Dutch Uncle by Marilyn Durham

 

For my grandmother,

who always liked a good clean story

But mostly for my mother,

who doesn't—

[The book’s epigraph.]

And now our offered excerpt.

“What do you do now?” It was Carrie asking.

Jake turned in surprise. Several sharp answers sprang to his mind, but he put them away. “I play poker,” he said simply.

She gave a ladylike sniff of disapproval. “That isn't an occupation; It's a vice.”

 He smiled. “Miss Hand, you’re right, as far as most people are concerned. Many are called and few are chosen, the preachers say. I'm one of the few. I get by, and I don't take anything from people except what they want to give me-- like those preachers.” He touched his hat brim turned and finished the motion with an imperious gesture.

As you read the above exchange one can envision the rascally charm of Jim Garner delivering it with a twinkle in his eye.

Our protagonist, Jake Hollander, seems molded on the faux cynical yet reluctantly good-hearted Maverick character.

The author plays this game well.

This 1973 novel is Durham’s follow-up to her debut Western The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing.

This is a less serious novel than that affair, but it is well-written with an easy gregariousness that is not afraid to allow a tragic moment or two to leaven the proceedings.

All in all, a strong novel, well worth the serious Western reader’s attention.