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Bannon

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Bannon

Written by: Louis L’Amour
Narrated by: Traber Burns
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About this listen

Rock Bannon, wounded in an Indian attack, is rescued by a wagon train heading to Oregon. He has fully recovered when the train pulls into a fort to stock up on supplies. It is there that the leaders of the train meet Morton Harper, a smooth-talking man who persuades them to take an easier trail that will allow them to escape an attack by Indians. Bannon knows that there will be no escape from attack on that route and that it will lead the train directly onto Hardy Bishop's vast ranching domain. Either way, and probably both, it will mean war - a war the pioneers will undoubtedly lose.

Bannon first appeared in Giant Western (Winter 1948) under the title Showdown Trail. L'Amour subsequently reworked and expanded this story into The Tall Stranger, published as an original in 1957. The expanded story was filmed as The Tall Stranger (Allied Artists, 1957), directed by Thomas Carr and starring Joel McCrea and Virginia Mayo.

©2017 Louis L'Amour (P)2017 Blackstone Audio, Inc. Genre Fiction Fiction
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Never disappoints, always a read to the last page . His descriptive ability was second to none. U can almost smell the smoke n sweat n whatnot .

Excellent

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This Louis L'Amour Western story is packed with well-loved tropes: harried Settlers in a wagon train headed West, Cattle Rustlers, Outlaws, Indian attacks, unscrupulous Ranchers, and romance with the stereotypical lovable old codger's beautiful daughter. Unfortunately, L'Amour tries to pack all of that into a four-hour story. This book is necessarily a Novella (L'Amour wrote for publication in periodicals), but a captivating story this eventful deserves more in-depth explorations. L'Amour's prose is creditable, his setting/characterization/descriptions are mind's-eye cinematic, and his plot is sinuous and engrossing - but 'Bannon' too often moves on to the next scene just as an event gets interesting. What readers essentially get is an outline (to what could be a truly *great* story).

The reading from Traber Burns is likewise frustrating: his diction/timbre/cadence/voice-acting are above-average, but his tone is a little too matter-of-fact. In addition, he reads slightly too quickly.. contributing to the "rushed" feel of this audiobook (I recommend listening at 0.90X).

Taken altogether, this fun, fast-paced, action-packed story rates 8.5 stars out of 10. It was offered for free as part of the 'Plus' catalogue for subscribers and I am grateful for it. I might not have tried it otherwise.. and I judge it easily worth a Credit for those looking for some enjoyable 'Old West' fare to make a long drive pleasant or a lonely night shift tolerable.

Awkwardly-Paced ..but Entertaining

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Never read a Louis L’Amour before and this was a fun interaction. Gruff good guys, evil villains, steady steeds, determined damsels and some great battles. There’s a line before a big fistfight when the terse Bannon says “stack your duds and grease your skids, coyote,” and I loved it. WTF does that even mean?!?

Traber Burns does a great job narrating for Audible. Bravo.

Great intro to L’Amour

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I liked nothing. I disliked everything. I only give it a single star because I can’t choose none.
This book is way past its best before date. The characters are shallow, the plot is completely predictable, the writing is terrible.
Worst dialogue in this book is right at the end. Sharon asks Bannon if he is asking her to marry him. He replies that he is not asking, he’s telling her that she is marrying him. And adds that it’s important to start out a marriage on the right foot.

The worst

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