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Cattle Country and Back Trail: Two Tales from Thompson Western Series Paperback – December 3, 2006

by Erwin A. Thompson (Author)

4.7 11 ratings

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This is from the author's note for Cattle Country-the first novelette of the three.There are many things here that can be found in nearly any Western; for it is not a calm book. But I hope you will feel:The courage of John Wade as he tries to fill a job that he knows is far too big for him; The strain of the decision Wells has to make of whether to get out of town safely himself or help the sheriff who will probably arrest him when the shooting is over;The sting of Wade's words as he tells Jim Halleran, "I'd like to think you were still a man I could be proud to know;"The frustration of Katherine Wade as she stamps her foot on the floor of the sheriff's office and says, "Damn Cowards;"The bigness of Henry Ashburn as he gives Bob Darlington a hand in a fight that does not concern him at all. This is Cattle Country!"I grew up in times and places much like Erwin Thompson paints in Cattle Country, Back Trail, and The Invincible Three. Although those times are gone, Thompson's well-written voice rings true with the memory and flavor of a world that should not be lost."-Jim Lyle, author of Things Seen in the Dessert

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

This is "Cattle Country"--where you find: The determination to fill a job that's too big for one man. The courage to defend a friend in a fight that's not your own. The frustration of Katherine Wade as she stamps her foot and chides, "Damn Cowards!" The bigness of Ashburn as he raises his children, ranches, and fights when he must.

In "Back Trail" Jeff Hawkins rides up from Texas with a dangerous, dark past he hopes to out-ride. His mettle is tested as he fights for his new homeland and finds his match.

From the Author

About "Cattle Country"

In a scene from "Red Dog Creek," my first Western, Frank Wells told Sam Caldwell how he came into Wagon Wehel County. I decided to expand Franks' story into a full-length version of how I imagine it could have happened. My telling is fiction, of course, but I have tried to be realistic in portraying the hopes and hardships of these people who were the pioneers in the day when the courage of a few could change the histroy of the whole community.

Poem for "Back Trail"

He walks a lonely street, in a lonely town.
He has to meet a man that's out to gun him down.
Will he walk away, and see tomorrow's sun?
That's the story of a man that's "Too good with a gun!"

--Erwin A. Thompson

From the Back Cover

"I grew up in times and places much like Erwin Thompson paints in 'Cattle Country' and 'Back Trail.' Although those times are gone, Thompson's well-written voice rings true with the memory and flavor of a world that should not be lost."
--Jim Lyle, author of "Things Seen in the Dessert"

"With crispness and gentle wit, Erwin Thompson's stories take us back to earlier times then give us nurture for the return trip to the present. A keen observer of people and their ways, his words help us enter and live those stories with him."
--Jane Kirkpatrick, Wrangler Award-winning author of "A Sweetness to the Soul" and "A Clearing in the Wild"

About the Author

Erwin Arthur Thompson was born November 9, 1915 in Schuyler County, Illinois. He is a poet, novelist, fiddler, noted folk artist, and hoe-down square dance caller. He has lived on the bluffs of the Mississippi River for nine decades in the house that his grandfather built in 1863 and named Evergreen Heights. Erwin is a combat veteran of World War Two. He earned the Combat Infantry Badge, and was awarded the Purple Heart for injuries sustained near Stohlburg, Germany. He also received the Silver Star for "Gallantry in action above the call of duty," in this same contact with the opposing forces. Erwin has been writing poetry, family history, music and lyrics to original songs for three-quarters of a century. He furnished music for local square dances,the National meeting of the Kaiser-Fraiser Club at the Museum of Transportation in Saint Louis, the re-enactment of the Lincoln-Douglas Debate in Alton, the annual Calhoun County Antique Quilt and Car Show, the Alton Historical Society, church socials, and local nursing homes. Erwin's poems have been featured on two radio programs, and are well-known to an informal network of admirers. They cover his rich heritage, his sensitive response to life experience, and express his phioosophy and love of life. Erwin was named a folk trasure by Arts Across Illinois, featured on their TV broadcast, and website. The letters he documents for his mother and father and extended family network archived at the University of Illinois illuminate the living history of the early 1900s. They are considered by the collectin curator as an invaluable resource for researchers of that time period. They supplement and interlock with the written history of that era. Erwin's poems, songs, and stories provide deep links to the past while telling timeless tales of loss, love, struggle and triumph.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ iUniverse; 0 edition (December 3, 2006)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 276 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0595402283
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0595402281
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 14.6 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.69 x 9 inches

Customer Reviews:
4.7 11 ratings

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Donna Coomer

OLD TIME WESTERN WISDOM

Reviewed in the United States on June 9, 2007

OLD TIME WESTERN WISDOM

If you love what you do, it shows. Erwin Thompson clearly loves to tell a good story while he doles out some old time western wisdom.

Descriptions that can place you in a blinding snowstorm or seated next to a roaring fire seem to be a specialty. Characters that create sympathy, loathing, or curiosity also people his stories. Mix in some old time elements likes sleighs, hair ribbons, and penny candy and we've dropped back in time with the blink of an eye.

In CATTLE COUNTRY, we have the classic struggles found in a small county when someone gets a bit too greedy for his own britches. A bit of gun play, a new stranger willing to stand up for what's right, and some interesting and unexpected romantic pairings could make this tale set many years ago just as likely current news, minus the horse and buggy.

BACK TRAIL takes us down the road a piece with a whole new generation getting into the ranching business. Some of the nastier elements are still hanging around and it takes a gunfighter who's looking to hang up his guns to even things up. Pride was a big part of developing the West and the new guy in town would rather not step on anyone's. Quick thinking with his head and a borrowed gun get this tale rolling and keep you turning the pages as fast as a Grapevine Twist at the Saturday night dance.

Thompson's crafty plot twists and interesting chapter names, " An Unexpected Kiss ( And a Change of Tenants in the Root Cellar)" will make you smile while his tales of the old West will make you feel like puttin' on your boots and kickin' up some dust!

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E. B.

A Delightful Western

Reviewed in the United States on September 7, 2009

I loved this story by Erwin A. Thompson. The characters were well developed with the dialogue fitting the characters. Some of his writing was just so neat. Example on p. 36 last sentence: The cold miles had pinched Wade's sense of polite conversation down to nothing. He gave the facts to Darlington with no preface and no padding. This story is a gentle tale about good people. Thompson also knows his horses and saddles and old time dancing for he names the latigo, most just mention the cinch on a saddle, tells how he judges a man by his horse and when the new fellow's horse attempts to scratch his head on the man's shoulder and the man grins and scratches the itch on the horses ears and gives him an affectionate pat he knows he's a good guy, and the picture he paints of a country dance is so real I felt as if I were there. It's a good story for all ages. My mother used to read to us in the evenings (often westerns) and we'd have hovered close for each chapter of this book. Eunice Boeve, author of Ride a Shadowed Trail

Reviewed in the United States on July 25, 2008

I could not remember the last time I read a Western novel, so when presented with the opportunity I thought, "Why not?" Turns out that Cattle Country Back Trail by Erwin Thompson grabbed me by the horns like a champion roper and tied up my attention tighter than a piece of wet leather.

Though it may be fiction, the author sure has a knack for this genre `cause I was immediately drawn into the action quicker than a drunk gun slinger on Saturday night. Thompson paints the picture with vivid descriptions of the rural countryside as well as the muddy ruts of old western towns. Thompson knows people, too. He takes you inside every character's head so you understand where each of them came from, how they got where they are, what made them who they are, and why t hey act the way they do. He would have been a great cowboy psychologist!

After reading Cattle Country Back Trail, I found myself steeped in thought about how different and hard life was back then. I sometimes wonder how quickly my life would change if I were thrust into an alien environment.

The two stories told in this work have been blended without a hitch even though there is a time lapse that sort of fast forwards you. I found the book to be a thoroughly entertaining and a delightful way to spend a lazy afternoon out on the range--my back porch.

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Arletta Dawdy

Delightful Tales of the Old West

Reviewed in the United States on March 5, 2007

Erwin Arthur Thompson's "Cattle Country and Back Trail: Two Tales from Thompson Western Series" offers readers a hearty view of the Old West that is lacking in stereotypes, full of real people with their quirks, limits and, for some, their redeeming qualities. In the novelette Cattle Country, we meet the several characters and families who promise to populate future stories. The story continues with new blood and events in Back Trail. The author paints a colorful picture of the north country where hardships are overcome by trial, perseverance and love. Indeed, this book of two stories is the first in the Thompson Western Series, promised and edited by the writer's daughter, poet Janet Grace Riehl. Mr.Thompson's many gifts as song writer, poet, musician, family historian and folk artist find a home in his stories. His descriptions of square dances will bring back an earlier time for readers of a certain age. Feel the rhythm in the caller's cadences; it is enough to set your toes to tapping. Ride the range and know its challenges. Follow along as the author takes us into cattle lands, the streets of Wagon Wheel and Coupling Pole, on rough rides and gunfights, and shows us the hard tasks of ranching life. These latter are chores and difficulties he knows first hand from his days on his family farm in southern Illinois, established in 1863. Writing with passion and zest for the west, Mr. Thompson provides us with glimpses into well-rounded characters we might meet in our own lives, were we so lucky.

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