Louis Lamour Book Reviews

Aunt Madge is my favorite character in Louis Lamour’s Callagen.  She is the wise woman who guides the romantic couple and protects the younger characters from harm.

Thoush she is clearly a stock character, patterned after the ever present nurse in the plays of Shakespeare and Johnson, L’amour does an excellent job of making her interesting and enjoyable.  She has the right answers to the right questions at the right time.  She is all around loveable and interesting.  Even her interactions with the less important characters build interest.

When they find the Delaware, The Stick Walker, in the desert, it is Aunt Madge who gives him water and draws his attention.  Though Callaghen could have easily performed the necessary action to move the story forward, L’amour does an excellent job of giving a lesser character an opportunity to shine.