Owen Wister's 'The Virginian - A Horseman of the Plains' is a quintessential Western classic that captures the essence of the American frontier with its vivid portrayal of cowboys, outlaws, and lawmen. Wister's prose style is marked by its rich descriptions and realistic dialogue, giving readers a sense of the rugged landscape and the tough characters who populate it. The novel's themes of honor, loyalty, and justice resonate throughout, making it a timeless tale of the Wild West. Set in the late 19th century, 'The Virginian' reflects the societal changes and challenges of the time, offering a glimpse into the cultural values and conflicts of the era. Wister's attention to detail and his deep understanding of Western folklore make this book a must-read for anyone interested in the genre. Owen Wister, a Harvard-educated writer and historian, drew inspiration for 'The Virginian' from his own experiences in the American West. His keen observations and personal connections to the region bring an authenticity to the story that is unmatched in Western literature. Wister's passion for the West shines through in his writing, making him a pioneer in the genre. I highly recommend 'The Virginian - A Horseman of the Plains' to readers who enjoy classic Westerns, as well as those interested in American history and literature. Wister's masterful storytelling and vivid characters will transport you to a bygone era of cowboys and shootouts, leaving you eager to explore more of his work.

He is the Virginian-the first fully realized cowboy hero in American literature, a near-mythic figure whose idealized image has profoundly influenced our national consciousness. This enduring work of fiction marks the birth of a legend that lives with us still.

The Virginian: A Horseman of the Plains is a novel by Owen Wister. A wild cowboy western tale where Indian attacks an explosive card game, deadly shoot outs and a story of love intertwine.

In this classic and timeless Western novel, The Virginian is a ranch hand at the Shiloh Ranch, located outside of Medicine Bow, Wyoming. He is described as a tall, dark, slim young giant, with a deep personality. His real name is never given. At first, he is only a worker, but halfway through the book, he is signed on as the full-time foreman. He is the Judge's most trusted worker. Several times throughout the book, he is offered the chance to run down his enemy, Trampas, behind his back, but each time he refuses the temptation. It is made clear that he will not use his official position as foreman to crush any of the lower workers. In the novel, one of the main plots is The Virginian's ongoing romance with Molly Wood, the local schoolteacher. Being from the East, she is not used to the wild west, but he plays a perfect gentleman to her, intending her to like him, and to “love him before we get through.” We are constantly updating our catalog, so always search for "lady valkyrie" in the Books section of Amazon for other great titles! Visit ladyvalkyrie.com for more Westerns and Other titles and Categories of books!

The novel begins with an unnamed narrator's arrival in Medicine Bow, Wyoming from back East and his encounter with an impressively tall and handsome stranger. The stranger proves adept at roping horses, as well as facing down a gambler, Trampas, who calls him a son of a bitch. The stranger lays a pistol on the table and gently threatens, "When you call me that, smile!" Known only as the Virginian, the stranger turns out to be the narrator's escort to Judge Henry's ranch in Sunk Creek, Wyoming. As the two travel the 263 miles to the ranch, the narrator, who is nicknamed the Tenderfoot, and the Virginian come to know one another as the Tenderfoot slowly begins to understand the nature of life in the West, which is very different from what he expected. This meeting is the beginning of a lifelong friendship and the starting point of the narrator's recounting of key episodes in the life of the Virginian

This classic describes the life of a cowboy who is a natural aristocrat, set against a highly mythologized version of the Johnson County War and taking the side of the large land owners. The Virginian paved the way for many more westerns by such authors as Zane Grey, Louis L'Amour, and several others. Owen Wister (1860-1938) was an American writer and "father" of western fiction. When he started writing, he naturally inclined towards fiction set on the western frontier. Wister's most famous work remains the novel The Virginian.

The classic story about a taciturn cowboy hero and his experiences on a ranch in Medicine Bow, Wyoming

Excerpt from The Virginian: A Horseman of the Plains Had you left New York or San Francisco at ten o'clock this morning, by noon the day after to-morrow you could step out at Cheyenne. There you would stand at the heart of the world that is the subject of my picture, yet you would look around you in vain for the reality. It is a van ished world. No journeys, save those which memory can take, will bring you to it now. The mountains are there, far and shining, and the sunlight, and the infinite earth, and the air that seems forever the true fountain of youth, - but where is the buffalo, and the wild antelope, and where the horseman with his pasturing thou sands? So like its old self does the sage-brush seem when revisited, that you wait for the horse man to appear. But he will never come again. He rides in his historic yesterday. You will no more see him gallop out of the unchanging silence than you will see Columbus on the unchanging sea come sailing from Palos with his caravels. And yet the horseman is still so near our day that in some chapters of this book, which were published separate at the close of the nineteenth century, the present tense was used. It is true no longer. In those chapters it has been changed, and verbs like is and have now read was and had Time has flowed faster than my ink. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.