After the disappointing negative review that I gave to Arizona Ames earlier this month, I am pleased to give a positive recommendation to the Dude Ranger. This book a real gem and bound to entertain fans of the western genre.
Ernest Selby is a young man that has just inherited his late uncle's ranch in Arizona. Before setting out from Iowa to visit his ranch, Selby learns that much of the cattle have gone missing over the years, and he decides it's time to investigate the matter himself. He poses as a cowhand and gets a job on his own ranch. Eventually Ernest is able to put the pieces of the puzzle together, including the fact the foreman is a crook. Making matters worse is the fact that he has fallen in love with the foreman's daughter too.
Conceptually simple, but told in semi-epic proportions, the Dude Ranger is one of Zane Grey's better novels. If you're looking for a good entry point to introduce yourself to the works of this legendary author, you cannot go wrong with this book at all.
I also noticed that a movie was made of this novel too. Oddly enough, for a book that runs more than 240 pages, it is a bit funny to see that the movie less than an hour long. I have not watched it yet, but perhaps it's time for a double feature consisting of the Dude Ranger, and Thunder Trail (the cinematic adaptation of Arizona Ames) which is also under an hour long.
-W. Jay Pinto
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