From the Listening Hills

April 7, 2003
Last year, Bantam published what was then thought to be the fourth and final posthumous collection of short stories by L'Amour (1908–1988), With These Hands. Yet as the author's son explains in an afterword, the family soon discovered a few more stragglers. These 12 stories, a mix of westerns, crime, sports and spy yarns drawn from L'Amour's prolific career as a genre writer for pulp magazines, are every bit as entertaining as those in the last few collections. Typically, the tales of revenge and honor are punctuated with gunfights, fistfights and sports action. In "Sand Trap," a man being framed for robbery and murder leads his tormentors into the inhospitable desert of Death Valley, where he has a few tricks in store for them. "Moran of the Tigers" follows pro football player Flash Moran, who tries to save his disintegrating team from vicious gamblers and inside-the-huddle treachery. WWII spy adventure stories were favorites of L'Amour's, and his hard-boiled soldier-of-fortune pilot, Turk Madden, appears in several of these stories. In "Flight to the North," Turk uncovers an Axis spy and a secret Japanese airbase hidden in the frozen wasteland of Siberia. Best among these yarns is the title story, a western about a wounded outlaw desperately trying to hold off his pursuers until he can finish writing a special letter to his young son. Filled with grit and gun smoke, this collection is a fine coda to the legendary author's achievements.

April 1, 2003
Last year's " With These Hands" [BKL Ap15 02] was intended to be the last posthumous L'Amour collection. But Louis' son, Beau, and a dedicated team of researchers have continued to unearth more manuscripts. This one contains L'Amour's first and last short stories, two World War II adventures, four westerns, two football stories, and two crime capers. Some of the stories are dated--especially the football pieces--but all are generally enjoyable. L'Amour was a straightforward storyteller: there's an identifiable beginning, middle, and, most important, a satisfying conclusion to each tale. Typically the protagonist also faces and resolves some sort of moral dilemma. Among the highlights are "Anything for a Pal," the author's first short story, and "Sand Trap," in which a victim turns the tables on his opponents and uses the desert as a weapon. Even the passing of time doesn't seem to diminish L'Amour's remarkable appeal. Expect this collection to circulate well with his well-established audience.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2003, American Library Association.)