Published in 1902 and widely regarded as the book that set the conventions of the western genre. It is well-written, in that unhurried way familiar to lovers of good Victorian literature. It is basically a romance, telling the story of the long courtship of a young, highly-educated schoolmistress just arrived from the east, by the titular character, the Virginian, a cowboy whose name we never find out.

So it's undoubtedly a romance, but it's much more than that. It's a character study of the character of the Virginian, and a love letter to the frontier, to the untamed and beautiful wilderness and the character of its people. The descriptions have the authority of an author that actually was there and saw the old west with his own eyes. There are lynchings and gunfights, but the are not really the point of the story.

Although the writing is good, it may seem strange that the narrative point of view changes. We start with third-person subjective, from the point of view of an eastern visitor that becomes a friend of the Virginian, and we discover that character and the western setting through his eyes. Later, the point of view becomes third person omniscient. Probably the reason for that is that the novel grew from several short stories that the author had written previously.

I found it quite enjoyable, and very readable more than a century after being written. ( )

Historical Fiction

Classic western writen in 1902. Fun read.

Westerns were never on the list of genres I had an interest in. I tried to read All the Pretty Horses once and got so depressed I couldn’t finish. However, The Virginian is a classic that started it all, first published in 1902. I once heard a man say it taught him how to be a man. It is the prototype for the man with no name, the strong silent type. He starts as a cow poke, becomes the trusted hand of a Wyoming judge, and routs the bad guys. He loves animals, nature, and the local school marm. Civilizing the wild west, he makes his fortune and happily weds his girl. Every western tale since has drawn from this story. ( )

They claimed "Riders of the Purple Sage", written by Zane Grey in 1912, was the novel that set the tone for western novels moving forward. But, this novel, written in 1902, which they also claim to have set the tone, must be closer to the truth. Still, they have nothing on Louis L'Amour's novels. I have read one, but that was so many years ago I couldn't tell you the name of it...only that I remember I really enjoyed it and was left wanting to read more.

This book was dry reading. I didn't quite understand his humor or the conversations at times. His use in writing in "accents" in conversations fell short at times.

Half the time, I stayed confused as to what was even going on in the story. For example in Chapter XIV, the whole time I thought the six strangers were in a coach riding to catch a train to Montana then back to Sunk Creek. Then suddenly, as the train was passing, they were "running" to the tracks and were upset because they had missed it. What happened to the coach? Then, suddenly the Virginian was sitting there on the outside of a caboose with his men ready to head back to Sunk Creek. So, none of the other men saw him sitting there until he spoke? The whole book read like this. I just barely knew what was going on.

This story takes place in Wyoming between 1874 and 1890 and is mostly told through the city slicker from New York, who came out west for work under the Judge at Sunk Creek Ranch.

The Virginian, the Judge's trustworthy hired hand was sent to the train depot at Medicine Bow to pick up this city slicker for a 263-mile trip back to the ranch on horseback. The Virginian never gets a name throughout the book. The closest we get is "Jeff", which was just a nickname used once given him by his friend Steve because he was a Southern. The Virginian, age 27, was tall and slim, but solidly built. He had black hair, and was very much a gentleman. He was a man of few words and even tempered, but quick on the draw if need be. I'm thinking more of a Sam Elliott character. This book has been made into a movie several times over the years...but no Sam Elliott.

- In 1929, Gary Cooper as The Virginian
- In 1946, Joel McCrea as The Virginian
- In 2000, Bill Pullman as The Virginian
- In 2014, Trace Adkins as The Virginian

I watched the newest version, starring Trace Adkins. Talk about S-L-O-W and a little off the beaten path from the book. The movie focused more on the Virginians riff with his crooked boss, the Judge and co-worker, Trampas. In the book, the Judge was a well respected man.

The book centered on the Virginian's infatuation with the new 23 year old, Molly Wood, a spinster from Vermont, who came to Bear Creek, Wyoming, for a teaching job. She was looking for a more adventurous life, so she headed west.

The Virginian saved her when the coach she was riding went careening into a river. They were at once silently smitten. He took the scarf with her initials from the water and kept it in his saddlebag from that first moment on, and for the next three years he romanced her, trying to win her love.
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Just a side note, a cowinky-dink: Towards the end, when the Virginian was trying to decide what kind of ring he would like to get her, he learned that her bithdate fell on October 15...same as mine...and that her birthstone was opal. He didn't want to get her an opal ring because opal normally brought bad luck...unless it was your own birthstone. In that case, it was a stone that warded off evil and brought good fortune....according to this novel. So, he ended up getting her an opal surrounded by diamonds, which was his birthstone with his birthday being in January. ( )