calvin’s son Bill has seen the results of his father’s self-reliance and believes in asking for help when he needs it. Although Bill is better at communicating than Calvin, he is still reserved about discussing important matters with his family. And this behavior carries down to his children Ann and Will, who are reluctant to reveal any difficulties they are having to their parents - whether because they believe they need to be self-reliant, or just want to protect their family.
This touching, honest, and poignant book is well worth reading, as are all of Larry Watson’s previous novels.
Thank you to Algonquin Books and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book.
This touching, honest, and poignant book is well worth reading, as are all of Larry Watson’s previous novels.
Thank you to Algonquin Books and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book.
February 6, 2017
I thought about going back to this, but found I wasn't halfway through, but less than 25% of the way (on 9 of 38). I have many other far more interesting books to listen to & I seem to be in a nonfiction mood. Breasts: A Natural and Unnatural History was great & now I have Being Human: Life Lessons from the Frontiers of Science.
This wasn't awful, just way too slow for me. I really don't want to explore characters & their motivations in such detail. The writing was good, just too descriptive. Not enough was happening, so I'm going to abandon it.
This wasn't awful, just way too slow for me. I really don't want to explore characters & their motivations in such detail. The writing was good, just too descriptive. Not enough was happening, so I'm going to abandon it.
September 13, 2023
Lettura molto molto convincente, 5 stelle lievemente per eccesso. Ne ho apprezzato la prosa (grazie alla pregevole traduzione di Manuppelli), semplice e piana ma illuminata qua e là da affondi e riflessioni che squarciano la superficie; mi sono piaciuti i personaggi, vitali e ben caratterizzati, a cui l’autore non concede né sconti o giustificazioni, né redenzione; ho trovato ben costruita la narrazione che non si svolge attraverso un unico punto di vista ma procede quasi per frammenti, in cui il riflettore è puntato di volta in volta su un singolo, e chiama il lettore a rimettere insieme i pezzi. Consigliatissimo.
September 7, 2019
Another exceedingly beautiful novel by a master of sparse prose that is both poignant and realistic.
As Good as Gone features a senior grandfather that is a throwback to the days of yore where threats were handled man to man and no holds barred. The family he deserted has ask him for help and begins the tale of how he lacks the polish and reserve when one of his own feels threatened or undermined.
Fantastic characters depicted in the authors stirring voice and his lovely descriptions of his beloved Montana.
As Good as Gone features a senior grandfather that is a throwback to the days of yore where threats were handled man to man and no holds barred. The family he deserted has ask him for help and begins the tale of how he lacks the polish and reserve when one of his own feels threatened or undermined.
Fantastic characters depicted in the authors stirring voice and his lovely descriptions of his beloved Montana.
August 19, 2016
Calvin is an old cowboy who lives in a beaten down trailer in the plains of Montana in the 1960s. He avoids other people including the family that he abandoned years before after his wife died. As the story begins, his son Bill has come to ask him to stay with his two grandchildren while Bill takes his wife to another town for surgery. Surprisingly, Calvin agrees and he returns to the town that he grew up in to watch over his 17 year old granddaughter and 11 year old grandson. Calvin is a man of few words who appears to handle life in a straightforward way - he makes his point first and asks questions later. Yet the author allows us to see a softer side of Calvin in small ways when he thinks about his wife and the way he treats his grandchildren.
If you are looking for a book with a lot of action, this isn't the book for you. However, if you are looking for a book with a great lead character who stays true to his life, Calvin is a man that you won't soon forget. I plan to look into earlier books by Calvin Watson because of my enjoyment of the characters in this novel.
Thanks to LibraryThing for a copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.
If you are looking for a book with a lot of action, this isn't the book for you. However, if you are looking for a book with a great lead character who stays true to his life, Calvin is a man that you won't soon forget. I plan to look into earlier books by Calvin Watson because of my enjoyment of the characters in this novel.
Thanks to LibraryThing for a copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.
July 21, 2017
I think the depressing thing to me about this story is that I am approaching Granpa's age but he seems to be living in a prior century! Something about the moronic, in your face, violence solves problems approach he uses that left me cold. Frankly, no one in the family seems to think things through regardless of age. Well written, good characterization, just a group that is far too reactive for my taste.
September 12, 2016
So here's the thing. This book was absolutely roaring toward a five-star rating, and then it guttered to a three. Why?
Well, first the good parts. What great characters. And there was a super plot. I fell right into this book from page one and just wanted to remain curled up in my chair until it was done (life intervened, of course). The descriptions were lush and lovely. The pacing was perfect. A few things twitched me, but they weren't enough to stop my enjoyment. I wondered, for example, why the book was set in the year it was. There didn't seem to be any reason for it. Because the book itself seemed to want to be happening right here, right now, I kept getting jarred when I received reminders that it wasn't. And I kept waiting for there to be a reason why it wasn't. But there wasn't one.
There were also a few scattered events that didn't seem to have any rhyme or reason either. I kept waiting for them to go somewhere, but they didn't. But again...it didn't stop me.
And I have to admit, I spoke with someone who told me that there's a crocheting scene where the "needles click". You use a crochet hook, not needles. And the crochet hook doesn't click. The person who told me was horrified that such a detail was looked over. When I saw it, I laughed and moved on.
So okay, all is well. Why the drop to a three star?
I will say this without giving anything away, so don't worry. It guttered to three stars because the ending made the reading of the book purposeless. I felt like I'd put way too much time and effort into reading the book than what the ending deserved.
To understand that, of course, you'll have to read the book. And you'll enjoy it, as I did. But then...watch out.
Well, first the good parts. What great characters. And there was a super plot. I fell right into this book from page one and just wanted to remain curled up in my chair until it was done (life intervened, of course). The descriptions were lush and lovely. The pacing was perfect. A few things twitched me, but they weren't enough to stop my enjoyment. I wondered, for example, why the book was set in the year it was. There didn't seem to be any reason for it. Because the book itself seemed to want to be happening right here, right now, I kept getting jarred when I received reminders that it wasn't. And I kept waiting for there to be a reason why it wasn't. But there wasn't one.
There were also a few scattered events that didn't seem to have any rhyme or reason either. I kept waiting for them to go somewhere, but they didn't. But again...it didn't stop me.
And I have to admit, I spoke with someone who told me that there's a crocheting scene where the "needles click". You use a crochet hook, not needles. And the crochet hook doesn't click. The person who told me was horrified that such a detail was looked over. When I saw it, I laughed and moved on.
So okay, all is well. Why the drop to a three star?
I will say this without giving anything away, so don't worry. It guttered to three stars because the ending made the reading of the book purposeless. I felt like I'd put way too much time and effort into reading the book than what the ending deserved.
To understand that, of course, you'll have to read the book. And you'll enjoy it, as I did. But then...watch out.
July 2, 2016
Watson is indeed a very talented author. His Let Him Go was one of my favorites the year it was published so I was super stoked to see he had a new book out. My bottom line with this book is this: the skill of the writing was stellar but I didn't really enjoy the story much. I was fully halfway through before I was invested enough in the characters to commit to finishing. This is not necessarily a book I would recommend, but I don't want to discourage anyone from reading it either.
October 8, 2025
È il terzo romanzo di Larry Watson che leggo e, rispetto a Montana 1948 e Uno di noi, è decisamente il meno convincente, per me, anche se rimane una piacevole lettura. Suddiviso in trentacinque brevi capitoli, raccontati in soggettiva dai principali protagonisti e ambientato agli inizi degli anni sessanta a Gladstone, cittadina immaginaria del Montana, è ancora una storia dell’America rurale e del contrasto con il cambiamento della società che rende inadeguata la visione e il comportamento della figura del cowboy solitario, tormentato, rude e dalle maniere spicce. Il cowboy in questione è il vecchio Calvin Sidey, che abbandona i figli e l’impresa di famiglia dopo la morte della moglie Pauline e di cui si vocifera che abbia ucciso un uomo. L’occasione di ritornare a Gladstone è la richiesta del figlio Bill di badare ai due nipoti pressoché sconosciuti, Ann e Will, mentre lui accompagna la moglie a Missoula per un delicato intervento chirurgico. Tutti i protagonisti della storia hanno qualcosa che vogliono nascondere o che hanno difficoltà ad affrontare, ma ognuno si guarda bene da aprirsi agli altri per cercare una qualche forma di aiuto o sostegno. In questo contesto le maniere sbrigative, minacciose e anche violente del vecchio Calvin, pur nella onesta bontà di fondo, risultano inadeguate e neppure l’abbozzo della storia d’amore con la vicina di casa Beverly riesce a penetrare la scorza del cowboy.
L’impressione è che le vicende che coinvolgono la famiglia Sidey siano solo il substrato per far emergere il conflitto che attanaglia Calvin e la sua consapevolezza dell’inadeguatezza degli strumenti che possiede. L’alternarsi dei punti di vista, ognuno con il suo frammento di storia, sono funzionali allo sviluppo della trama, anche se un po’ asettici, e la rendono comunque avvincente nella seconda parte del romanzo, ma il “sapore” del già letto rimane.
4 stelle, per abbondare.
L’impressione è che le vicende che coinvolgono la famiglia Sidey siano solo il substrato per far emergere il conflitto che attanaglia Calvin e la sua consapevolezza dell’inadeguatezza degli strumenti che possiede. L’alternarsi dei punti di vista, ognuno con il suo frammento di storia, sono funzionali allo sviluppo della trama, anche se un po’ asettici, e la rendono comunque avvincente nella seconda parte del romanzo, ma il “sapore” del già letto rimane.
4 stelle, per abbondare.
August 17, 2019
Wanted to try this author's writing so I went with this more recent book although I know his book Let Him Go is being made into a movie this year. That means a longer "hold" at the library.
This is certainly a very different kind of hero portrayed in a cadence of what I can recall of westerns. Stubborn old coot moves into town to keep watch over his grandchildren while their parents are out of town for specialized surgery on the mother. He does what he can to make things right for his teenage granddaughter and her much younger brother. He leaves bandaged and bleeding as well as leaving a broken hearted widow from across the way.
This is certainly a very different kind of hero portrayed in a cadence of what I can recall of westerns. Stubborn old coot moves into town to keep watch over his grandchildren while their parents are out of town for specialized surgery on the mother. He does what he can to make things right for his teenage granddaughter and her much younger brother. He leaves bandaged and bleeding as well as leaving a broken hearted widow from across the way.
November 26, 2017
Interesting story. I enjoyed reading it but I am not sure that I understood it all. Maybe...
November 3, 2018
I have liked Watson's books in the past and I was rather disappointed by this one. It felt like he was losing his edge. The book was cute and the story was okay, although rather lame and hard to believe at times (Ann is really not that stupid that she would plunge into the dark rather than face an ex boyfriend in a crowd; he can't force her to leave with him if her other friends are around). It is also filled with language like: "To hear the water rushing inside and outside him is more than disconcerting. The river has almost taken his life--will he never feel right outside its waters? Tonight he'll lie down in his own bed--will he feel the river's motion as soon as he closes his eyes? Will he ever have another dream through which the Elk River's dark waters don't flow." Yep, super melodramatic.
The characters were likable (if unbelievably, and at times way too conveniently stupid) and the plot moved quickly, but it was just a mediocre read especially compared to some of Watson's other stuff. Overall it left me wondering if the old man is getting sappy and melodramatic, losing his touch in old age.
The characters were likable (if unbelievably, and at times way too conveniently stupid) and the plot moved quickly, but it was just a mediocre read especially compared to some of Watson's other stuff. Overall it left me wondering if the old man is getting sappy and melodramatic, losing his touch in old age.
June 15, 2021
'As Good As Gone' is the story of Calvin Sidey, a tough old man who, after the sudden death of his wife, left town after allegedly beating a man to death. He abandoned his children and shrouded himself in grief, solitude and the exhausting but mindless work of a cowboy. After decades alone, taking no responsibility for anyone but himself and no disrespect from anyone, Calvin is asked by his son to return to the town he left behind and look after the two grandchildren that he's never met, while their parents travel to the city so their mother can have surgery.
The strength of this book lies in its ability to make the people and place feel vividly real. It's set in a small town in Montana in the 1960s. It's a town Calvin used to be a prominent businessman in but where he's now remembered only for the story of his murderous violence and his grief for his dead wife. The town has changed but Calvin has not. He still lives by a code of sorting out problems personally and directly, with a tire iron or a knife or a gun if necessary and never backing down if his family is threatened. We watch as this code brings him into an escalating conflict with the people around him.
What I liked most about the book was how well-drawn the people were, not just Calvin Side but his son, his teenage granddaughter, his middle-school-aged grandson, his son and his widowed neighbour. We mostly see the world and its problems through the eyes of Calvin's family members and his neighbour. The tension in the book and most of the pain comes from understanding the threats to the happiness of these people and how they attempt to address them. We spend very little time in Calvin's head. He's a man we judge by his actions more than his words but when his words come, they are articulate and intelligent. I found myself rooting for Calvin even as I found myself saying, 'If he does that, it won't end well.
This isn't a dark book. The people have problems but they also know happiness and hope and even moments of love. I believed in these people and cared about them.
The ending of the book feels truthful. It's also a little disappointing. Life can be like that.
There is a strong plot to the book. Different storylines are choreographed to intersect in ways that increase the tension in the book but it's not a book that's about the plot. My overall impression is that it's a pearl necklace book where the plot holds together the pearls, intense scenes about people under pressure trying to do the right thing.
Larry Watson has written ten novels so far. I'll definitely be looking to read more of his work.
February 19, 2017
Before I read the reviews on the back cover, I swear that I thought if this book ever became a movie, Clint Eastwood would have to play the protagonist, Calvin Sidey. The complicated, reclusive old man is called to town by his son who asks that he watches his two grandkids while son Bill's wife has an operation. Whatever can go wrong does go wrong. I guess one of the themes is that we have to listen to people to really hear their stories, and not react impulsively. An interesting read, but I expected more out of the characters.
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March 15, 2021The title says it all.
May 26, 2022
Crudeness might be realistic, but I don't need to read it in my relaxation time.
Jumped out at page 36.
Enjoyed the setting, though - both the western landscape and the '60's era. And Calvin Sidey is an awesome ol' cranky dude. Total Clint Eastwood Gran Torino style.
Jumped out at page 36.
Enjoyed the setting, though - both the western landscape and the '60's era. And Calvin Sidey is an awesome ol' cranky dude. Total Clint Eastwood Gran Torino style.
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