McMurtry shines with ‘Rhino Ranch’
Readers first met the character Duane Moore in Larry McMurtry’s novel “The Last Picture Show.” Duane’s adventurous life was further documented in three more of McMurtry’s books — “Texasville,” “Duane’s Depressed,” and “When The Light Goes.”
Now in the novel, “Rhino Ranch,” McMurtry gives his character a fitting farewell with a story of an old man trying to keep up with modern ways that he just doesn’t quite seem to understand.
Riding out his last bad marriage, Duane has come back to his hometown of Thalia, which has been turned upside down with an influx of new neighbors — a bunch of black African rhinoceroses. Rich lady K.K. Slater has brought a herd of the beasts onto the land next to Duane’s property with plans to turn the prairie into a game preserve. But the townsfolk are none too keen on this new project. K.K. turns to Duane for his advice on small-town politics. However, Duane, who has been gone for a long spell, is almost considered as much of an outsider to Thalia as K.K. is, and doesn’t know what to tell his sexy new neighbor about the town he can’t seem to recognize.
Life is speeding by Duane at a lightning pace, and all he wants to do is retreat to his old cabin on the banks of the Little Wichita River and remember the good times and the good friends who are no longer around. He finds unlikely companionship and friendship with an old rhino bull named Double Aught, who seems to understand Duane’s loneliness as his life winds down.
Long known as a master of words, Larry McMurtry’s literary expertise shines in this gentle novel. His descriptions of the lonesome North Texas prairie and the small town antics are spot-on, right down to the chicken fried steak dinners at the Dairy Queen. Wrapping up the stories of characters that are loved by Texans and literary fans world over, McMurtry brings the stories of Thalia to a sweet and graceful end.
