Giant

Summary (from the publisher): This sweeping tale captures the essence of Texas on a staggering scale as it chronicles the life and times of cattleman Jordan "Bick" Benedict, his naïve young society wife, Leslie, and three generations of land-rich sons. A sensational story of power, love, cattle barons, and oil tycoons, Giant was the basis of the classic film starring James Dean, Elizabeth Taylor, and Rock Hudson.

 

Review: Set in Texas during the first half of the twentieth century, this novel focuses on rancher and cattleman Jordan "Bick" Benedict who travels to Virginia to purchase a horse, only to return with a naïve young wife named Leslie. For Leslie, the culture, society, and landscape of Texas is as foreign to her as her Virginia manner and brassy tongue are to the people of Texas. The novel opens with preparations for a large party about to occur, after Bick and Leslie have been married for roughly 25 years and then travels back in time to show how the couple met.

 

While this novel focuses both on the gender and racial inequality of Texan society, as well as the sweeping changes that were spreading across Texas's economy as seen through Bick and Leslie's eyes, it's truly a novel about Texas itself. Leslie, as an outsider, takes vocal issue with the poor treatment of Mexican farmhands and the way Texan women are excluded from all serious money and political talk by men. The big, loud vitality of Texas is seen throughout: "noise and heat; big men and bourbon, the high shrill voices of Texas women, blare of brass, crash of china, odors of profuse food, roar of plane motors" (11).

 

In many ways, Leslie and Bick's marriage represents a clash between old and new, yet somehow the two manage to make their marriage a success. After a slow start to the novel, it is the scenes of a very young and hopeful Leslie arriving at her new home and blundering in the strange climate and culture that reeled me in as a reader. The success of Bick and Leslie's partnership is only marred by ranch hand turned oil tycoon, Jett Rink, who harbors a grudge against Bick and an old, unrequited flame for Leslie, and who crops up periodically throughout the novel to cause tension for the Benedicts and their ranch.

 

I was ultimately disappointed at the lack of resolution before the conclusion of the novel. Additionally, the tension between the Benedicts and Jett Rink is left mostly unexplored when the novel closes. The strength of this novel lies in its depiction of Texas in the 1920s and 1930s, as seen from the perspective of the wealthy, land-owning class of proud Texans.

 

Stars: 4