Hombre

Narrator Richard Poe's steady, resonant tone; subtle accents; and superb timing bring out the sagebrush and tumbleweeds in this Western classic. The genre-busting story, heavy on action and social justice, follows a group of stagecoach passengers who are pursued by a trio of bad guys. All of this may seem familiar, but the combination of Leonard's naturalistic writing style and Poe's baritone voice makes this a gripping listen. Leonard, known more his crime novels, was a well-respected Western writer, and HOMBRE includes some familiar elements: the underestimated antihero, the pursuit of dirty money, the close-quarters interplay of characters, and the use of dialogue to tell the story. It's surprising no one has produced this title as an audiobook before now. Poe's reading makes up for the wait. R.W.S. � AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine