The Bitterroots

At last a day we don’t have to go down to Preston. We have a whole weekend to recover.

 

I’m in the midst of making a really hot spicy sauce in which I’m going to warm up some leftover roast pork. Something different. All I’ll need to do this evening is warm up the sauce & cook some rice. Quick & easy.

 

Meanwhile I’ve been reading “The Bitterroots” by CJ Box. Box is a favoured writer for the Fox. It was one of the last library books I had yet to read - the Fox had already finished it. I do hope libraries open soon or we’ll be having to buy books in our desperation. Now I can understand why the Fox is so keen on this author, though he prefers the Joe Pickett series of novels rather than the Cassie Dewell ones as this one is.

 

This novel, essentially a detective story, captures so much of the landscape & life in Montana, USA, a part of the world I know little about. It made me think & possibly gain a greater understanding of American life & culture that I’ve not appreciated before.

 

One thing that really struck home was just how vast a state it is, & with so few people living there. In many ways it sounds fabulous with its Rockies & flowing rivers. However, you suddenly realised how, in such remote places, it is easy for a bully, or family or bullies, to take over an area. Any protection from the police could take hours to come to the rescue.  Maybe that’s part of the reason why Americans feel the need to bear arms. When you could be attacked by wild animals, bears for example, or violent burglars, you would feel the need to defend yourself  a gun or rifle may give you some sense of security. Though, to my mind, that is no reason for machine guns, bazookas etc. It makes you realise that it could turn into the Wild West & you would have to depend on your own resources for survival unless the Magnificent Seven ride into the rescue.

 

I am not trying to suggest that Montana is the Wild West. I’m sure it is a state filled with some very nice people too. It’s just that bad ones make for a more exciting novel. And maybe some of my thoughts are a reflection of living in a much more densely populated country like England.