1) "A bitter winter" / H. L. Davis

Pop Apling and Beech Cartwright drive a horse herd to a ranch where they must meet his owner, M. Gervais. But there is nobody at the ranch and they learn later that the region suffered from dryness and famine. There is no more pasture and their stock of hay is exhausted. Only one solution : leading the horses to the railway where M. Gervais was going with his sheep herd…

2) The bride comes to Yellow Sky / Stephen Crane

Going back home by train, two newly-weds go into raptures over the decoration of the wagon. They even spend money to eat in the dining car. The man is sheriff at Yellow Sky and begins to be worry about the reaction of the inhabitants when they will learn that he got married...

3) Cheyenne autumn / Mary Sandoz

In 1877, almost one thousand northern Cheyennes, weakened and hungry, are captured and led in a reservation. Cheyennes always wanted to live in peace with white men despite the progressive diminution of their territory and the numerous promises that were not kept. But today, in spite of the treaty, the army send them in a reservation where their southern brothers are dying of starvation and illnesses...

4) "The chief" / John Steinbeck

The familly Tifflin owns a ranch in a little valley. The grandfather is coming to visit them for a few days...

5) Cimarron / Edna Ferber

Sabra is a Venable (rich family with noble origins living in Kansas -1889- and who kept the ways and customs of the slavery South). She is married to Yancey Cravat, a lawyer-journalist with a mysterious past and they have a child, Cimarron, called Cim. Yancey tells them his adventures in Oklahoma where he took part at the opening race for the colonisation of the indian territory. He convinces his wife to settle down there, despite the unfavourable opinion of the Venable...

6) Dance with wolves / Michael Blake

The lieutenant Dunbar is going to Fort Sedgewick, his new posting. At Fort Hays, end of the railway, it remains seven days of trip through the prairie to reach the frontier fort. In a hurry to arrive at Fort Sedgewick, Dunbar only stays at Fort Hays the time necessary to get his orders. So, only the major knows about his passing through…

7) Death comes for the archbishop / Willa Cather

Jean-Marie Latour, 35 years old, catholic missionary in America for nine years is appointed vicar apostolic in New Mexico. He goes to Santa Fe, the centre of his diocese with his friend Joseph Vaillant, missionary too. They cross deserts before being confronted with the insubordination of the Mexican priests. Latour must get an official document from the bishop of Durango and had to walk through unknown and rough trails that hamper the exchange of news and make difficult the movings…

8) The desperado / Clifton Adams

Texas, 1869. The young Tall Cameron lives peacefully with his parents in a ranch, spending time with Laura, his neighbour with whom he is falling in love. But after a fight with the federal authorities, Ray Novak and Tall have to run away for a while. Unhappy to leave Laura, Tall and Ray set out to work in the ranch of Tall's uncle...

9) Fast Gun / Robert Patrick Wilmot

Matt Howard, seriously wounded by Indians, arrives at Dragoon Springs. Tended by a pretty nurse, Kathleen, the daughter of his host Mike Corbet, he falls in love...

10) "Flames on the Frontier" / Dorothea Johnson

In a farm, on the Frontier, live the familly Harris : the older girl Mary, his sister Sarah, their mother Hannah, their father Oscar and their brothers Johnny, Zeke, Jim and the little baby Willie. One day, they hear the war cries of the Sioux...

11) The grizzly king / James Oliver Curwood

Jim and Bruce, friends and hunters, decide to explore the Rocky Mountains where nobody has been before. About his adventures, Jim writes books and his memories. When they see Tyr, a great grizzly, they decide to give chase to him…

12) Green grass of Wyoming / Mary O'Hara

Rob Mc Laughlin is a great cattle farmer. His son, Ken, spends his holiday vacations at the ranch before going back with his brother Howard to an eastern school. Crown Jewel, a priceful mare, has been sent by train to his rich owner, M. Greenway, whose main occupation is to breed racehorses. He plans to offer Crown Jewel, his last purchase, to his little niece. Unfortunately, Crown Jewel falls out of the train and nobody saw that. An old draught horse, Pete, and a white stallion, Thunderhead, take her with them. In fact, Thunderhead is the horse of Ken but is returned to wilderness because Rob doesn't want to make him his dominant stallion (the only solution to keep Thunderhead in the ranch with the other horses). So, Thunderhead lived peacefully in a valley until a poisonous plant decimated his wild herd. Then he decided to steal mares from the farmers in the neighbourhood to re-form his harem…

13) "Head in the noose" / Cliff Farrel

Eb Irons is single, happy to be unmaried and lives alone, very isolated with the menace of a possible Comache attack.

One day, a family of pioneers, the farmer Lute Rasmussen, his wife Ma and their daughter Josie Belle, settle down near his home...

14) Hearts and Crosses / O. Henry

Baldy Woods and Webb Yeager are old friends. Yeager is married to Santa, the daughter of the deceased cattle king of the region. It is Santa, and not Webb, who is considered as his successor. Indeed, she manage the ranch and Webb can only take decisions on few details. In the long run, he don't accept any longer being so belittled...

15) Johnny Guitar / Roy Chanslor

Powderville, beautiful cattle town, really comes to life during the summer with the arrival of the cowboys leading the cattle herd to the boarding (train). Apart from that period, the monotony is only broken each week by the passage of the train and each month by the coming of Vienna. Vienna is not an ordinary woman, she manages Les Billets, a cabaret situated not far from Champs Elysées, the nearest little town. People think that she is in collusion with the outlaw gang who rages in the region. Leonard Small and his wife Emma, managers of the bazaar in Champs Elysées, despise Vienna like all the other people in town. Leonard also makes his business in Powderville. One day, a stranger, dressed like a city dweller, with no other weapon than a guitar, gets off the train from Cheyenne…

16) Little house on the Prairie / Laura Ingalls Wilder

The family Ingalls hears that the government will open the Indians regions for pioneers' settlement. They decide to leave their little house in Wisconsin. The father doesn't want to stay in a place where wild animals don't stay any longer because it's too crowded with people. They undertake the trip in a covered wagon…

17) The luck of Roaring Camp / Bret Harte

Cherokee Sal, the only woman of a miner's camp, died while she giving birth to a child unknown father.
All the miners decided to adopt the baby...

18) The marriage of Moon Wind / Bill Gulick

Tad Marshall is driver of mule train but dreams of partnership with an hunter, Slewfoot Samuels, who works generally alone with a shoshone squaw he buyed. This one has a sister, Moon Wind. Slewfoot is a strange guy who loves playing jokes. This way, he discourage all those want to work with him...

19) My Antonia / Willa Cather

At the death of his parents, the young Jimmy Burden is sent in the West (Nebraska) to his grandparents who have a farm. Jake Marpole, ex-employee of the father, comes with him by train from Virginia. He will work at the farm. The conductor tells them about the regions they cross and about an immigrant family who is going to settle down in their neighbourhood…

20) Northwest passage / Kenneth Roberts

Langdon Towne lives with his family in New England. He spends his time between hunting with his friends, drawing and courting Elizabeth. He likes to make sketches, paintings and learns this art by himself. Langdon would to be the first to represent the Indians. Congregationalist, Langdon gets into troubles with the authorities and joins up the army, with his friend Hunk, for a while. They are inslisted in the troop of Major Robert's scoots. These ones are often sent on detached services or reconnaissance duties in wild regions. During these hard expeditions, the scoots only succeed thanks to the knowledge and strength of their intrepid chief...

21) "Precocious marriage" / Conrad Richter

Something is worrying Asa Puntman : for a week, nobody has been using the trail of El Paso, along which he manages a stagecoach relay. His daughter, Nancy Belle, will get married in a few days at Gunstock (320 km apart) and doesn't want to delay the date of his marriage with Stephen Dewee from the region of the Rio Grande. His brother undertakes to drive her to Gunstock and gets the last instructions from their father before setting out. Asa cannot leave the relay because nobody else can replace him for the moment. The five-day trip will be dangerous want the Apaches roam around the region…

22) Roughing it ! / Mark Twain (Samuel L. Clemens)

The brother of the narrator has just been appointed as Secretary of Nevada and they set out together for this far western territory. The only possibility is to take place in a stagecoach for some twenty uncomfortable days. The trip promises to be eventful, at the mercy of the hilly region and also of the Indians who often attack the stagecoaches. The two brothers and the other passengers will have a lot of thrills discovering new wild regions and a very astonishing way of life...

23) Smoke over the Prairie / Conrad Richter

The railroad engineers announce the future arrival of the railway in the region of Frank Gant's land, a cattle (sheep) king. A young and handsome engineer, Vance Rutherford falls is love with his daughter Julianna but Frank is against their marriage. Frank hates the railroad which means the end of his life style. He rents carriages and organises wagon convoys. When the railroad will cross his land it will be the end of his activities...

24) Stage to Lordsburg / Ernest Haycox

A stagecoach leaves Tonton with seven passengers and a guard. It is the first leaving since six weeks because of the numerous attacks of Geronimo...

25) "Tappan's donkey" / Zane Grey

Tappan and his donkey, Jenet, wander about the desert in search of precious ores. Naturalist, Tappan likes to travel in the deserts and gets into the habit of speaking with his donkeys. Jenet is faithful to him and has got an incredible instinct and intuition. He is running a gold reef when he discovers, thanks to Jenet, that outlaws are watching him, waiting the propitious instant to rob him…

26) Vultures in the sun / Brian Wynne Garfield

Eugenio Castillo is the sheriff of Mescalero, Arizona. He investigates in Lodestar, mining town victim of an outlaw gang leaded by Henry Dierkes. These ones rob the farmers, the transport companies and mines (pay of the employees). Despite of the suspicions about Henry Dierkes, the sheriff can do nothing without proofs. However, the owners (among which Guy Murvain and Tom Larrabee) come near bankruptcy. To face the incompetence of the sheriff, they decide to pay a hired killer to clean out the region…

27) Winnetou / Karl May

A young Frenchman, attracted by the West decides to go there to make a fortune. At Saint-Louis, where he works as teacher, he meets M. Henry, an old gunsmith who becomes attached to him. Discovering that his new friend has all the necessary skills, M. Henry decides to make him a land surveyor so that he can discover the wild life of the West. Soon, he goes with other surveyors in the West accompanied by hunters providing for their food…

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