Backlands
A Novel of the American West
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4.3 • 87 Ratings
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- $5.99
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- $5.99
Publisher Description
In the New York Times bestselling Hard Country, Michael McGarrity gave readers “an expansive, lyrical period Western in the tradition of A. B. Guthrie Jr. and Larry McMurtry” (Hampton Sides). Now McGarrity continues his richly authentic epic of life on the last vestiges of the twentieth-century American frontier.
Scarred by the loss of an older brother he idolized, estranged from a father he barely knows, and deeply troubled by the failing health of a mother he adores, young Matthew Kerney is suddenly and irrevocably forced to set aside his childhood and take on responsibilities far beyond his years. When the world spirals into the Great Depression and drought settles like a plague over the nation, Matt must abandon his own dreams to salvage the Kerney ranch. Plunged into a deep trough of dark family secrets, hidden crimes, broken promises, and lies, Matt must struggle to survive on the unforgiving, sun-blasted Tularosa Basin.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
McGarrity's hefty middle title is part of the trilogy set in the American West, after Hard Country. Emma Kerney, dying from a bad heart, lives in the frontier town of La Cruces, New Mexico, with her eight-year-old son Matthew during the 1920s. Divorced from her "backlands rancher husband, Patrick, for spousal rape, she arranges a substantial trust plan administered by the town banker Henry Bowman and lawyer Wallace Claiborne Hale to provide for Matthew after her demise. Patrick (aka "Pat Floyd ) has a checkered past as an inmate at Yuma Prison, though the Arizona territorial governor later grants him a pardon. He also serves with military distinction as a member of Teddy Roosevelt's Rough Riders, but after Emma dies and leaves Patrick as the sole guardian, he is less successful at establishing strong emotional bonds with Matthew. Headstrong father and son quarrel over whether Matthew should stay to work on the Kerney ranch or leave to continue his high school and college education. Matthew goes on to have an ill-fated romance with Beth Merton who is stricken with tuberculosis while the Great Depression leaves him in dire financial straits to gut it out and survive the bad times. By the time the Second World War breaks out, Matthew feels as if he is ready to make several life-altering decisions. McGarrity's narrative is picturesque and enjoyable, and sets the stage for the trilogy's final installment.
Customer Reviews
Backlands
Good read, the descriptions of the New Mexico towns and landscape is spot on. The only thing misplaced was Fort Stanton. Fort Seldon is located between Las Cruces and Engle. The depiction of the people in the book was also what I have found to be true. I enjoyed it immensely.
Backlands
The book takes up where “Hard Country” left off and reads like a three penny soap opera. After 100 pages, I gave up. Save your money.