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Hopalong Cassidy #1
Rustlers of West Fork: A Novel
In this first of four classic frontier novels, Louis L'Amour adds his own special brand to the life and adventures of one of America's favorite fictional cowboys, Hopalong Cassidy. In The Rustlers of West Fork, the quick-thinking, fast-shooting cowpuncher heads west to deliver a fortune in bank notes to his old friend, Dick Jordan. When he arrives at the Circle J, he discovers that the rancher and his daughter, Pam, are being held prisoner by a desperate band of outlaws led by the ruthless Avery Sparr and his partner Arnold Soper. Even if Hopalong Cassidy can free Jordan and Pam, he will have to lead them across rough and untamed Apache country, stalked by the outlaws who have vowed to gun him down. But Hopalong is no stranger to trouble, and before his guns or his temper cool, he's determines to round up Sparr and his gang and bring the outlaws to justice ... dead or alive! This classic tale of pursuit and survival is vintage L'Amour and adds new life and luster to the legend of Hopalong Cassidy.
288 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1951
About the author
Louis L'Amour
954 books2,978 followersLouis Dearborn L'Amour was an American novelist and short story writer. His books consisted primarily of Western novels, though he called his work "frontier stories". His most widely known Western fiction works include Last of the Breed, Hondo, Shalako, and the Sackett series. L'Amour also wrote historical fiction (The Walking Drum), science fiction (The Haunted Mesa), non-fiction (Frontier), and poetry and short-story collections. Many of his stories were made into films. His books remain popular and most have gone through multiple printings. At the time of his death, almost all of his 105 existing works (89 novels, 14 short-story collections, and two full-length works of nonfiction) were still in print, and he was "one of the world's most popular writers".
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 88 reviews
April 29, 2020
Hopalong Cassidy heads west to deliver a fortune in bank notes to his old friend, Dick Jordan. When he arrives at the Circle J, he discovers that the rancher and his daughter, Pam, are being held prisoner by a desperate band of outlaws led by the ruthless Avery Sparr and his partner Arnold Soper.
******
I absolutely loved this series and what a better way to start then with this book.
I couldn’t have been more pleased with the main character, Hopalong Cassidy. He is a no nonsense kind of guy, not too quick to shoot but always willing to fight if necessary.
He sometimes takes unprecedented measures to beat the bad guys and always attacks bad situations head on, which was just so refreshing.
Absolutely recommend this series to anyone who likes a good, action packed western.
******
I absolutely loved this series and what a better way to start then with this book.
I couldn’t have been more pleased with the main character, Hopalong Cassidy. He is a no nonsense kind of guy, not too quick to shoot but always willing to fight if necessary.
He sometimes takes unprecedented measures to beat the bad guys and always attacks bad situations head on, which was just so refreshing.
Absolutely recommend this series to anyone who likes a good, action packed western.
January 20, 2016
Beau L'Amour writes a lengthy after words explaining how his father denied having written any of the Hopalong Cassidy novels. Beau is emphatic that his father did this out of some stubborn desire to hold on to an old lie. But really I think he denied writing the Hopalong books, because they're silly. The characters don't talk the way his characters normally do, and they react with violence when he might normally have them scare the antagonists into submission. The books just don't fit into his canon.
March 24, 2012
There's a reason Louis L'Amour disavowed writing this novel. It's obviously a beginner's effort. It is a Hopalong Cassidy novel his family republished after his death. It captures the stereotypical mystique of the old west.
I still maintain I was born in the right century.
I still maintain I was born in the right century.
January 20, 2019
My first Louis L'Amour novel was picked from the shelves of the library at the retirement community that my parents winter at in Florida every year. It seemed an appropriate setting for reading my first book by my grandfather's favorite author. That book was The Trail to Crazy Man, and I loved it. I read it in two days and went right back to the library and picked out another Louis L'Amour novel, Showdown Trail. About halfway through I realized I was reading the exact same story all over again. Since then I have read maybe half a dozen more of his books, and slowly come to the realization that every sing one is the same, just with different character names and settings. It took me a few more years to realize that I don't care. They're still damn good novels when you want a quick and mindless read and I will continue to read him ad infinitum. The trick is to not read any two of his books in close succession. One per year seems about right.
So that said, The Rustlers of West Fork was a fine story. Not my favorite, but still a fun read. His characterization of Hopalong Cassidy and friends seems a little too perfect for my tastes. The protagonists were too awesome to ever be in any real danger, which made everything pretty anticlimactic. I didn't care. Sometimes it's fun to just ride along without stressing out about it. So three stars based on my Louis L'Amour curve, but still a good read.
So that said, The Rustlers of West Fork was a fine story. Not my favorite, but still a fun read. His characterization of Hopalong Cassidy and friends seems a little too perfect for my tastes. The protagonists were too awesome to ever be in any real danger, which made everything pretty anticlimactic. I didn't care. Sometimes it's fun to just ride along without stressing out about it. So three stars based on my Louis L'Amour curve, but still a good read.
July 29, 2019
L'Amour would not admit he wrote this Hopalong Cassidy book while he was alive because he felt that it was just fulfilling a contract. He wrote it under a pen name and never accepted it as his work. He did not create the character and he was told who many of the characters would be. Even though he did not claim it, it is still his work. I enjoyed the descriptions and the characters. While clearly not his best work it is still good.
May 6, 2024
This took me a while to really get into, but once I did it turned out to be a very good book. Louis L’amour has a way of telling a good story and it’s hard not to get wrapped up in it. Another great read from the Wild West.
May 8, 2016
Many lists indicate this novel to be the first novel ever published by Louis L’Amour (although he had been publishing short stories in the pulps for over ten years). Some list it as the second published novel. It first appeared way back in 1951 and helped L'Amour refine the novel-writing skills that would eventually propel him to become far and away the all-time bestselling Western fiction author. This novel is one of four Hopalong Cassidy novels he wrote but they were originally published under the pseudonym “Tex Burns”, a nom de plume created by his publisher (L’Amour himself always denied he had written these books).
Regardless, you don’t need to be a L’Amour enthusiast to appreciate this story. It’s certainly a traditional western yarn involving Hoppy and some of his friends taking on a gang of rustlers and saving some folks from their bullying ways. There are dastardly bad guys, cattle brand switching, a survival trek through the snowy mountains, a damsel to be rescued, and gunfights aplenty. The plot has an overall story arc but it also seemed a bit like it was broken down into individual vignettes that all tied together. I suspect that it was originally published in serial form.
While reading the novel it struck me that “Westerns” are really the precursor of today’s superhero stories. I guess I’ve seen so many superhero movies in the last few years that I finally realized how similar they are to traditional Westerns. There are many similarities of course but for both genres it almost always boils down to these two truths: the hero is better than everybody else at almost everything and you know they’re going to come out on top in the end.
The L’Amour Hopalong Cassidy books are nice stories and don’t demand too much of your cerebral juices to make it through one. But if you’ve never experienced a L’Amour western I don’t recommend you start with one of these. While they do show glimpses of his more refined writing that comes afterwards, and are enjoyable to read, they aren’t as good as what he produced later.
Regardless, you don’t need to be a L’Amour enthusiast to appreciate this story. It’s certainly a traditional western yarn involving Hoppy and some of his friends taking on a gang of rustlers and saving some folks from their bullying ways. There are dastardly bad guys, cattle brand switching, a survival trek through the snowy mountains, a damsel to be rescued, and gunfights aplenty. The plot has an overall story arc but it also seemed a bit like it was broken down into individual vignettes that all tied together. I suspect that it was originally published in serial form.
While reading the novel it struck me that “Westerns” are really the precursor of today’s superhero stories. I guess I’ve seen so many superhero movies in the last few years that I finally realized how similar they are to traditional Westerns. There are many similarities of course but for both genres it almost always boils down to these two truths: the hero is better than everybody else at almost everything and you know they’re going to come out on top in the end.
The L’Amour Hopalong Cassidy books are nice stories and don’t demand too much of your cerebral juices to make it through one. But if you’ve never experienced a L’Amour western I don’t recommend you start with one of these. While they do show glimpses of his more refined writing that comes afterwards, and are enjoyable to read, they aren’t as good as what he produced later.
May 7, 2013
For years, L'Amour denied that he ever wrote these books, but even when it became an open secret (thanks to the copyright on one of them becoming public) he continued to distance himself from the work.
The Hopalong Cassidy we find here is tailored after the original character created by Clarence E. Mulford, for a series of short-stories and novels. When L'Amour was hired to write the books the American public was much more familiar with the portrayal of William Boyd in dozens of films and an up-coming television series. L'Amour brought back the cursing, gambling and hardened cowhand of the early stories. Little but Cassidy's silver hair and his horse Topper, was there to remind readers of the character they saw on screen.
In this, the first of four in the series L'Amour wrote, Hopalong goes off to aid an old friend, who appears to have been taken advantage of by a known horse-thief and gunman, Avery Sparr. When he learns that Cassidy is on his way, Sparr and his followers go about trying to prevent Cassidy from rescuing his friend and his friend's daughter, thereby spoiling their plans to take over the ranch. Just as in the movies, you can expect Hopalong and his fellow hands from the Bar 20 to come out on top, but L'Amour writes an exciting story with plenty of twists.
The Hopalong Cassidy we find here is tailored after the original character created by Clarence E. Mulford, for a series of short-stories and novels. When L'Amour was hired to write the books the American public was much more familiar with the portrayal of William Boyd in dozens of films and an up-coming television series. L'Amour brought back the cursing, gambling and hardened cowhand of the early stories. Little but Cassidy's silver hair and his horse Topper, was there to remind readers of the character they saw on screen.
In this, the first of four in the series L'Amour wrote, Hopalong goes off to aid an old friend, who appears to have been taken advantage of by a known horse-thief and gunman, Avery Sparr. When he learns that Cassidy is on his way, Sparr and his followers go about trying to prevent Cassidy from rescuing his friend and his friend's daughter, thereby spoiling their plans to take over the ranch. Just as in the movies, you can expect Hopalong and his fellow hands from the Bar 20 to come out on top, but L'Amour writes an exciting story with plenty of twists.
November 24, 2012
This is the first of four Hopalong Cassidy novels writen by Louis L'Amour under the name Tex Burns.
L'Amour actually refused to admit authorship of the Hopalong Cassidy novels during his lifetime. Although often called the second book in the series, The Rustlers of the West Fork is actually #1.
The story opens with Cassidy taking money to friend Dick Jordan, of the Circle J, that pays of a lone owed by another friend, Buck Peters. But Dick and his daughter Pam are being held prisoner by rustler and badman Avery Sparr, in order to get control of the Circle J. Hopalong is able to figure out what is going on and sets out to set things to rights.
A good fun story by one of the best ever Western Writers, about one of the most famous cowboys in written, movie and TV history.
L'Amour actually refused to admit authorship of the Hopalong Cassidy novels during his lifetime. Although often called the second book in the series, The Rustlers of the West Fork is actually #1.
The story opens with Cassidy taking money to friend Dick Jordan, of the Circle J, that pays of a lone owed by another friend, Buck Peters. But Dick and his daughter Pam are being held prisoner by rustler and badman Avery Sparr, in order to get control of the Circle J. Hopalong is able to figure out what is going on and sets out to set things to rights.
A good fun story by one of the best ever Western Writers, about one of the most famous cowboys in written, movie and TV history.
August 31, 2009
I enjoyed this a lot more than I thought I would. Louis L'Amour does some great descriptions, and although the cowboy stereotype gets on my nerves slightly, it wasn't enough to make me dislike the characters. In fact, I was pretty intrigued by some of them, such as Mesquite Jenkins and Johnny Nelson. I'm almost curious enough to go hunt up some of the original Hopalong Cassidy books, just to see what they're like. And Louis L'Amour may hit my list of authors I want to read more by in the future. In all, not a bad venture in genres that I never read.
October 14, 2014
A Western story by the master of the Western. This story is part of the author's Hopalong Cassidy series which were written in his early writing years. There is an afterword by his son Beau.
November 9, 2020
This is the first published western novel Louis L'Amour ever wrote. He wrote under a pen name and denied he'd ever written any Hopalong Cassidy stories later, but its the first of the novels in the genre he became best known for.
Its a good one. Hopalong is not the trouble-making wild young cowboy with a limp that was in the Bar-20 stories by Clarence Mulford, nor the Dudley Do-Right TV and movie singing cowboy with the dude outfit and scrubbed clean attitude. Its a Hopalong that is closer to what a real cowboy would have been like with only the highly polished silver-plated pistols and Topper his horse left from those versions.
Hopalong rides out of town with fifteen thousand dollars hidden on his person to deliver to a rancher, and he's in trouble right from the start. Word got around about the money, and the ranch he's delivering to has fallen on hard times under a criminal shootist.
There are some minor flaws such as the gambler character Goff who was built up in the story as a significant figure then basically forgotten, but none that seriously harm the story. Hopalong is an unerring shot with two pistols, but the dangers feel very real despite his skill. Several members of the old Bar-20 ranch show up, but Topper is stabled early in the story and never shows up again until the end.
Overall its rugged outdoor adventure and frontier grit for the most part, seasoned with enjoyable characters and unexpected twists in the action.
Its a good one. Hopalong is not the trouble-making wild young cowboy with a limp that was in the Bar-20 stories by Clarence Mulford, nor the Dudley Do-Right TV and movie singing cowboy with the dude outfit and scrubbed clean attitude. Its a Hopalong that is closer to what a real cowboy would have been like with only the highly polished silver-plated pistols and Topper his horse left from those versions.
Hopalong rides out of town with fifteen thousand dollars hidden on his person to deliver to a rancher, and he's in trouble right from the start. Word got around about the money, and the ranch he's delivering to has fallen on hard times under a criminal shootist.
There are some minor flaws such as the gambler character Goff who was built up in the story as a significant figure then basically forgotten, but none that seriously harm the story. Hopalong is an unerring shot with two pistols, but the dangers feel very real despite his skill. Several members of the old Bar-20 ranch show up, but Topper is stabled early in the story and never shows up again until the end.
Overall its rugged outdoor adventure and frontier grit for the most part, seasoned with enjoyable characters and unexpected twists in the action.
April 12, 2019
finished this one today the 12th of april 2019 good read four stars really liked it kindle library loaner. read a pile of lamour way back when, 32nd street naval station, paperback, picked up another within the last two three years enjoyed that one, too. this was written early in his career under a different name. there's an afterword from his son explains the story's history...that touches briefly on the idea that others floated at the time of his early going...about changing his name to something like the others. i recall the zane grey...grey? or gray? other paperbacks on the shelf at the navy exchange. i pulled down a lamour and never did pick up a zane grey...should take a look at some of those. quite a few of the stories have the same basic story-line but i enjoyed every one of them, even so. enjoyed the descriptions of the natural world in this one...and i'm sure i enjoyed that lying on a third tier rack on board the mccain, my world confined to gray non-skid and concrete, grass was something one had to look for to walk upon.
July 13, 2023
A random pickup at a used bookstore, I'm glad I read it though. It was a fun read, definitely purely reading for pleasure but it was simple. Good guy, bad guys, good guy is a badass and wins in the end. I also really enjoyed the descriptions of the old west, very visual.
Hopalong Cassidy is the hero of the book, naturally a badass gunman and cowboy. He steps in to rescue the ranch of an old friend who is too old to defend himself and is being taken advantage of by the bad guy who wants to steal his ranch for himself. The friend has an (18 year-old) daughter - the only weird part - that is really pretty, although thankfully Hopalong doesn't end up with her in the end. He travels all over shooting bad guys and beats them in a shootout at the end, along with a few of his old buddies who come along for the ride.
A classic, nothing super surprising but the characters were fun and it was a short read. I don't feel like I need to read more of his books because I get the sense it's probably a "you read one you've read 'em all" kind of situation, but I'm glad I picked it up.
Hopalong Cassidy is the hero of the book, naturally a badass gunman and cowboy. He steps in to rescue the ranch of an old friend who is too old to defend himself and is being taken advantage of by the bad guy who wants to steal his ranch for himself. The friend has an (18 year-old) daughter - the only weird part - that is really pretty, although thankfully Hopalong doesn't end up with her in the end. He travels all over shooting bad guys and beats them in a shootout at the end, along with a few of his old buddies who come along for the ride.
A classic, nothing super surprising but the characters were fun and it was a short read. I don't feel like I need to read more of his books because I get the sense it's probably a "you read one you've read 'em all" kind of situation, but I'm glad I picked it up.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 1, 2020
This is the first in the Hopalong Cassidy set of novels. What I found most interesting about this book was the epilogue that L’Amour’s son added. L’Amour wrote the four Hopalong Cassidy books under a different name. He was paid a fee to write the books or shorts for a magazine and the story was picking up off another writer of the old west for an existing stories. It wasn’t until later that L’Amour acknowledged that he was the author. The one think that can be noticed from the Westward The Tide was a flavor to the story that made it better. It wasn’t totally lost in the Hopalong novels, but it was toned down. The book itself read like the other two novel pretty much aside from a hollywoodization of the story.
September 27, 2021
My dad used to read Westerns and I thought I would give one of them a try. The book reads like a 60s Cowboy film - with well defined heros and villians and the good guys always coming out on top. I listened to it on CD while driving and it was good for that because the plot was never too complex. At the end of the CD, the son of the author added some information. Apparently L'Amour wrote this book under another name and never wanted to sell it under his own name. His reason seemed to be that he wrote a specific formula that he was paid to do - so maybe he did not think of it as his best work. I am going to find another one by him in which this was not the case - as the style of writing was good.
April 3, 2023
This is another Hopalong Cassidy book. I read the Afterward written by Beau L'Amour. It is sad that Louis L'Amour never acknowledge these books. They are well written and have his signature style to them. This is the second of the Hopalong Cassidy books that I have read. I have vague memories of watching Hopalong Cassidy on TV. That was long ago and the memories are dulled due to an automobile accident that cause a concussion. I wish that Mr. L'Amour had realized that he put his signature on this character just as he did with the Sacketts.
For those that have hesitated to read the Hopalong Cassidy books that were written by Tex Burns, aka Louis L'Amour please read them. I think that you will enjoy them as much as I have.
For those that have hesitated to read the Hopalong Cassidy books that were written by Tex Burns, aka Louis L'Amour please read them. I think that you will enjoy them as much as I have.
March 24, 2023
His first-of-four novel-length commissions of Hopalong Cassidy written in 1950-51. Superb craft . . . it's all here: outlaws, range wars, wide open country, cattle rustling, Apache warriors, the fair maiden and the crotchety father, barroom brawls and gunslingers, and a taste of the lonely trail.
Starting with movie adaptations in the 1930s, then moving to weekly television in the early '50s William Boyd's Hoppy was as popular as Tom Nix, Gene Autry, and Roy Rogers, and by the late 50s Wagon Train, Rawhide, Gunsmoke, and Bonanza. Seems like every America boy had a black cowboy outfit with twin six-shooters and a silver buckle belt.
Starting with movie adaptations in the 1930s, then moving to weekly television in the early '50s William Boyd's Hoppy was as popular as Tom Nix, Gene Autry, and Roy Rogers, and by the late 50s Wagon Train, Rawhide, Gunsmoke, and Bonanza. Seems like every America boy had a black cowboy outfit with twin six-shooters and a silver buckle belt.
December 23, 2022
Louis L'Amour denied having written this while he was alive, but as his son notes in an informative afterward for the hardcover edition, L'Amour was a captivating storyteller. He needn't have worried about whether his relative inexperience as a writer was showing here, because he does the legend of Hopalong Cassidy proud, as Hopalong Cassidy's creator had hoped he might.
While this doesn't have the depth of L'Amour's novels about the Sackett family, it's entertaining as all get out, and it's got everything you could want in a "horse opera."
While this doesn't have the depth of L'Amour's novels about the Sackett family, it's entertaining as all get out, and it's got everything you could want in a "horse opera."
August 5, 2023
This was the very first Western I read, from a school library, and is responsible for a lifelong passion for the genre, including the typefont over saloons that one sees in the best spaghetti Western films. (As usual, there comes a point when one parts with dearly beloved books and mine were donated to the same school.) At that time, I didn't connect Louis L'amour with Hopalong Cassidy, but it was a great pleasure to meet them both again after sixty five years. And if time has got me inured to the genre, the book itself gave me all the pleasure I felt at ten years.
January 13, 2023
No wonder he denied with Hoppy books. Has Hoppy going down a creek that ends up 3000 feet higher in a snowstorm. Duh. Water runs downhill. And a few hundred stupid things, like rubbing horses legs when it crossed a stream and taking saddles off in Indian country after a 4 hour ride. Also, always having a fire and COFFEE. He obviously just needed the money. Also a WHITE HAIRED GUNMAN going incognito. Lol
June 8, 2023
I’ve read a lot of Louis L’Amour books and wasn’t sure what to expect from this Hopalong Cassidy story. But after reading it I look forward to reading the others in the series. This was a great read with a great plot, lots of twists and turns and action! It starts a little slow but once the action starts it doesn’t stop. At the back of the book is a brief history of how L’Amour came to write the few Hopalong stories that he did. All in all it’s a good adventure and very well written.
January 8, 2018
I liked this book, but I didn't really enjoy it. I really like the character Mesquite Jenkins, he reminded me of a Clint Eastwood character. I got some of the Outlaw characters mixed up throughout the story so it was confusing at times. But I liked the story and I recommend it to any western genre fans.
August 3, 2021
Hopalong Cassidy the gun slinger is out to save the day again. Famous fast draw and military tactics are called into play as he is after another rustler. It is amazing how fun this novel is considering that it is full of people being shot and dying. If you’re looking into trying out a western you could do worse than this series.
Joseph McKnight
http://www.josephmcknight.com
Joseph McKnight
http://www.josephmcknight.com
September 13, 2020
This is a book series that Louis never claimed to write but he did according to his son, Beau. This is the second book in the Hopalong Cassidy series. In this book Cassidy and two of his friends help an old man and his daughter in saving their ranch.
February 7, 2021
Nice beginning to the 4 novels of Cassidy by L'amour (under the penname Tex Burns), who denied writing them til the day he died. In this one, Cassidy sells cattle for a rancher, who unbeknownst to him is being held prisoner with said rancher's daughter at his ranch.
July 31, 2021
Good read actually one of four books written by Louis L'Amour under the pen name of Tex Burns. I enjoyed the book so much I think it should be made into a movie. For people who enjoy good westerns, I highly recommend this book
March 4, 2022
This is a great tale in the series that feature Hopalong Cassidy. In this tale, Hop saves the day, but he is assisted by a number of his associates. This is another great adventure, and it is very well written by the master story teller, Louis L'Amour.
June 26, 2023
(1951) Surprised that the main character happens to be Hopalong Cassidy who faces numerous problems trying to help a man and his daughter. Lots of mystery as he never really knows who is for or against his mission.
January 15, 2024
Great read, my 1st Hopalong Cassidy!
I enjoyed it immensely, but it has to go a fur piece to match up with Last of the Breed and The Walking Drum. Those two are my favorites and it'll be a cold day in purgatory before another story beats them.
I enjoyed it immensely, but it has to go a fur piece to match up with Last of the Breed and The Walking Drum. Those two are my favorites and it'll be a cold day in purgatory before another story beats them.
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