Rating: 
Summary: Great Book - Coming from a cowboy
Review: I grew up in cattle country and even married a rancher's daughter. This book hits the nail right on the head in describing both the joys, hardships, and overwhelming physical labor involved in raising cattle. It is written in a very entertaining way, with enough detail so that you really understand the life of a Montana rancher, without ever getting boring. I have read hundreds of books and this one is, by far, my favorite.
Rating: 
Summary: An account of my life-changing year as a Montana ranch hand
Review: I have always been a Westerner, which means I have always thought about being a cowboy. Thinking and doing are different. I wanted to explore where the Hollywood myth and the new West reality of cowboying intersect, and where they diverge, and I thought the best way to do that was to live it. So, at age 44, I hired on as a rookie hand on a 100,000-acre cattle ranch. I found out many things -- about myself, about cows and grass and fence, about the men and women who spend their lives looking after the land and the livestock of the West. One of the things that I discovered was that my views as an environmentalist, developed from a lifetime of fishing, hiking and camping, were not so different from those of the rancher I worked for, who was in fact a "practicing environmentalist." And I discovered how much more profound your feeling for the land is when you're working on it as opposed to recreating on it.I hope you enjoy this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Insight for everyone into the cowboy way of life
Review: I have never roped a steer or fixed a fence, but I liked reading about how a guy learns to do both and much more. Myths about the American cowboy are put to rest and the truth is exposed. Thank you for writing this book! I feel like I've been on the range with you all year. Good book! I loaned it out to WI friends and they loved it even more than I did. So they bought their own copies. Each time I reread a chapter, I catch something new to keep my interest.
Rating:
Summary: Magnificent scenery and aching muscles - the cowboy way
Review: I love books that help me travel to worlds unknown to me. And, as I live in New York City, ranching is something I know absolutely nothing about. That's why this book by David McCumber, in which he chronicles a year spent as a ranch hand, intrigued me. As he was a 44-year old journalist with no experience ranching, I could easily relate to his trials as tribulations as he learned what it takes to be a cowboy today. He's a straightforward clear writer and he uses his words well to describe even the most mundane tasks that are the daily routines for the people who live and work on ranches. Basically, it's all about the care and feeding of cows and this includes the baling of hay, an essential job which has its own set of challenges. There's the birthing of the calves and the cleaning of the pens. There's setting up and irrigation system, and fixing miles of fencing. Often the weather is brutal and virtually all the work is outside. There's some horseback riding, of course, but nowadays most of the work is done with various trucks and motorcycles and vans which always need mechanical work, also done by the ranch hands. Mistakes are made often and result in a tongue lashing from the owner who knows everything there is to know about ranching and wants no other way of life. These are real people that the author meets and he writes about them all with a sense of admiration and I'm glad he also included the history of the White Sulphur Springs area, which he researched as background. The magnificent scenery comes alive, as do his aching muscles. He enjoys it all completely and made it quite real for me. I must admit though, that in spite of his detailed explanations, I didn't understand it all, especially when he described the mechanical aspects of the baling machines or the irrigation system or the fixing of the motor in a truck. However, I had no trouble at all understanding the birthing, branding and castrating process. And I was right there with him as he fixed fences and chased straggling cattle for miles. I thank Mr. McCumber for writing this book. I learned a lot from it. Now, whenever I hear the word "cowboy", I'll think about the real work that that is his daily grind. I'll think of the harsh and beautiful country. And the simple joy of a job well done. Recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Magnificent scenery and aching muscles - the cowboy way
Review: I love books that help me travel to worlds unknown to me. And, as I live in New York City, ranching is something I know absolutely nothing about. That's why this book by David McCumber, in which he chronicles a year spent as a ranch hand, intrigued me. As he was a 44-year old journalist with no experience ranching, I could easily relate to his trials as tribulations as he learned what it takes to be a cowboy today. He's a straightforward clear writer and he uses his words well to describe even the most mundane tasks that are the daily routines for the people who live and work on ranches. Basically, it's all about the care and feeding of cows and this includes the baling of hay, an essential job which has its own set of challenges. There's the birthing of the calves and the cleaning of the pens. There's setting up and irrigation system, and fixing miles of fencing. Often the weather is brutal and virtually all the work is outside. There's some horseback riding, of course, but nowadays most of the work is done with various trucks and motorcycles and vans which always need mechanical work, also done by the ranch hands. Mistakes are made often and result in a tongue lashing from the owner who knows everything there is to know about ranching and wants no other way of life. These are real people that the author meets and he writes about them all with a sense of admiration and I'm glad he also included the history of the White Sulphur Springs area, which he researched as background. The magnificent scenery comes alive, as do his aching muscles. He enjoys it all completely and made it quite real for me. I must admit though, that in spite of his detailed explanations, I didn't understand it all, especially when he described the mechanical aspects of the baling machines or the irrigation system or the fixing of the motor in a truck. However, I had no trouble at all understanding the birthing, branding and castrating process. And I was right there with him as he fixed fences and chased straggling cattle for miles. I thank Mr. McCumber for writing this book. I learned a lot from it. Now, whenever I hear the word "cowboy", I'll think about the real work that that is his daily grind. I'll think of the harsh and beautiful country. And the simple joy of a job well done. Recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Highly recommended!
Review: I loved every minute spent reading this book; perhaps because I've always wanted to be a cowboy on a Montana ranch myself. And, oddly enough, hearing horror stories about days spent in blizzards trying to fix fences and birth calves while covered from head-to-toe in cow dung and mud didn't change that feeling one bit! McCumber is a great writer -- captures not only the look of Montana, but the feel of it, too. And the fact he had a fantastic time makes it all the more fun for the reader. Read this book! You'll love it!
Rating: 
Summary: Too much detail, not enough context
Review: I picked up this book to complement our family's summer travels through Wyoming. Reading it while driving through the vast open spaces of that state enhanced my reading experience and the trip. However, 352 pages of work day detail are too many for even the most fascinating of jobs. If this were a book about office life, a passage might read:"I raised myself from my chair despite my stiff, protesting back, ambled across the room and found it - a new #2 pencil. The flourescent lights refected off the yellow...etc". Stop at about page 200 or so and you'll have gotten the point of The Cowboy Way.
Rating:
Summary: The real west in vivid living color.
Review: I read this book in less than two days and when it was over I found myself wishing that it would go on for another 200 pages. McCumber discribes the everyday joys and perils of ranch life perfectly without ever droneing on or loseing your interest. If anyone has ever wondered about the real west or ranch life this books for you.
Rating:
Summary: The right stuff !
Review: I'm lucky enough to have a small familiarity with life on Wyoming ranches and I can say that McCumber has it right: His evocations of the long hours and hard physical labor of ranching and the way your personal responsibility for your work define you in this setting are exactly correct. Mix that with his artful descriptions of the gorgeous Northern Rockies with its "challenging" weather and you come up with a notable portrait of a vanishing way of life. The writing is clean and vivid. Overall, a most engaging adventure!
Rating:
Summary: Four chapters would have been enough.
Review: If one of McCumber's goals was to illustrate the tedious, monotonous life of a ranch hand he succeeds with an equally monotonous book. The first four chapters were interesting, mainly for the realization that there are no more cowboys -- only ranch hands. Also, the idea that ranches are the best way to take care of the land is bunk.
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