Order of A.B. Guthrie, Jr. Books

Born in 1901, A.B. Guthrie, Jr. became one of America's most celebrated western novelists and screenwriters before his death in 1991. His love for literature began early—he was an avid reader as a child and attempted writing fiction during his high school years. After studying journalism in college, Guthrie spent over two decades working at the Lexington Leader newspaper, using his free afternoons to craft the fiction that would eventually make him famous.

Guthrie's literary achievements include winning the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for his novel The Way West, and he earned an Academy Award nomination for his screenplay adaptation of the beloved western film Shane, originally written by Jack Schaefer. Among his works was the Sheriff Chick Charleston series, showcasing his talent for creating compelling recurring characters.

His publishing career spanned nearly five decades, beginning with his 1943 debut novel Murders at Moon Dance, a western mystery that established his voice in the genre. He remained productive well into his later years, publishing his final novel Murder in the Cotswolds in 1989, followed by the instructional work A Field Guide to Writing Fiction. He also published a story collection titled The Big It and Other Stories, which is sometimes known as Mountain Medicine.

One of his most notable works, The Big Sky, follows the adventures of Boone Caudill, Jim Deakins, and Dick Summers as they journey from St. Louis to the Rocky Mountains. These versatile frontiersmen work as trappers, traders, guides, and explorers, with young Kentuckian Caudill driven by an insatiable desire to discover new territories.