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Title details for The Smiling Country by Elmer Kelton - Available

The Smiling Country

#1 in series

by Elmer Kelton
George Guidall
Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
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1 of 1 copy available
Elmer Kelton, author of over a dozen popular westerns, was named the Greatest Western Writer of All Time by the Western Writers of America. He has won multiple Golden Spur Awards. The Smiling Country, filled with pathos and humor, is set in the last days of the Old West. Hewey Calloway may be pushing 45, but he can still rope and outride most things on four legs. Refusing promotions, he prefers to remain a simple ranch hand. But as he rides the west Texas plains, automobiles are beginning to dot the landscape. When Hewey is critically injured by a wild horse, he must admit that his world—and an age—are passing away.

  • Creators

  • Series

    Hewey Calloway

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    November 16, 2001

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9781449880316
      • File size: 222810 KB
      • Duration: 07:44:11

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • AudioFile Magazine
      It would take DNA testing to prove that George Guidall is not Hewey Calloway. Guidall's presentation of the aging cowboy/hero brings laughter and tears simultaneously. This work is set in the smiling country of west Texas in 1910 when the Wild West is changing dramatically. Guidall meanders through the twin issues of the fading glory days of the true American cowboy and the declining physical prowess of a man who defines a cowboy narrowly: A man is only a cowboy if he's in the saddle. Guidall translates this gem of a Western into pure gold with his mellow, thoughtful reading. M.D.H. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine
    • Publisher's Weekly

      August 3, 1998
      After more than 40 novels full of "five foot eight and nervous" western heroes, Kelton brings back endearing Hewey Calloway, the restless, middle-aged cowboy of The Good Old Boys. But now it's 1910 in West Texas, and the freewheeling cowboy life Hewey loves has nearly vanished. He may insist that automobiles are a fad, but he has a harder time shrugging off his own advancing age or the responsibilities that come with it. So when his young nephew, Tommy, shows up at the J Bar ranch looking for work, Hewey only reluctantly agrees to show him the tricks of the cow-punching trade. Meanwhile, regrets over his lost love, schoolmarm Spring Renfro, haunt Hewey until a bad bronc-riding accident and a horsetrading swindle leave him half-crippled and bitter. His misfortune shows him just how wrong he can be about human nature, especially his own. As usual, Kelton's characters are credible, quirky and warm, just good Texas folk struggling to cope with a world that threatens to pass them by.

    • AudioFile Magazine
      A full cast, music, and sound effects bring to life the world of Hewey Calloway, an aging cowhand in 1910 Texas. Hewey's nephew, Tommy, runs away from home and winds up on Hewey's crew at the Circle W. Hewey, who is an old-fashioned cowboy without a gun but with a big heart, runs into trouble with a new foreman. The plot takes an unusual turn when Hewey gets busted up by a mean ol' bronc. The topnotch cast pours life into Kelton's well-crafted dialogue. The voices we hear the most--those of Hewey, Tommy, and the narrator--are well suited to Kelton's characters. The entire presentation is a first-rate listening experience. S.C.A. (c) AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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