04-22-2021, 11:30 PM
Most people who have heard of Portis just know him as the author of True Grit. (1968) It is a fantastic book, but when you read it you realize that it is not a standard western. In fact it is slightly satirical of classic westerns. But none of that comes across in either of the movies.
Portis never wrote another western, but his other books are brilliant and hilarious. I consider him the most underrated American author ever.
His first novel, Norwood (1966), was also made into a movie, and like the original True Grit it starred Glen Campbell. It is about a good old country boy ex-marine who has a wild adventure delivering a couple of (stolen??) cars across country.
Masters of Atlantis (1985) is a satire on crack pot religions and how they can become accepted in mainstream society.
The Dog of the South (1979) is about a loser who drives from Arkansas through Mexico and British Honduras tracking his wife who left him with another loser who sees himself as a revolutionary. He meets a lot of crazy characters and does a lot of stupid stuff. What makes it so funny is that it is written from first person perspective so the loser is the narrator and never sees the fault in his ways.
I just ordered Gringos. It is his final book and the only one I have not read. Here is the description from wikipedia. . . Gringos is a 1991 book by Charles Portis and the author's fifth novel. It follows Jimmy Burns, an expatriate American, who during his adventures in Mexico encounters a female stalker, tomb-robbing archaeologists, UFO hunters, and a group of hippies.
So Portis only wrote 5 novels over a 25 year period, and he lived as a bit of a recluse in Little Rock avoiding attention or fame until he died last year at age 86. But he has a huge cult following. His style is very intelligent without being pretentious or high-brow. His characters are common people who do hilarious things in great stories. There are lots of conmen and conspiracies. Love and adventure. Just lots of fun to read.
None of his books are very long or complicated. Anyone who likes to read should check him out.
Portis never wrote another western, but his other books are brilliant and hilarious. I consider him the most underrated American author ever.
His first novel, Norwood (1966), was also made into a movie, and like the original True Grit it starred Glen Campbell. It is about a good old country boy ex-marine who has a wild adventure delivering a couple of (stolen??) cars across country.
Masters of Atlantis (1985) is a satire on crack pot religions and how they can become accepted in mainstream society.
The Dog of the South (1979) is about a loser who drives from Arkansas through Mexico and British Honduras tracking his wife who left him with another loser who sees himself as a revolutionary. He meets a lot of crazy characters and does a lot of stupid stuff. What makes it so funny is that it is written from first person perspective so the loser is the narrator and never sees the fault in his ways.
I just ordered Gringos. It is his final book and the only one I have not read. Here is the description from wikipedia. . . Gringos is a 1991 book by Charles Portis and the author's fifth novel. It follows Jimmy Burns, an expatriate American, who during his adventures in Mexico encounters a female stalker, tomb-robbing archaeologists, UFO hunters, and a group of hippies.
So Portis only wrote 5 novels over a 25 year period, and he lived as a bit of a recluse in Little Rock avoiding attention or fame until he died last year at age 86. But he has a huge cult following. His style is very intelligent without being pretentious or high-brow. His characters are common people who do hilarious things in great stories. There are lots of conmen and conspiracies. Love and adventure. Just lots of fun to read.
None of his books are very long or complicated. Anyone who likes to read should check him out.
