Louis Lamour Book Reviews

Perhaps the most interesting aspect of Vancouter Allen’s character in “The Sackett Brand” is his name.  Until I read “The Sackett Brand” I had never heard of or seen the name Vancouter.  A bit of research turns up very little information, though I am sure that Louis L’amour had a good reason for choosing the name.

Like many of L’amour’s villains, Vancouter Allen is fairly one dimensional.  He commits the tragic sin of harming a white woman in the west.  In his case he goes so far as to murder Ange Kerry (Sackett), which is of course a hanging offense.  Unfortunately we get to see little more of his personality.  Partially because for 90% of the book he is off stage, but mostly because the other evidences of his personality are absent.

L’amour has the ability and uses it often in other works to portray his characters off stage very well - either through subtle hints about how they behave when tracked or through the way other characters react.  Vancouter Allen is curiously absent from conversation and from the landscape throughout the story.  As a serial rapist and murderer he could have been one of the most interesting characters L’amour wrote about, but unfortunately he turned out to be little more than a vague shadowy evil that never really materialized.

“The Sackett Brand” is one of Louis L’amour’s books where geography plays an integral part.  As Tell Sackett chases the Lazy A cowboys around the Mogollon Rim, he describes in great detail a number of highly recognizable landmarks, including Diamond Butte, Salt Lick Canyon, the Tonto, and Buckhead Mesa.

Lamour’s attention to detail and knowledge of the area, as always are superb.  I found myself wanting to visit Black mesa to try to find the point where Tell was shot and discover for myself what the territory in Arizona must have been like in the post civil war decades.

It is very possible from Lamour’s descriptions of the area to piece together a passable map or schematic of the area and more or less follow Tell’s movement through the territory.

William Tell Sackett is, like all of the Sacketts tough as nails and ready for anything.  “The Sackett Brand” casts Tell in a different light than we find him in the movie “The Sacketts.”

The book starts off with Tell being shot, and then describes his efforts to survive and avenge not only his shooting, but the murder of his wife.  Tell is different from his brother Tyrel in that he is not so fast with a gun, and much slower to violence.  Also he does not have the charisma or charm of Orrin.

Tell’s most distinguishing trait is his uncanny mountaineering ability.  Though all of the Sacketts are able trackers, Tell persists for weeks among men who are actively hunting him and manages to not only evade them but continues to turn the tables against them.

Tell is also definitely the least conversational of the Sacketts, but in many ways is the most loveable.  His awkwardness has a charm all its own, and his selflessness and thoughtfulness for others stands in stark contrast to the many other cowboys who sought only wealth or improvement for themselves.