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Fans of Elmore Leonard's later works, mostly crime and police procedurals, may be surprised to learn that the expertly crafted dialogue and characterizations of his later books and stories began in a western setting.

Here, Leonard describes the laconic and quietly heroic John Russell, the eponymous Hombre. Russell had been raised by people of the Apache nation and members of the local Arizona territory community are not sure what to do with him or how to treat him. When outlaws rob a stagecoach, Russell finds himself in the awkward position of assisting the same people who earlier would not give him the time of day.

But even in 1961, Leonard was too good to just tell this straight and he mixes in plenty of backstory and subplots to keep this already slim volume moving. He explores crime and cruelty and justice and also the harsh realities of the west. Told from a first person perspective of a fellow passenger, we have a third party describing the accolades due to Russell and shame at how he was treated, though Leonard provides an objective narrative on plenty of human rights violations all around.

An excellent, literary western.