by Charles G. Pfeiffer Director,
Zane Grey's West Society
This list represents my personal preferences at the moment and is subject to change with the passage of time and the mood of the moment - as a comparison with the previous edition would prove.
1. The Rainbow Trail - A sequel to Riders
of the Purple Sage and one of the few instances where the second
story is as good or better than the first. Probably my favorite
because of the empathy which I feel for the main character. Grey
is grappling with the problem of true religion. Nature is very important.
2. Riders of the Purple Sage - Mormons,
Gentiles, outlaws, and cowboys interact in a thrilling story of
adventure on the Utah-Arizona border of the 1870s. The pressing
question is: What does one do when inherited religious faith is
found wanting? The all-time best selling western.
3. Wanderer of the Wasteland - Grey’s
premier attempt to understand the meaning of life. It involves outlaws,
miners, and unfortunates in the deserts of southeastern California.
Every student of Grey must eventually grapple with this book.
4. The Vanishing American (Navajo Indian
Reservation) - Be sure that you read this in paperback, for the
book was so far ahead of its time that Harper would not publish
it as Grey wrote it. It is a disturbing, haunting, and profoundly
religious book about an educated Indian caught between two cultures
and two religions.
5. The Heritage of the Desert (The Arizona
Strip between the Grand Canyon and Utah) - Grey’s first literary
success - and it is still a good story. It deals in part with the
age old question of how to deal with evil - the other cheek or mailed
fist.
6. The Man of the Forest - An early hippie
recluse living in the White Mountains of eastern Arizona is forced
into struggling with the meaning of life and the ills of society
he has rejected. This is one of Grey’s books that has appealed
to me more and more with the passage of time; it is crucial in understanding
Grey's philosophy of life.
7. 30,000 on the Hoof (Mogollon rim in
Arizona) - Originally titled "The Frontier Wife," this
is a tribute to the unsung heroines of the West. It deals with some
of the problems growing out of World War One.
8. The Shepherd of Guadaloupe - An unusual
book. See how many stereotypes you can find overturned - like a
white man working as a shepherd for a Mexican in cattle country.
It is concerned with the loss of faith in God and country following
World War One.
9. The U.P. Trail - A fascinating account
of the building of the Union Pacific Railroad. Grey handles factual
and geographic materials well. One of his most successful books.
10. The Light of Western Stars - The action
takes place on the New Mexico - Arizona border close to Mexico during
the time of one of the Mexican uprisings. The book highlights the
powerful influence for good of a strong and noble woman. Probably
more English teachers have put this book on their reading lists
than any other Grey novel.
11. The Thundering Herd (Texas Panhandle)
- An accurate account of the near-extermination of the bison set
against a background of romance.
12. The Border Legion - The book begins
and ends in Idaho, but its main setting is in the gold mining camps
along Alder Gulch in southern Montana. It is based on the story
of Henry Plummer, the infamous sheriff-outlaw of Montana Territory.
Man's struggle with his tendency to good and evil is accentuated.
The book is rated near the top by such Grey scholars as Joe Wheeler
and Frank Gruber.
13. The Lost Wagon Train - Set along the
Cimarron Cutoff of the Santa Fe Trail. It is bloody, exciting, and
a very interesting study in ethics and psychology. You need to read
it along with Fighting Caravans.
14. The Maverick Queen - (South Pass City,
Wyoming Territory). Based on the true story of the fate of a madam
who traded her charms for unbranded calves (mavericks).
15. To the Last Man - A graphic account
of Arizona’s bloodiest feud. The foreword alone is worth the price
of the book. A central theme involves the struggle against an evil
heritage.
16. Black Mesa - Grey often went through
periods of deep depression. Illegal whiskey on the Navajo Reservation,
cattle rustling, and marital triangles help match the mood to the
title.
17. The Desert of Wheat - The growing
of wheat in eastern Washington is complicated by the I.M.W. labor
group, World War One, and a philosophy of life that proved inadequate.
18. The Call of the Canyon (Oak Creek
canyon southwest of Flagstaff) - One of Grey’s social problems
books - neglected war veterans, sexual and social revolution, and
the West.
19. Under the Tonto Rim - The story of
a family who lived under the Mogollon Rim in the Tonto Basin. I
have visited the area many times and have met some of the people
who appear in the book. A social worker seeks to improve the living
conditions of settlers in a remote area - some who want, and some
who don’t want to be improved.
20. Robber’s Roost - a story set in a
valley Grey knew well that was made famous by Butch Cassidy and
the Wild Bunch. Is the leading character rogue or hero? Based on
the actual story of an Englishman who founded a ranch in the Henry
Mountains of southern Utah and hired outlaws to protect his interests
from outlaws. An interesting story of regeneration.
21. Thunder Mountain - Based on a true
incident in a gold mining camp in central Idaho. It has an unusual
and thought-provoking ending that I will not disclose.
22. Twin Sombreros (Southeastern Colorado)
- An important character of Knights takes the lead here and has
a terrible dilemma when he falls in love with identical twins whose
brother has been murdered. It is not only a good who-dun-it, but
it is also an interesting study of the Jekyll and Hyde in all of
us.
23. Nevada - One of the all-time best
selling westerns. The story, dealing with the difficulties of ranching
on the lawless frontier, moves from Oregon to California to the
Mogollon Rim in Arizona. The relationship between Nevada and Ben
may remind you of David and Jonathan. Another example where the
sequel is better than the first (Forlorn River).
24. Desert Gold - I like horses, deserts,
beautiful women, Indians, and adventure; and this book, set along
the Arizona - Mexican border, has them all - plus a Mexican revolution.
25. The Code of the West (Tonto Basin
in Arizona) - It deals with the same problems as Call of the
Canyon. One of Grey’s most interesting supporting characters
almost upstages the stars.
26. The Deer Stalker (Grand Canyon area)
- The story is based upon a true incident in the 1920s. It is a
compelling story of what happens when man upsets nature’s balance.
27. Wildfire (The Colorado River to Monument
Valley) - The thrilling story of a wild stallion, a woman, a man
- and obsessions.
28. Betty Zane - Nostalgia plays a part
for me in rating this book, as it was the first ZG I read. It deals
with the founding of Wheeling, West Virginia, and is a part of Grey’s
family history - and history can be interesting.
29. The Spirit of the Border - Based on
the true story of the Moravian’s attempt to Christianize the Ohio
Indians. Grey may have embellished history a little, but it is a
noteworthy attempt to catch "the spirit of the border."
30. The Last Trail - This book has the
same setting as Betty Zane. The story centers on the friendship
of two strong men. Some of the incidents in this book have haunted
me for over half a century. I have placed the Ohio River trilogy
(28,29, 30) in the order in which they were writtten and should
be read. But as favorites I would list them 30, 29, 28.
31. Fighting Caravans - The Santa Fe Trail
played a more important part in our country’s history than most
Americans realize, and Grey chronicles well the romance and dangers
of the Old Trail. You will also meet some of the trail blazers of
the Old West such as Kit Carson and Lucian Maxwell.
32. Knights of the Range (Eastern New
Mexico) - Many western writers have seen the cowboy as a modern
knight errant. Grey does a good job with this theme in this story
of a ranch bordering the old Santa Fe Trail. As might be expected,
there is much evil for the knight to overcome for the lovely lady.
33. The Trail Driver - Grey confused the
names of the Texas-Kansas cattle trails (as did many of the men
who drove them), but was true to their spirit. Outlaws, Indians,
weather, swollen rivers plague the drovers.
34. The Lone Star Ranger - (Western Texas)
- A gunman's haunting struggle with a deadly passion. An early favorite
of mine. I cannot count the times I have crouched with arm extended
and snarled, "I’m waiting for you!"
35. The Mysterious Rider -(Colorado) -A
remorseful man spends a lifetime trying to atone for a tragic mistake,
and gives his life to prevent another one. Part of the story is
close enough to history that one of my sources of information asked
me not to record a name he had given me.
36. Arizona Ames - Another horseman from
the Round Table lays aside the lance for the revolver and rides
forth on his knightly quest to defend honor, right wrong, and protect
the weak. His search for adventure and love takes him from Arizona
to Wyoming, Utah, and Colorado where he finally finds his Holy Grail.
37. West of the Pecos - If you are a history
buff you will be interested in Grey’s treatment of such Western
Americana as the Horsehead crossing of the Pecos and the "the only
law west of the Pecos" - Judge Roy Bean. There are many memorable
incidents and the geographic background is fascinating.
38. The Drift Fence - A wealthy cattleman
gives his tenderfoot nephew the controversial task of stringing
a hundred mile barbed wire fence south of Flagstaff to prevent cattle
from drifting off the high plateau into the lowlands where they
were being "appropriated" by rustlers and settlers.
39. The Hash Knife Outfit (The Mogollon
Plateau) - A sequel to The Drift Fence. An outlaw befriends
two damsels in deep distress, teaches them what it means to be frontier
women, and goes straight.
40. Forlorn River - The setting, along
the eastern California-Oregon border, is a very interesting and
unusual geographic area which Grey treats with accuracy and appreciation.
Father-son conflict over the son’s vocation is the dominate theme.
41. Captives of the Desert (Navajo Reservation)
- There is a controversy over how much of this book was written
by Grey and how much by a secretary. The style bears this out, but
the plight of the Indians, the problems of missionary activity,
alcohol, and a mismatched marriage are themes familiar to Grey.
42. The Fugitive Trail (Texas Panhandle)
- The hero is willing to take the rap of a bank robbery for his
no-good brother because he thinks his brother is loved by the woman
he loves.
43. The Stranger from the Tonto - It is
a gripping story, with some better than usual characterization set
in an exciting area (now under Lake Powell) where the San Juan River
emptied into the Colorado. I would have placed it higher if it did
not contain so many echoes of other novels.
44. Shadow on the Trail (Mogollon Plateau
of Arizona) - In the foreword Grey notes that many "hunted outlaws
disappeared without leaving a trace," and he set himself the task
of "imagining and portrraying what might have happened to one of
these vanishing outlaws." The story is based on a lieutenant of
the outlaw, Sam Bass.
45. Sunset Pass - I don’t know why I
do not like this story better. It deals with a true unusual cattle
rustling venture centering around Winslow, Arizona; and the discovery
of and the visit to the ranch involved was a highlight of one summer’s
field research.
46. Western Union - The story of running
the telegraph across Nebraska and Wyoming. This is Grey's last book,
and it was dictated because of the stroke he suffered in 1937. He
was autographing copies of it just two days before his fatal heart
attack in 1939. There is much in the book to commend it. A character
from The Maverick Queen is one of the three close friends,
although his name has been changed.
47. Wild Horse Mesa (Southern Utah) -
Climbing to the top of Wild Horse Mesa in southern Utah was one
of the goals Grey was not able to achieve. This may not be one of
Grey’s best, but the site is superb, and there is an interesting
mixture of pretty girls, wild horses, Indians, and outlaws.
48. Rogue River Feud - (Southwestern Oregon)
- Grey at one time owned property along the Rogue. Outstanding scenery,
great fishing, a part Indian heroine, a wounded and mistreated veteran,
and conservation of Oregon's fishing resources all play important
roles.
49. Raiders of Spanish Peaks - Three seasoned,
but down at the heels, range riders are recruited by Buffalo Jones
to shepherd an Eastern family from Garden City, Kansas to a ranch
near the Spanish Peaks in Southcentral Colorado. The rustlers and
three lovely sisters all come to predictable ends.
50. Wyoming - A modern young woman, but
not a flapper of the twenties, is determined to establish her own
independence. She runs away from home to join an uncle on a cattle
ranch in Wyoming - hitchhiking across Nebraska and through the Black
Hills of South Dakota in the process.
51. Stairs of Sand (Desert area of southeastern
California: sequel to Wanderer of the Wasteland) - It is a little dreary
in spots with some inconsistencies, but the imagery, the Jekyll
and Hyde theme, and the unusual ending make for thoughtful reading.
52. Lost Pueblo - A New York flapper meets
a staid Western archaeologist and love is discovered among the ruins.
The lost pueblo is probably Inscription House thirty to forty miles
west of Kayenta.
53. Boulder Dam (Near Las Vegas, Nevada)
- The book will probably tell you more than you want to know about
the construction of the Hoover Dam. The romantic interest centers
around an ex-football player and a young woman who has been kidnapped
by white slavers.
54. The Dude Ranger - An Iowan inherits
a ranch in Eastern Arizona from an uncle in Chicago. Suspecting
dishonesty on the part of the manager, he comes to the ranch as
a tenderfoot looking for a job. His suspicion proves to be correct,
but the solution is complicated by his falling in love with the
manager's daughter.
55. The Arizona Clan ('Tonto Basin) -
The book is concerned with "White Mule" - (bootleg whiskey) - its
production and distribution rights, and its evil effects upon people.
56. Horse Heaven Hill (northeastern Washington)
- An orphan from Idaho comes to live with an uncle in Washington.
Her love and concern for wild horses that are being rounded up and
sold for chicken food, establishes a bond between her and her cousin's
fiancee that soon turns into mutual love.
57. Valley of Wild Horses (Western New
Mexico) - An undutiful wandering cowboy-gunman son, a too dutiful
daughter, a petty villain, and some wild horses that give the main
characters a fresh start in life.
58. Majesty's Rancho - The very modern
daughter of Madeline and Stewart (The Light of Western Stars)
is expelled from a university and returns home to the New Mexico
ranch. A strait-laced young man joins Stewart in the battle against
mobsters and modern rustlers, and finally wins the chastened daughter.
Director,
Zane Grey's West Society
