This book by Charles Portis is considered a classic, and it deserves the title. I normally don’t review fiction books, but decided to review this one because it was the recent selection of our “Denver Read and Feed” book club. The main character of the story is fourteen year old Mattie Ross, who is on a mission to avenge the murder of her father at the hands of a hired hand who had been treated kindly by the father. Tom Chaney had not only killed her father but had taken his horse, $150 in cash, and two California gold pieces. Mattie hired Marshall Rooster Cogburn (played by John Wayne in the first movie) and they were joined by a Texas Ranger named LaBoeuf (pronounced LaBeef) who is also seeking Tom Clancy for another murder. 

One book club member who reviewed a draft of this review commented that it doesn’t have enough information “…about the characters,the scene, the mood, the story line, or the writing style.” That’s all true, and I will refer to the many reviews on Amazon that can fill in that information (because I’m too lazy to add it myself.) Better yet, read the book. You’ll be glad you did.

I’m going to first put aside some quibbles I have with the story and then turn the review over to some selected comments recorded by some members of the book club. The first quibble is mention of a drummer staying in the boarding house with Mattie and others who sold “pocket calculators.” Various other True Grit fans have tried to figure this out also. One theory was that it referred to an “Addiator,” but those weren’t made until about 1920 and the time frame for the story is about 1870. There was a “Gem” calculator made in England between about 1880 and 1890, but it was used to calculate English money. One credible idea is that the reference was to slide rules, which were around in the proper time frame.

Another quibble is that newspaper editors were called “cheap skates.” I’ve described the origin of that term on the expression link of this web site, and it is said to not have come into existence in late 1800s to describe a worn out horse or “second-rate sportsman.” It was also used to describe roller skates made beginning in the early 1900s that were literally so cheap that it was difficult to keep them on. Also in the early 1900s there was a panhandler named Kate who became wealthy but continued to beg. People began to say about thrifty people that they were as “cheap as Kate,” which soon evolved into “cheapskate.”

There is a description of Mattie fetching water for the evening campsite, and she was staggering under the weight of two buckets. Rooster told her she looked like a “hog on ice.” The origin of that term was the first posting on the expression link of this web site. Hogs are said to be more or less helpless on ice, because their hooves do not give them traction. Anyone looking clumsy could be described described as a “hog on ice.” It also was used to describe someone who is so full of themselves that they ignore others and charge ahead without regard for consequences.

I will concede that the historical “inconsistencies” might have resulted from the fact the author (Mattie) was “writing” several years or decades after the events described in the book. Regardless, I consider this to be a wonderful book!

I’ll now turn the review to the book club members, who gave the book an above average score of 7.6 on a scale of 1 to 10.

Steve—”I found the book somewhat appealing. It had some great narratives… (7)

Sheryl—”Fun to read. I liked the movie better.” (6)

Farrel—”Interesting book despite some…inaccuracies. (8)

Stephanie—”Hilarious dialogue and a fun story…I liked Mattie Ross and found the story interesting.”(7)

Barb—”I love the use of language in this book and the story is genuinely gripping.” (A later email comment added, “I think Mattie’s early adventure with Rooster and LeBoeuf spoiled her for less dramatic relationships, and that’s why she never married.” (9)

Cathy—”Once I got started, I really enjoyed it. I liked Mattie. Rooster annoyed me at times, but I thought it was a good story.” (7)

Paul—”Even a hick 14-year old doesn’t speak like this. Regardless, she was annoying. I kept thinking, ‘I don’t care’.” (5)

Sally—”I loved this book. It was an engaging and quick read. I loved Mattie Ross…” (9)

Tara–True Grit was interesting but not believable.” (8)

Frank—I liked this book and liked the feeling and I guess the sense of time. It was great. (9)