Territory in the 1870s
What is the quality of the voice?
The frontier and the Old West have long been staples in American literature, and one of the best novels of the genre is Larry McMurtry's Pulitzer Prize-winning "Lonesome Dove."  The story follows a crew of former Texas Rangers and cowboys who drive a herd of cattle from South Texas to the sparsely settled Montana Territory in the 1870s.Augustus McCrae, Woodrow Call, and the other characters that the author introduces and develops are not stereotypes, but are complex and realistic.  The crew faces constant danger on their drive north.  The cowboys sometimes have to deal with sudden and unexpected tragedy, as well as regrets and mistakes from their pasts--and they have to get on with life the best they can after their adversities.  McMurtry explores some of the challenges that adolescent boys, young men, and middle-aged men face--some limited to the frontier, some universal.Part of what makes the novel great is that is by no means predictable--in spots you think you know who will get killed and what will happen later, but are surprised.  Knowing life, people, and human nature is a must for a novelist, but one gets the sense when reading "Lonesome Dove" that Larry McMurtry has a keener sense of them than most other novelists, which is a prime reason that the novel has attained classic status in the quarter-century since its release. 