True Grit: A Novel

Charles Portis wrote a wonderful story of a time and era gone by and is all but buried. A time when certain manors were expected of people in public and in which our main character Mattie, comes across that at least two of these characters do not agree with her and accuse her as being a run away to try to get rid of her. She is a quick study and uses her "new" manors to quickly be used in a way to help her cause.

If the reader has not read the Bible thoroughly and familiar with U.S. History as well as Church History one might misunderstand much of what she says. One scene when LeBeouf is making conversation at the dinner table to trying to be civil he divulges that he is a Episcopalian and she says that she is a Presbyterian of a specific group. She quickly quips something along the lines of, "I would have guessed you were a kneeler." Which upsets LeBeouf. Now in this statement she is not talking about his specific worship style but to his political background which would have still been thick in the area left over from the Revolutionary War. Certain Christian groups bound to together to fight the King of England. It was still a sore spot for Americans who fought for the King of England. The Kneelers, which was made up of the Church of England, Episcopalian, and some Methodist as well as others. Where as you had Baptist, Roman Catholics and many other groups that would not bow the Knee to England. If you didn't know your U.S. History and your Christian History well this part of the movie and other parts will go over you head. Some which are rather funny as she is being "picked on" by LeBeouf and Cogburn.

Great Historical, territorial, and state context by Portis and will and should be a continued classic to come and a reader for many of students as this person would suggest. It shows learning compassion, for those that you would rather not show compassion. It shows learning love to those in a way that a person only knows how, which may not be the fairy tale, romantic stories or love books that we have been taught. Portis also shows that a life lived without meaning and adventure is life that does not reap certain rewards of quality friendships that do come with deadly cost as well as the loss of health. He shows that a life that is truly lived will bare scares of those who have loved us both inside and outside.

Loved it. Lovable characters, wonderful phrasing and humor. The book made the two movie versions more enjoyable. Each followed the story line except for a few deviations. The movies also added to enjoying the book so I recommend enjoying all three.

The book is better than both movies put together times a hundred. Charles Portis is a southern writer genius. True Grit is the best novel I have ever written by a man with a woman as the protagonist. Even great writers often stumble when they try this. Portis succeeds brilliantly. A vastly entertaining novel.

I agree with other reviewers this is an American Literary Classic.
Story runs close to the great Coen Brothers movie but the 1st person voice of Mattie in the novel is a great piece of writing.
Mattie & Rooster are very funny in the novel.
LeBeoff has more depth as do all of the other characters.
A truly great novel even if you've seen the movies.

What a great read. Anyone with a daughter or grand-daughter would love her to have the grit and brains of Mattie.
But there's so much more. If you take the book in one hand and Wikipedia in the other and read about every place, thing and character [except for those central to the story] you'll find that they are all real and perfectly historically accurate, from Admiral Semmes to the hangman, to the civil and guerilla wars and the guns, and even to the Texas cowboys riding geldings. Even unspoken things such as the railroad by which Mattie arrives ending at Fort Smith in that year are spot on. Comparison could be made with George Macdonald Fraser and the Flashman books.
And to my thinking that's high praise indeed, although Mattie and Rooster go more to the heart where Flashman tends to the funnybone. Definitely a book to be lent.

A masterpiece. This American classic should be required reading in every public school. The narrative voice of little Mattie Ross sounds as authentic as the the Wild West. Put "True Grit" on your bucket list and suggest that your children and grandchildren read it.

Although I have seen both movies, I had never read the book until the "big read" this year. What an adventure! This book is a classic about our American west and the perseverance or "grit" that our early settlers endured to survive. A wonderful read for all ages, young and old.

Even though Charles Portis has written only a few books, this one is a true classic. I've read the book twice and have seen both of the movies. Portis vividly portrays life in rural Arkansas for the period and keeps the reader's attention throughout the book. My opinion is that the most recent movie was far better that the first.

Exciting and funny, with rich characters and unforgettable dialogue, this story enthralled me. I could not put it down. I'd seen the 1969 John Wayne film version many years ago, yet when I started reading this book last year, it provided me with a new experience. The characters are finely drawn, the story itself lyrical, almost poetic. Charles Portis has given us a gem, one of those rare stories that can be read over and over.

David Berardelli
Author of APPRENTICE

After watching the original John Wayne version and the new True Grit movie a couple of years ago I was looking forward to reading the book from which these movies were based. I found the story to be truly gripping and engrossing read.

A wonderful story of a young girls successful attempt at avenging her father's death from Ft. Smith, AR into the Indian territory of Oklahoma.
The novels three min characters come together in their uniqueness to make for a wonderful adventure.

After seeing both movies, I decided to read this. The Cohen Brother's version of the movie is much truer to this story than the John Wayne one (still a classic!) Mattie is a realistic, strong heroine and her story is an engaging, if slightly sad one.

True Grit is excellent, but this publisher has terrible customer service. That won't affect most readers, but anybody who's assigning it for a course should go with a different publisher. Overlook won't send you a desk copy, won't answer the phone, and won't respond to emails.

Truly a classic western novel. Entertaining from the first sentence to the last. Both movie productions followed the book closely, but the book is (as is usually the case) better than either movie. A quick read, too, as Portis's style just flows. Well worth it!

Portis does a good job of catching the language of the day. He tells a good story and the young girl in the book is as determined as they get. There is a reason they made two movies out of this book. Well worth reading.

The book was almost exactly the screenplay of the original movie "True Grit". It was a great read and a reminder of what makes a man heroic, and what makes a young girl "full of grit". Great characters and a great story. Highly recommend it to all ages.

This short tale of a young woman's determination to avenge her father's death is destined to be a classic. Cannot help hearing it in Kim Darby's distinctive voice (from the original movie version) though!

A good read, with a lot of solid, straightforward writing. Hard not to get the more recent movie versions voices out of my head, which might have shown that it was rather true to this book. A good read.