New Westers: The West in Contemporary American Culture by Michael L. Johnson (review)

300 Western American Literature Exceedingly well written and thoroughly documented, the book would have bene­ fited by a time-line chronology and list of Peckinpah’s works, but there is little else to complain of in this thorough study of one American artist’s work, his pain, and his incredible contribution to our culture. C la y R e y n o ld s D ento n , Texas New Westers: The West in Contemporary American Culture. By Michael L. Johnson. (Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 1996. 408 pages, $29.95.) In terms that Johnson adapts from Tony Hillerman, “Wester . . . refers to a person whose fantasies do take place in the West, who enjoys the scenery there, wants to live life outdoors, wears jeans.” The “Old Wester” likes John Wayne, refuses to give up guns and exploitive “boomer” behavior that he—gender intended—regards as Manifest Destiny, and he might actually have gotten close to a cow. A “New Wester” is “any per­ son who more or less recently has developed (or redeveloped) an extraordinary interest in the American West.” Probably, but not quite necessarily, he or she is conscious of the environment and of Native Americans and of the role played by the really Old Westers in damaging both, and he or she is a “sticker”—while unconsciously, and ironically, imposing a kinder and gentler type of Manifest Destiny. To illustrate the distinction, Johnson uses an impressive number of sources to dis­ cuss “Cowboy Chic” in clothing, Tumerian and anti-Tumerian theories of history, the contrast between old and new western literature, the revisionist spirit in film, the new cowboy music, and places that characterize the New West. He concludes with a modest and slightly optimistic discussion of ways to save the West from those who love it. The book is most valuable as an annotated bibliography and source book, for Johnson draws many of his details and almost all of his generalizations from the work of others. He summarizes, for example, multi-authored collections essay by essay and sometimes quotes critics quoting. The book is least effective not when Johnson is least original—his surveys and summaries taught me a great deal—but when he is most. Discussions of recent books and music sometimes sound like dust-jacket blurbs. And too often he strains, through archaism, pseudo-folksy similes, and lapel-grabbing language, to make the West seem entertaining. He takes the West seriously; he should have trusted the reader to do so. New Westers is not a great book, but it is a very good one that should be read not only by newcomers but by everyone who thinks that she or he knows all there is to know about the West. R o b e r t M u r r a y D av is Un iv e r sity o f O klah o m a Caught Inside: A Surfer’ s Year on the California Coast. By Daniel Duane. (New York: North Point Press, 1996. 239 pages, $21.00.) In his first book, Lighting Out: A Vision of California and the Mountains, Daniel Duane focused on the Golden State through the lens of two of its many subcultures: rock climbers of Yosemite Valley and New-Agers of Berkeley. It’s an engaging, if youthful, memoir; Duane exercises an observant eye and ear on every page. His second ...