Telegraph Days

A Novel

By: Larry McMurtry

Narrated by: Annie Potts

Winner of the 2007 Audie Award for Solo Narration—Female and Finalist for Fiction, Unabridged

From the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Lonesome Dove comes a big, brilliant, unputdownable saga of the Old West, told in the spunky courageous voice of a young woman named Nellie Courtright.

When twenty-two-year-old Nellie Courtright and her teenage brother Jackson are unexpectedly orphaned by their father’s suicide on his new and unprosperous ranch, they make their way to the nearby town of Rita Blanca, where Jackson manages to secure a job as a sheriff's deputy, while Nellie, ever resourceful, becomes the town’s telegrapher.

Together, they inadvertently put Rita Blanca on the map when young Jackson succeeds in shooting down all six of the ferocious Yazee brothers in a gunfight that brings him lifelong fame, but which he can never repeat because his success came purely out of luck.

Propelled by her own energy and commonsense approach to life, Nellie meets and almost conquers the heart of Buffalo Bill, the man she will love most in her long life, and goes on to meet, and witness the exploits of, Billy the Kid, the Earp brothers, and Doc Holliday. She even gets a ringside seat at the Battle at the O.K. Corral, the most famous gunfight in Western history, and eventually lives long enough to see the West and its gunfighters turned into movies.

Full of life, love, shootouts, real Western heroes, and villains, Telegraph Days is Larry McMurtry at his epic best.©2006 Larry McMurtry. All rights reserved.; (P) 2006 Simon & Schuster Inc. All rights reserved.

Not the worst book I ever listened to

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Maybe, if they were an Annie Potts fan.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

Listening to Annie Potts was very enjoyable. The plot was a little on the silly side, especially if you are expecting another Lonesome Dove.

What does Annie Potts bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Just a very pleasant voice with an accent that seems very appropriate for the subject matter.

Great voice

Like most Larry McMurtry reads … it’s a good one. Nelly’s voice is compelling and the story becomes more and more believable the more you listen. Highly recomend

Female Gus McCrae

I'm a big fan of the lonesome dove series and looked forward to this story as another saga by Larry McMurtry. I guess I have a tendency to measure all of his novels by that standard which leaves me lacking for more. having said that, this was a fun story and the narrator does a great job of telling the story and bringing the characters to life.

Its not lonesome dove, but well worth the effort.

Annie Potts is Perfect

A fun romp through the last years of the old West. What a hoot! Every major personalty of the era pplays a role. So fun. The dialog is hilarious. Approaches True Grit, at least in sporit.

prominent characters, perspective on historical events

I enjoyed hearing early and later years of the main character. cheerful voice. subject matter