It might be overreach to say that the Western is an infinitely adaptable literary form but it has proven to be a remarkably useful framework for cultural and psychological exploration. That there are still new ways to tell a story within its seemingly simple structure is dazzlingly demonstrated in this 2011 novel. Canadian author Patrick DeWitt spins elements of the traditional Western with the knightly quest tale, medieval morality plays, fairy tales, road movies and a contemporary comic sensibility into a fresh, funny, completely compelling story that might have been told around a campfire, in a mead hall, or on a comedy club stage.
The two brothers are characters usually seen only in the background of a standard Western, the hired guns who serve the corrupt boss. DeWitt plucks them from the shadows to make them the leading men of a perverse knightly quest. They are dark knights clad not in armor but in long dusters with the sleeves ripped off. The Commodore(king) sends them on a job(quest) to recover something of “great value”. They have adventures and meet all manner of odd characters. Much is learned and much is lost. They betray their trust for the lure of the alchemist’s dream but perhaps find truer treasure at the end.
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A Bookwoman’s Holiday 