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I'd like to comment, even though I'm not quite finished with the book (right now Shane is on his way to town with his gun strapped to his hip).

This good vs. evil story is about appearances, strength, character, sacrifice, friendship, goodness, a man's nature ("It is not in the nature of a mother's back, to let the baby fall" -- African proverb), and love. When Shane rides into the Skerrit's farm, Joe Skerrit sees past the appearance of a dangerous man and inside, deep to his soul and recognizes a purity and goodness that is familiar, because he, too, has these qualities and his friends and neighbors, although good people, do not have this strength of character. He wants this man to stay, perhaps because his presence makes him a better person.

As the story progresses the characters are called upon to sacrifice for each other and for their friendship. Shane gives the ultimate sacrifice by going back to his violent roots, something he has been running away from, to save his friend and coincidentally, all the neighboring farmers.

I was struck and somewhat puzzled at times by the characters in the book who would become enraged to the point of giving up their lives because of words, one farmer being shot just because he let a gunfighter's taunts get him so worked up that he suicidally tried to outdraw this professional gunfighter. I thought of hubby, who if someone said things similar (i.e., in the story the rancher's men said the farmers stank and called them "pig farmers") would have made a joke and laughed it off.

Very good read (so far) and interesting. I should finish the book today and may have further comments.

Very good idea PJ, thanks. I enjoy very much reading everyone's comments.

I was struck and somewhat puzzled at times by the characters in the book who would become enraged to the point of giving up their lives because of words, one farmer being shot just because he let a gunfighter's taunts get him so worked up that he suicidally tried to outdraw this professional gunfighter.

Actually this was a very common reason for gun duels back then. Honor was involved.

BTW, the classic movie type gun duels in the Old West were very rare. The reason being that the big gun showdown was almost always limited to gentlemen gun duels over honor which were sort of formal affairs attended by seconds. Usually the parties were given an easy out by the seconds so they could preserve their honor but not actually have to shoot it out (or they would just shoot straight into the air). However, often neither side would back down so the gun duel would go on. The most famous such gun duel was when Vice President Aaron Burr gunned down former Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton. So in a way, the classic gun duel of the old West was played out by these two gentlemen---only it was in the "effete" East.