Short listed for 2011 Booker Prize
Five words from the blurb: Old West, brothers, humour, melancholy, violent
Lonesome Dove is the only Western that I’ve read and although I enjoyed it, I found it a bit too long. The Sisters Brothers has a similar style to Lonesome Dove, but it is like a tightly honed version. All the excessive flabby bits have been removed to leave a well plotted, entertaining tale set during the American Gold Rush.
Eli and Charlie Sisters are brothers with very different personalities. Charlie will do anything to make money – killing anyone who gets in his way; whilst Eli wants to pack in their violent lifestyle and settle down with a wife. Their different outlook on life generates a string of gently humoured arguments, giving a warm banter that made me smile throughout.
‘I don’t like it,’ he said. ‘I think it’s foolish.’
‘Think what you like. Our Dr. Watts says my teeth will never rot if I use the brush dependably.’
Charlie remained skeptical. He told me I looked like a rabid beast with my mouth full of foam. I countered that I would prefer to look like one for minutes each day rather than smell like one all through my life, and this marked the end of our toothbrush conversation.
The brothers are hired to kill a powerful man and set off (on their less than perfect horses!) in search of their victim. They have numerous adventures on the way, but the main focus of the book remains the relationship between the brothers. I didn’t particularly like either brother, but found their banter endlessly entertaining.
The writing was simple, but engaging and I flew through the book in a couple of sittings. My only criticism is that this managed to make the Booker long list. It is an enjoyable read, but apart from a few pages about what makes a man “great” this book has little literary merit.
It is an enjoyable read and the perfect introduction to Westerns, but I’m hoping it doesn’t make the Booker short list.
.,
The thoughts of other bloggers:
deWitt’s storytelling is head and shoulders above a lot of his better reviewed contemporaries. Book Atlas
…..even when the story becomes more contemplative you can only take the notion of a hired gunslinger with a heart so far. Kevin From Canada
…it was slick, hilariously funny, inevitably sad, and very quirky, as well as being extremely strong visually. Gaskella
) has just gone straight on my wish list. The point is that none of these books are likely to have been submitted for the Booker and so they will have been looking for enjoyable books amongst a pile of miserable, but worthy selections.
, 
and 
were all books I considered adding to my long list, but gut instinct (which I’m sure will be wrong!) persuaded me not to include these books.
and 
, but in the end decided that other books were stronger. I have a feeling I’ll be kicking myself for not adding one of them though!
, but Ida Hattemer-Higgins’ globe trotting life means that I’m unsure of her nationality. I presume that her American birth means she has US citizenship, but if she happens to have gained dual nationality then her book definitely has the quality to make the Booker short list. Either way I’ll just keep my fingers crossed that The History of History gets the attention that it deserves.
has been suggested by many people, but when I tried it last week I discovered that I was about 30 years too young to fully appreciate it. The Booker judges this year are on the younger side and so I decided it probably wouldn’t make the cut.
has been receiving lots of praise in Canada and it was shortlisted for the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize this year. I’m sure I’ll love it and it is good enough for the Booker, but I wonder whether it will have been nominated and so have left it off my final prediction.
is another book that I considered adding, but again I think the publishers may have submitted other books instead. Watch out for it on next year’s Orange list though!
, but decided that Waterline probably has the edge over it.
