On the Southern Literary Trail discussion

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FYI: An audio version of this book is available from Hoopla

I will definitely read this one! Thanks to everyone who voted for it!

Terry wrote: "I will definitely read this one! Thanks to everyone who voted for it!"

Thank you, Terry, for nominating it.

I am planning to read this one on Kindle. I managed to buy a copy not too long ago. I've not read this author before and looking forward to a western. It's already blazing hot here in Texas so it will be apropos to read in August.

I was trying to find something I could miss this month and had decided on this one...and then I read Howard's review. Got to fit it in.

Yes, I have to read all Howard approved books, because they're sure to be excellent. I was happy to see this one win. Thanks Terry!

I ordered it from ILL, and it's in transit now. I'm not sure when I'll fit the book in, but it sounds too good to pass on.

Diane wrote: "Yes, I have to read all Howard approved books, because they're sure to be excellent. I was happy to see this one win. Thanks Terry!"

I posted the review in 2014 right after I joined Goodreads. That was after I had reread the book. As I told Sara, I am currently reading it for a third time.

I've already said this to Terry, but I'll repeat it; thanks for nominating the book. I hope everyone likes it as much as I do.

Diane wrote: "Yes, I have to read all Howard approved books, because they're sure to be excellent. I was happy to see this one win. Thanks Terry!"

Diane,

I was almost positive that you read Kelton's "The Man Who Rode Midnight," but I couldn't find your review. The reason I was looking was because I was going to say that the rancher in that book, Wes Hendricks, is cut out of the same cloth as Charlie Flagg, the one in "The Time It Never Rained."

I recall that you liked the book and gave it a high rating -- or am I just making this up.

You are making it up Howard, I have never read Elmer Kelton before. I'll look it up though, because I'm part way through chapter one and already like Charlie Flagg.

I just added it, based on your review. Have you read Good Old Boys? That one is mentioned in the front of my book.

Oh, Yikes, another one of those authors I will have to add all the books for. I have finally gotten a copy of The Tobacco Men, so I can start on the Borden Deal's I added!

OMG, there are dozens! I love his face, so sweet and jovial looking. I bet his eyes sparkle when he smiles.

Diane wrote: "I just added it, based on your review. Have you read Good Old Boys? That one is mentioned in the front of my book."

"The Good Old Boys" is a good one. Its a damn shame, but it is the only one that has been filmed, and that was for Ted Turner's TNT channel. Kelton is a much better writer than Louis L'Amour and yet a ton of LL's stories have made their way to both the movie and TV screens.

Tommy Lee Jones produced, directed, and starred in "The Good Old Boys." The cast also includes Sissy Spacek, Sam Sheperd and a young actor named Matt Damon. When I watched the movie the first time I had no idea who Matt Damon was and didn't even take much notice of his name.

The next time I watched it I knew who Damon was because I had just watched the film version of John Grishman's "The Rainmaker," which starred Damon.

The other Kelton novel that I really like is "The Day the Cowboys
Quit," which is based on a true incident that occurred when the cowboys attempted to form a union.

I've forgotten. What was the question?

Sara wrote: "OMG, there are dozens! I love his face, so sweet and jovial looking. I bet his eyes sparkle when he smiles."

He died in 2009, Sara, but you have him pegged. He was not only respected by his readers, but also his peers, and was especially popular with younger writers who aspired to be the next Elmer Kelton. Over a decade has passed, but the next Kelton hasn't appeared.

Diane wrote: "You are making it up Howard, I have never read Elmer Kelton before. I'll look it up though, because I'm part way through chapter one and already like Charlie Flagg."

Maybe it was another book that I have confused with "The Man Who Rode Midnight."

Always so sad to know we've lost one! He certainly left a legacy behind though.

On chapter 5 and definitely a Kelton fan. Every time I see the word "federales", the Willie Nelson song "Pancho and Lefty" starts running thru my mind.

Now you've got me singing, Diane.

Sorry. I've been singing the chorus all morning. Getting funny looks from the other dog walkers. "All the Federales say, they could have got him any day............"

"they only let him slip away, out of kindness, I suppose."

We'll have everyone on this thread mad at us now.

Thanks a lot.

I do appreciate the way Charlie Flagg handles the Mexican wetbacks coming across the river. This book is set in the 1950's, but it was illegal to give them work. He understood the reasons behind it, but was compassionate enough to feed them and warn them. Not an easy situation, then or now.

Diane,

I was afraid that the reader might think the long section on sheep shearing is boring and too slow and more information about the process than anyone needs or cares to know.

However, since I know about horses, cows, and pigs, but very little about sheep, I found the section to be interesting.

Readers need to be aware that the story is a slow burn. The early chapters set the stage and allow us to become acquainted with the various characters. Then, as they say, the plot thickens.

Diane wrote: "I do appreciate the way Charlie Flagg handles the Mexican wetbacks coming across the river. This book is set in the 1950's, but it was illegal to give them work. He understood the reasons behind it..."

Yes, Charlie's attitude toward the illegals, and Mexicans in general, is evolving. He sometimes falls back into the stereotypical thinking that he once engaged in, but realizes it and rejects it.

I have to believe that since Elmer Kelton was born and raised in that area that he went through the same evolution.

I love the way he is laying the groundwork. The story of the Comanche warrior buried under the cairn was a wonderful touch and really gives you a sense that the land doesn't "belong" to anyone but has been loved by many.

Sara wrote: "I love the way he is laying the groundwork. The story of the Comanche warrior buried under the cairn was a wonderful touch and really gives you a sense that the land doesn't "belong" to anyone but ..."

Yes, the early history of Texas was one in which one group after another claimed -- and lost -- ownership of the land. In some ways, that struggle continues to this day.

I was not bored with the sheep shearing. He is letting us get to know the characters and circumstances little by little, and I can feel it building. Interesting that Charlie compared the wetbacks to Americam immigrants and pioneers who were willing to brave hardships to get to this country and work hard for a chance at a better life. Not just "illegals" but people.

Yes, much of what we find here is still ongoing. The attempt to balance an adherence to the law and a compassion for another human being struck me as a problem we are constantly dealing with at the border. Like Diane, I appreciate the way Charlie dealt with this, and I have already developed an acute affection for Manuel.

Diane and Sara,

I'm glad you are reading Charlie -- and Manuel -- the way I have.

I had to place a hold for this one at another local library, so I'm hoping it comes to the local branch so I can read this one in August.

It's worth the wait Franky. I had to download a copy because all I could find were mass market paperbacks, and my eyes just can't read that small print anymore.

I am on Chapter Eight and really like the way this book explores the relationship between the Mexicans and the Anglos. It seems very honest and real, and I suspect Howard is right that Elmer Kelton made the same journey in his attitudes that we see Charlie Flagg making.

I am liking the new character of Jose that just got added to the mix.

I am making great progress on this, halfway through, up to Chapter 10, enjoying it and wondering where it is headed. Charlie is a classic character, reminiscent of men from former generations, possibly an endangered species. Lupe, Manuel, Tom and others are well drawn. The women are not so finely detailed, but I am only halfway through.

I had a great sense of who Mary and Kathy were, even though they played a much smaller part in the narrative.

Sara wrote: "I had a great sense of who Mary and Kathy were, even though they played a much smaller part in the narrative."

And Dolly?

Oh yes, definitely Dolly as well.

I'm still immersing myself in REQUIEM. And I do mean "immersing"! (I will of course post notes on the actual thread, but a quick example -- Henry works for Sawyer Motor Company, and I believe that it was a real company! I found a couple of articles about it. ) So, I may not be able to join on this one. I do plan on reading at least one of the other two, though.

You can only do what you have time to do, Cheryl, so no pressure here.

Wasn't Dolly just the perfect name for her? Poor Tom. There's a name for his infatuation with her, but I can't use it here.

It was a small point about the women.

Mary, yes, although she seems to be mostly in the background and I wonder what she thinks about Charlie’s big decisions. She has agency to some extent, but it seems limited to a pretty restricted role. Perhaps that’s just the ranch culture in the time and place.

Kathy also seems like a background character, although to me, perhaps has the potential to be more interesting. Dolly is just entering the scene and making herself known at this point in the book.

I'm just starting this one. I have a book copy from the library that is a twofer containing this story and 'Hot Iron.' Thanks for the hoopla tip. I'm availing myself of that as well as reading print. Already I like this quote,

"Give us rain, they said at Rio Seco, and it makes no difference who is in the White House."

This seems especially timely considering the drought in Texas. I just read that 97% of Texas is suffering a drought, affecting 24.1 million people. A couple of weeks ago, I saw on the evening news that some ranchers were selling their cattle due to the drought and lack of hay.

Libby, thanks for bringing this up! It makes our reading quite timely!

Here is a weblink for the current drought in Texas:
https://www.drought.gov/states/texas

Oh yes! I wondered if it was just a dry spell we are having after reading the introduction. I’m in central Texas - Dallas area so west Texas may be having a longer drought. We had a 20 min rain on Saturday which was nice but won’t do much. First rain 🌧 in months. This is definitely a timely read. I’m going to check out your link Terry.

In the prologue this is what I see out my window every day:

“They watched the grass slowly lose its green, then curl and fire up like dying cornstalks.”

Goodness, after looking up my county on the link from Terry- we are in the D3 level of extreme drought. I had no idea. I can attest to the large cracks in the ground. Small animals could get lost in some of them! 😬

Libby wrote: "I'm just starting this one. I have a book copy from the library that is a twofer containing this story and 'Hot Iron.' Thanks for the hoopla tip. I'm availing myself of that as well as reading prin..."

Libby,

Kelton wrote 40 novels -- and "Hot Iron" was his first.

Scary map, Terry. 6th driest year on record for the past 128 years.

Howard, what a prolific author. I'm enjoying his writing so far.

I live on the SC coast, and we've had so much rain in the last month that I've been commenting that I'm about ready for a drought. After reading this book, that's not a good idea at all.

Diane wrote: "I live on the SC coast, and we've had so much rain in the last month that I've been commenting that I'm about ready for a drought. After reading this book, that's not a good idea at all."

Floods in eastern Kentucky; droughts in Texas and elsewhere; heat warnings in the middle of the country and the Pacific Northwest; forest fires in California and New Mexico; not to mention record-breaking heat waves in Europe..

However, none of it is caused by humans, it is only a cycle that the earth is going though -- so say the naysayers.