Canadian novelist Patrick DeWitt’s second novel celebrates the classic American Western of literature past. “The Sister Brothers” is an iconic picaresque (rascally) text that lives up to its genre. Rascals aplenty, gold-mining rogues, dance hall floozies, good-for-nothing homesteaders, and a rifle-toting cretin all weave their way throughout the book. Brothers Eli and Charlie Sister (the Sister Brothers – hence the title) are six-shooter-slinging, guns-for-hire renowned for their ability to kill. Assigned to kill Hermann Kermit Warm, the brothers meander their way across the Wild West soon after the discovery of gold in California. They encounter strange sights and stranger people on their sojourners.

DeWitt demonstrates a mastery of English that is a rarity. Scenery and people are described in a hyper-realist fashion, with a particular emphasis on the gritty and grimy. Yet the book doesn’t come off as a history textbook since the words used work just right to create an understated kind of humor that underlies even the most tragic parts of “The Sister Brothers.”

Supposedly the movie rights have been sold to John C. Reily and I eagerly await the film.