Comanche Moon a novel by Larry McMurtry, Book Four of the “Lonesome Dove” series, takes place beginning in the 1850s, Texas. Texas Rangers August (Gus) McCrae and Woodrow F. Call, shown in their younger to middle years, are devoted to the Rangers’ dedication to protecting an advancing Western frontier against the defiant Comanche.
Most of the beloved characters we knew in Lonesome Dove play their roles in this epic novel. Besides August McCrae and Woodrow F. Call, Deets, Pea Eye, and Jake Spoon are Rangers. Also, the boy Newt, the unclaimed son of Woodrow Call, is in the story.
The Texas Rangers pursue Bufffalo Hump, the great Comanche war chief and later his son, Blue Duck. McCrae and Call receive field promotions to captain, a position that they share in leading the troops on their various missions. The two men, though friends and loyal to each other, are widely different. Gus McCrae is a romantic, witty, a deep thinker, and has no patience with rules. Woodrow Call takes life seriously, is often perplexed by Gus’s humor, lives by rules, and is dedicated to carrying out his tasks with honor.
Comanche Moon is a sweeping adventure, sometimes sweet and funny, unflinchingly realistic, at times vivid with descriptions of cruelty, but always showing the Rangers with a dedication to defend Texas and their way of life. I loved this novel and its descriptions of the time period. I both read the book and watched the TV mini-series Lonesome Dove before reading Comanche Moon and it was as though I renewed old friendships. I thoroughly enjoyed McMurtry’s cast of characters as they enact a fascinating period of time in Texas history.