Charles Portis

Norwood Pratt meets a series of odd characters on his trip from Ralph, Texas to New York City.

Norwood

Sent on a mission to New York he gets involved in a wild journey that takes him in and out of stolen cars, freight trains, and buses. By the time he returns home to Texas, Norwood has met his true love, Rita Lee, on a bus; befriended the second shortest midget in show business and “the world's smallest perfect fat man†?; and helped Joann “the chicken with a college education,†? realize her true potential in life. As with all Portis’ fiction, the tone is cool, sympathetic, and funny.

Andrew John Kinney

This is the third book by Charles Portis which I've read, and I would be interested to re-read True Grit to examine how Portis develops the character of Mattie Ross. In the other two I have read, Dog of the South and now Norwood, the women who populate the stories are not strong, intelligent females (to say the least), but Mattie Ross is the quintessential strong, determined woman. Maybe I just have not read enough of Portis' novels. And I suppose the grandmother in Dog of the South, though a bit odd, could be considered strong.

Norwood has a lot in common with the protagonist of Dog of the South in his lack of sophistication. I wonder sometimes if Portis enjoyed imagining how his Arkansas compatriots saw him, the highly literate journalist and editor, and decided to write books from the point of view of the uneducated man for that reason. There is always an erudite misfit in his novels, the Struther Martin character in the 1969 film version of True Grit being a fine exemplar of the type, and most of these characters' witty banter flies over the head of the small town rube protagonist, with much comedic effect. So it is in Norwood.

Norwood is an easy read, with a good bit of comedy and enjoyable dialogue, but I preferred Dog of the South, and I preferred True Grit to either of the other books. That said, I've enjoyed all three, and I have hugely enjoyed getting to know Charles Portis' work, however belatedly.

Ryan LaFerney

If you haven't read Charles Portis, famed author of True Grit, what are you doing with your life? 

Portis’s first novel kicks off what is to be a central theme in all his books: the road trip. In each of his books, the central character embarks on a quest, even if it’s a small one, in which they encounter colorful characters and danger. 

In Norwood, it’s ex-Marine and aspiring hillbilly music playing Norwood Pratt. Giving you a description of the book almost feels wrong, because there are so many strange and wonderful aspects, they seem best served as a surprise. But here goes: Norwood is hired by sketchy Grady Fring (The Kredit King) to drive an Oldsmobile from Texas to New York City. It turns out Norwood's mission is nothing more than a fool's errand in the end and well, New York City ain't fit for a man of Norwood's demeanor.

Really the story is about how life happens through our daily encounters. Along the way on his journey, Norwood meets the second-shortest midget in show business; a woman who steals his heart; and a college-educated chicken. 

This book is flat-out hilarious and its truth lies in the journey you go with Norwood. Don't pass this book up.