Open Range Opens Up the Western Once More!

Leisure Books/Dorchester Publishing has released an excellent corral of books this month that no western fan should be without! Zane Grey, Max Brand, Lewis B Patten, Tim Champlain and Lauran Paine are all on better bookshelves.

First up this month is 'Open Range' by Lauran Paine. A great tie-in with the big screen western of the same name due to open August 15th, Open Range is the story of Boss Spearman and Denton Baxter. When Baxter's threats of range crossing turns to murder, Spearman fights for the woman and range that he loves. A great book full of action, and all the elements that make westerns great!

Max Grand, Frederick Faust, was one of the most popular writers of this century. His first story, 'Above the Law' is presented in this collection of three classic western shorts. 'One Man's Posse' introduces us to Sleeper, and 'Timber Line' pits a newcomer against the wilderness and the wraith of a community. Excellent stories restored from the original manuscripts remind us why the work of Max Brand is still popular today.

Zane Grey, in the Westerners, gives readers a collection of eight short stories. 'The Ranger', 'Lightning', 'The Camp Robber', 'The Westerners', 'Monty Price's Nightingale', 'On Location', 'Death Valley' and 'Stranger Partners At Two-Fold Bay' round out this fascinating book. As with the Max Brand stories, they have been corrected to the form as Grey first intended. Highly enjoyable, and entertaining, 'The Westerners' gives new readers a touch of Zane. Leisure Books is to be commended for their work in preserving the stories that defined the west for so many readers over the years.

In 'Blood on the Grass', Lewis B Patten, three time Spur winner, explores the theme of justice in two stories, 'Slipshod' and the title story. 'Slipshod' is the story of Will Counselman and his struggle to prove his innocence in the face of overwhelming evidence in the murder of Laird McFetridge. 'Blood on the Grass' is the struggle of Barton Pruitt to take over his father's ranch in Arapahoe. The Spur spread opposes the move and over time Barton wins over the law in an action filled tale guaranteed to thrill.

The trail of '49 has inspired writers over the years, and Tim Champlin, in 'Wayfaring Strangers' is no stranger to compelling stories set against the diorama of gold and greed. Rob Merriman and Clay Collins, are fleeing a murder charge in Charleston travel via Cape Horn. The father of the man Merriman murdered took the stern-wheeler route, and Clay's girl Lisa Sizemore and her family take the overland route to the Pacific. The trail of justice, love, and redemption are intertwined forcefully with skill in this entertaining novel.

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