The Cowboy and the Cossack

Project: Nancy Pearl’s Book Lust Rediscoveries

By: Clair Huffaker / Narrated By: Phil Gigante

Length: 12 hrs and 41 mins

loved it! Loved It!! LOVED IT!!!

First off, Amazon tells me I’ve had The Cowboy and the Cossack in my Library since Feb. 22, 2014!!! How on EARTH did such a freakin’ DAZZLER escape my attention for soooo long?!

Okay, welll, I kinda know how, and lemme tell you so as to give you fair warning about the beginning of the audiobook.

It’s like this, see: I haaaate it when narrators do all sorts of vocal juggling/gyrations in efforts to distinguish between characters. So when we pick up in this story… FIFTEEN cowboys are on a ship and are about ready to dock in Russia. FIFTEEN! Too many friggin’ characters, thought I, as I began listening to this on 2 occasions before. And Phil Gigante does distinct voices for each of the FIFTEEN cowboys as each will be part of the story in big ways. What WAS author Clair Huffaker thinking? Surely Huffaker understands that so many is simply toooo many for ANY book? Add to it all, the Cossacks which are introduced early on, around fourteen/fifteen/sixteen Cossacks (I can’t tell you how many exactly because even on this 3rd time, m’ head was swimming with trying to keep track of them all!)? Too many! Toooo many!

And yessss, Gigante is doing voices. Many many voices. Throw in two Black cowboys, a Mexican cowboy, an Indian (Using the text’s terminology there, don’t bite m’ head off). Add aaaalll the Cossacks from their leader all the way down to a young Cossack struggling through English? Good cow, was I getting dizzy, or what?!

Ahhhhh, but then!

I just settled in and let the story evolve, and oh my gosh, it was WONderful!

Young Levi is our narrator, and this is all based upon a diary he kept throughout the journey. It starts on the ship with 500 cows they (FIFTEEN cowboys) have been hired to ride to a destination in Russia. It starts with a bang, pretty much, because a shameless commander of the harbor is peeved with the head cowboy, Shad, and his blatant lack of respect for the creep. No, he will NOT pay a bribe, and yes he WILL start their drive into the heartland of Russia. But the harbor dude nixes this, so Shad, under cover of the night, has the men unload AAAALLLL 500 cattle and AAAALLLL fifteen cowboys… into… uhm… the ice cold waters, counting on horses and cattle to swim.

BANG, I’m telling ya!

This enraaaages the commander, and things are about to get pretty ugly when a group of Cossacks descends upon them all, frightening the commander and his men well nigh to death. Too bad for Russian bureaucrats.

Too bad also, however, in that this group of Cossacks WILL be escorting the cowboys and the steers whether they want assistance or not. Shad and the leader of the Cossacks, Rostov, eye each other suspiciously thereafter, and each mutters ominous words about how poorly the relationship will end when the journey does.

But neither Shad, nor young Levi, or Rostov for that matter, can know what’s in store for them. This is the journey, and about halfway through is the ol’ switcheroo where each cowboy has to decide for himself what Freedom means, and each will have to decide what’s worth living for, worth fighting for and, if necessary (And most likely!), worth dying for.

Beautifully done!!!

Each character, yes! every single one of them, cowboy and Cossack, evolves in a creatively spectacular fashion. To say I cried? Oh good golly gosh, wept like a baby!

And Phil Gigante! By the time I was 1/3 of the way through this gorgeously written story, I could tell which character was speaking at ANY given moment; that juggling paid off, and it seemed absoLUTEly effortless so soon into it all. There’s action, adventure, extreeeeme violence done by a band of bloodthirsty Tartars hellbent on killing all in their path. There’s wildlife, and contemplations about Nature. There’s even a lovely little bit of Romance that near ‘bout broke m’ danged heart it was so beautifully captured and conveyed. Whether Gigante was doing a cowboy, a Cossack, or a shy Russian girl, lo and behold, how skillfully rendered it all was!

I can’t tell you what all happens as there’s no strict plot. Rather, this is a novel of characters and friendships, of men turning into better men. It’s of the ultimate of sacrifices, the beauty and selflessness of good and true companions. It’s a discovery of like-minds, despite the cultural differences.

It’s of seeing with your heart rather than just thinking with your head.

I got this early on, as I mentioned, cuz kindle was having a “Nancy Pearl’s Book Lust Rediscoveries” sale with the paired audiobook for a measly 1.99. I was fairly astounded at the time that so many of these “rediscoveries” had fairly low star-ratings, and I kinda sorta (EsPECially when I made those first 2 attempts!) assumed that The Cowboy and the Cossack deserved its 3 1/2-stars with how craaaaazy its beginning was (By the way? In the intervening years, it is NOW rated at 4 1/2-stars!). It was, like, who is this Nancy Pearl, and why are all her choices duds?

Since then, many remain lower-rated, but this one? Might I bump the rating up, even if only a taaaad? by submitting to you that it’s a solid 5-stars? Beautifully written scenes and characters who have the most treMENdous arcs of growth, friendships to die for (Literally). Add the most extrAORdinary narration?

Not a dry eye in this room, lemme tell ya. Can’t wait for y’all to give it a go; pleeeeeease do!

You will NOT regret the almost 13-hours that fly by cuz you’re having fun? or cuz you’re shedding a soft tear or two…