The Log of a Cowboy
Andy Adams
Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022)
The Log of a Cowboy is an account of a five-month drive of 3,000 cattle from Brownsville, Texas, to Montana in 1882 along the Great Western Cattle Trail. Although the book is fiction, it is firmly based on Adams's own experiences on the trail, and it is considered by many to be the best account of cowboy life in literature. Adams was disgusted by the unrealistic cowboy fiction being published in his day; The Log of a Cowboy was his response. It is still in print, and even modern reviewers consider it a compelling classic. The Chicago Herald said: "As a narrative of cowboy life, Andy Adams' book is clearly the real thing. It carries its own certificate of authentic first-hand experience on every page." (Introduction by Wikipedia) (9 hr 54 min)
Chapters
| 01 - Up The Trail | 15:44 | Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022) |
| 02 - Receiving | 27:04 | Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022) |
| 03 - The Start | 18:10 | Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022) |
| 04 - The Atascosa | 25:25 | Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022) |
| 05 - A Dry River | 21:09 | Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022) |
| 06 - A Reminiscent Night | 20:36 | Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022) |
| 07 - The Colorado | 27:32 | Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022) |
| 08 - On the Brazos And Wichita | 27:26 | Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022) |
| 09 - Doan's Crossing | 21:14 | Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022) |
| 10 - No Man's Land | 35:06 | Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022) |
| 11 - A Boggy Ford | 28:34 | Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022) |
| 12 - The North Fork | 15:36 | Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022) |
| 13 - Dodge | 35:53 | Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022) |
| 14 - Slaughter's Bridge | 33:56 | Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022) |
| 15 - The Beaver | 12:12 | Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022) |
| 16 - The Republican | 26:58 | Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022) |
| 17 - Ogalalla | 27:03 | Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022) |
| 18 - The North Platte | 20:17 | Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022) |
| 19 - Forty Islands Ford | 31:03 | Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022) |
| 20 - A Moonlight Drive | 30:29 | Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022) |
| 21 - The Yellowstone | 31:55 | Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022) |
| 22 - Our Last Campfire | 21:49 | Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022) |
| 23 - Delivery | 26:47 | Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022) |
| 24 - Back To Texas | 12:47 | Read by Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022) |
Reviews
Fantastic! Loaded with authenticity!
Ancient Aunt
This is a stellar story about a wide range of things that happened on an extended cattle drive -- both the ordinary and the extraordinary. Five months' worth of stories, as they travelled from the Mexican/Texas border all the way north to Montana. You'll learn way more than you ever could from watching a string of westerns. I enjoyed every mile of their adventure, with the exception of the bears near the very end. I highly recommend this to everyone! And this Librivox volunteer did a fantastic reading job as well :)
great reader pleasant old time book
jaded_grl
the reader is excellent and easy to understand. the book is a true account and has all the classic features of a cattle drive. drought, campfire tales, stampede, indian etc. Not really exciting, but holds your interest. good book for young and old readers alike.
Johnnie P.
mostly well written, racially derogatory, (long time ago) and didn't care for incident with bear, other wise it was pretty good story, very well read... and surprisingly accurate can tell Adams actually had some real trail riding experience.. I am closer to 60 then i am 50, and my grandfather was an actual trail riding cowboy, but he was old when my mom was born. but I have some first hand experience at cowboying, and old timer's tales of old day's long gone... and Andy must of had some riding experience.
A real cowboy
TheBookworm
A 3000 mile cattle drive from Texas to Montana in 1882 narrated by someone who knew. For those of us whose knowledge of the cowboy comes from Hollywood, this is a wonderful eyeopener to the hardships, skills, and intelligence of this now lost breed of men. Many thanks to the reader. TheBookworm (Manchester, UK)
A-ONE
Avid Listener
A thoroughly interesting adventure, all the more enjoyable because of its factual nature. I learned a lot about thue cattle drives and the amazing amount of different challenges which had to be met daily. Many thanks to the author for his low-key distribution of knowledge, and kudos to Richard Kilmer for making it real.
Sounds like my Grandpa
Yvonne , Cedar Creek , Texas
Wonderful real life story. My Grandpa had the life of a real Texas cowboy and man. We lived together in the old home ranch in Texas. It was the best life four kids could had. This story sounds like my Grandpa telling us about his growing up days.
History of a Cattle Drive
Dragonflyer
EXCELLENTLY read log of a real cow drive. It was so interesting and informative and I was struck by the grit and the spirit of the men who were able to endure this life and create the foundation for growth of America.
Log of a Cowboy.
A LibriVox Listener
This is a very detailed account of what it was like to work a cattle drive in the past. I spent several nights listening to the narration and enjoyed it a lot.