Duane's Depressed by Larry McMurtry


I just finished reading Duane's Depressed by Larry McMurty and I have to say that I couldn't have enjoyed a book more.  In the first place, I love McMurtry and have read several of his works.  This book is the third in the series of The Last Picture Show.  In this book, Duane Moore is now sixty one years old and at a crossroads of his life.  He makes one monumental decision involving his pick-up truck and that decision leads to a chain of events that changes his, and others, lives forever.


Had I read this book ten years ago, or even five for that matter, I don't think I  would have identified with it quite like I have now.  So many things that Duane worked through are things that I have thought about myself.  McMurtry seems to have a great working knowledge of human nature so I suppose the situations that the main character had to work through are sort of universal but I still thought it to be very timely for me.  Also, it is amazing to see how one simple, personal decision by one individual can impact so many people in so many different ways.  The range of emotion expressed in this book is broad -- it is funny, it is poignant, it is straight up sad, hopeless yet hopeful and, in the end, peaceful.

It is a great book and I would recommend it, mostly to people of a similar age.

Loop Group -- Larry McMurtry

I just finished "Loop Group" by Larry McMurtry and it is a definite recommend. It is easy to read, funny, typical Mc Murtry. It is about Maggie and Connie, two aging "hot, foxy" women who manage a loop group. Maggie has undergone a life changing surgery and isn't dealing well with it. Connie, her ever-needy friend is always there to help -- or hinder -- depends. The two women deal with their troubled children, their troubled loop group and their troubled romantic lives -- and they take a trip to Texas. This is the sort of book that really lets you escape for the day and wallow in sheer entertainment.