Journey of the Dead

Rating:
Summary: All in all, a good book.
Review: FANTASTIC book. Esteleman's writing leaves you in awe...you almost expect to be breathless reading parts of it.

Truthfully, the book really does lag in parts, when Garrett steps out of the west into the different stages of American history; and aside from the part hunting Billy, the time in the old west is lacking at times, but maybe that's just because Estleman tried to keep the book at least somewhat faithful to real life history and I was expecting something that had more of a traditional romantic aspect to the old west.

All in all, though, it's recommended. Estleman's writing style takes your breath away at first, and leaves you thinking later. Hell, I don't even like westerns, I just chanced upon this at some gas station on the road amid the normal pulp books found at any gas station, and I thought this a great book.

Rating:
Summary: Journey of the Dead
Review: Having read and disliked Master Executioner, but seeing all the rave reviews Estleman gets, I thought I'd try another of his books.

This book is better than Master Executioner by far. The essential difference is the use of language -- nearly poetic here, plodding in the other book. Journey of the Dead is the combined story of Pat Garrett, the man who shot Billy the Kid, and of an old Spanish alchemist who lives as a hermit in the desert.

Estleman does a good, understated job of showing how Garrett is haunted by Billy's death throughout his life. The effect would have been stronger had their friendship been more extensively described. Still, the changing Billy the Kid legend provides an interesting way for Estleman to show changes in Garrett's life and in the West.

I found the plot to move a little slowly, probably because it concerns the life of a real person, more or less accurately reported as far as I know. Garrett tried many careers and had rather little success in any, according to Estleman, until he was finally murdered. This imposes a sort of flat quality on the plot. There are no big moments of drama, aside from Billy's death, and even that comes across as understated. Toward the end of the book, I got a trifle bored and wished for more tension and drama in the narrative.

Rating:
Summary: Journey of the Dead Given Life by Loren D. Estleman
Review: I have never heard of this author before I picked up the book in a local thrift store. What I can't believe is that I've never heard of this author after I finished reading the book. I can't wait to go out and find more of his books!

This book is essentially a fictitional account of the real life of Sheriff Pat Garrett--infamous for killing Billy the Kid. It has a secondary character who narrates and intersperses personal observations throughout the story, which adds an interesting dimension to the story. I'm not totally sure why he's there at all, but it does add a little 'drive' throughout the book--I wanted to keep reading to see what this narrator character was going to divulge next.

Estleman is deliciously ingenious with mental images. His passages read so brilliantly with his descriptions and metaphors that you can't help but instantly develop an image in your head as you watch your own internal moving picture. Simple phrases such as "...the clatter of a heavy wagon built of elm delivering a load of rocks smelling of moist earth..." jolts your own memory to relive personal images that almost match this scene and let you fall into the arms of the storyteller.

Ths story itself takes place over several decades and highlights supposed 'facts' of the life of Pat Garrett, but seems to fill in details while skipping them alltogether. You don't feel anything missing at the end of the story.

If you haven't read this book, or any book by Loren D. Estleman, I highly advice you to try him out -- even if it isn't this particular book. While I haven't read his other books yet, if his methodology and story-telling skills are equal to this slim volume, I can't wait to read the rest!

Rating:
Summary: Journey of the Dead Given Life by Loren D. Estleman
Review: I have never heard of this author before I picked up the book in a local thrift store. What I can't believe is that I've never heard of this author after I finished reading the book. I can't wait to go out and find more of his books!

This book is essentially a fictitional account of the real life of Sheriff Pat Garrett--infamous for killing Billy the Kid. It has a secondary character who narrates and intersperses personal observations throughout the story, which adds an interesting dimension to the story. I'm not totally sure why he's there at all, but it does add a little 'drive' throughout the book--I wanted to keep reading to see what this narrator character was going to divulge next.

Estleman is deliciously ingenious with mental images. His passages read so brilliantly with his descriptions and metaphors that you can't help but instantly develop an image in your head as you watch your own internal moving picture. Simple phrases such as "...the clatter of a heavy wagon built of elm delivering a load of rocks smelling of moist earth..." jolts your own memory to relive personal images that almost match this scene and let you fall into the arms of the storyteller.

Ths story itself takes place over several decades and highlights supposed 'facts' of the life of Pat Garrett, but seems to fill in details while skipping them alltogether. You don't feel anything missing at the end of the story.

If you haven't read this book, or any book by Loren D. Estleman, I highly advice you to try him out -- even if it isn't this particular book. While I haven't read his other books yet, if his methodology and story-telling skills are equal to this slim volume, I can't wait to read the rest!

Rating:
Summary: A new writing style, this is in a category all its own
Review: I like my books written in a more easy to follow style, but I liked the fact that Estleman seemed to have an insight into Pat Garrett's innermost mind. I can easily see Garrett feeling just this way. Estleman did a good job with what he started out to do. BUt I disagree with the statement from Kirkus Reviews about him having no rival in evoking the southwest. Kirby Jonas, whom critics call The New Louis L'AMour, is no doubt the best when it comes to describing and bringing country to life. Jonas also writes in an easier to follow style, and I would recommend his books to any fans of the west. But don't pass this Estleman book up if you like Garrett and Bonney.

Rating:
Summary: Journey of the Dead
Review: Qualifies as a well-written work of literature rich in symbolism, with an entertaining story and a history lesson as well.

Kind of reminds me of something Cormac McCarthy would write if he did a historical western novel...

Rating:
Summary: A Great Book
Review: Qualifies as a well-written work of literature rich in symbolism, with an entertaining story and a history lesson as well.

Kind of reminds me of something Cormac McCarthy would write if he did a historical western novel...

Rating:
Summary: Boring and hard to follow
Review: The secondary characters were poorly develped and the story line was hard to follow, if there was a story line. I wouldn't even rate it a one star. The book was a complete bore.

Rating:
Summary: Literature at its finest
Review: This is a masterwork. Loren Estleman's examination of the very soul of Sheriff Pat Garrett, the man who shot his friend Billy the Kid, is lyrical, poetic, mysterious and sublime. Garrett is haunted by his own act, and suffers a lifetime of sadness. This is a book that will become a benchmark in the literature of the American West. I think Estlemen is one of the finest novelists in the United States, and this novel is among his most memorable.