James E. Akenson
Managing Editor
If you’re tired of long dense sentences from the likes of William Faulkner, Aleksandr Sozhenitsyn, or Leo Tolstoy then Sasha Summers Country Music Cowboy is just what the doctor ordered. And…less you think that romance novels such as Country Music Cowboy fall beneath your dignity level…think again.
It reminds me that I wrote a piece about Willie Nelson’s Letters to America. To my surprise Willie’s book of short letters had a lot more to them than what some folks might think. It connected me back to some heavy duty ideas I studied at the University of Minnesota and the University of Wisconsin.
Country Music Cowboy by Sasha Summers came my way by accident. I placed an order with a great bargain book seller Better World Books. I thought I ordered a Country Music Cowboy reference work. I actually received Country Music Cowboy. Disappointed? Yes. But…it made me think of Country Music artist Pam Tillis’ great song No Use Crying Over Spilled Perfume. It also made me think of the old adage – When life gives you lemons….make lemonade.
So…how to make lemonade from Country Music Cowboy? It’s just a Romance Novel probably aimed primarily at women some privileged white male might condescendingly say. Now that can get you in trouble! To be honest I did a Tim McGraw as I read Country Music Cowboy. I kept thinking I like it. I love it. I want some more of it.
First, paraphrasing Conway Twitty’s sound advice is worthwhile Don’t Throw it Away. I didn’t throw it away.
Second, read it!
Third, watch for clues that form a pattern…words, phrases, character actions, descriptive styles, and even things left out.
Fourth, weave them all together, make sense of it all, and treat Country Music Cowboy seriously. Let’s not make fun of Country Music Cowboy. Pop culture may look trashtastic to some folks. Pop culture, though, is serious business and tells a lot about the time and place in which we live. After all, why would there be serious books to read such as Popular Culture, Geopolitics, and Identity if pop culture didn’t have a lot more to it than what lots of folks think?
As I read Country Music Cowboy some words that seemed to be repeated that struck me as important. They were all used in dialogue in Country Music Cowboy.
In alphabetical order:
- A: A three letter word for the buttocks.
- A: A seven letter insulting word for the orifice created by the anus.
- B: A seven letter word for an illegitimate offspring.
- B: A five letter word or expression involving a female canine.
- B: An eight letter word for Male Bovine Lower Gastro Intestinal Track Output.
- F: A four letter F-Word for sexual intercourse…including gerund ING endings.
- H: A four letter word for eternal damnation.
- P: A four letter word for urination and part of a phrase for displeasure
- S: A four letter word for lower gastrointestinal track output.
I’m just glad that my mother Fern Harman Akenson isn’t alive today. She would be appalled by the filth. To think that the contemporary female target audience…typically viewed as politically and socially conservative or middle of the road… for Country Music Cowboy, would think such language is appropriate would horrify my mother.
It does suggest how times change. Years back such language would have been excluded. Today, t’s mainstream yet just a touch edgy enough to be appealing. Dare I say it, Marie Osmond? It’s a little bit Country. It’s a little bit Rock and Roll.
Moving right along. The plot is classic Boy meets Girl. They sleep together. They ultimately resolve problems over feelings about the L-Word (L-O-V-E), commitment issues, and family problems. Travis King’s new found sobriety, reformed behavior, and smoking hot duets with Loretta Gram on stage and in the bedroom provide the focus. They ultimately ride off into the Country Music sunset with a bright future. Take a look at the plot overview from the back cover and you’ll be up-to-speed (see below).
Additional intrigue includes Travis’ father’s long hidden relationship with Ruby that produced a previously unknown half-brother. An impending divorce between Travis’ father and his glamorous mother adds tension. Travis’ mother also has a younger partner in place before the finalization of divorce.
The core relationship between Texas based King Family Country Music royalty offspring Travis King and afraid of commitment Loretta Gram drives the Country Music Cowboy story. To be more sophisticated let’s call it The Narrative. The sex scenes clearly describe desire while avoiding graphic detail. The descriptions are a touch euphemistic. The descriptions just might appeal to a targeted female Country Music audience.
As a result, heartbeats skyrocket….there are low throbbing sensations…nostrils flare….jeans cling…drums of desire occur between her legs…toes running inside of thighs….throbbing for more…breasts and nipples enjoy caressing with fingers and tongue….sliding deep inside…male arousal may be seen in tight jeans….and the list goes on. Interestingly, there is very little obvious or subtle references to oral sex. Does a hickey on the inside of Travis’s thigh count?
The core readership for Country Music Cowboy may not be cutting edge Sex Positive but they are positive about sex being enjoyable. They’re getting more than just one love making scene. It’s just not the old obligatory sex scene requirement. Travis King and Loretta Gram manage to engage their physical desires and emotional conflicts throughout the story.
Of course, in the end they are emotionally committed to each other. Country Music Cowboy concludes with a Good Morning U.S.A. interview. Travis and Loretta confess to each other how much they love each other, how deep their feelings connect them….all while the Good Morning U.S.A. staff could hear their conversation with their mics still live.
There are other intriguing dimensions in Country Music Cowboy. Virtually everyone from Country Music fans to artists to executives to journalists and professors talk about AUTHENTICITY. It’s an abstract idea that deals with What is Country Music? Is a particular artist ‘really’ Country or not? What makes the artist ‘really’ Country?
Early on Loretta Gram mentions her deceased partner Johnny Hawkins as a pioneer who could merge different styles and not alienate Country Music fans. After all …die hard country music fans didn’t take too kindly to their country sounding like anything other than country. Loretta Gram made the innovation work as she provided a connection that made their music soulful and true. Travis King noticed early on that in her Cowboy boots and faded jeans Loretta Gram was a country girl, through and through. Travis King’s sister Emmy Lou managed not to lose her down-to-earth accessibility and…kindness. That’s the core of Country Music AUTHENTICITY…sincerity, simplicity, honesty, not getting above your raising, staying connected to your fans…and more.
What’s left out seems highly important in the current national environment focused on racial inclusiveness and women’s issues. Country Music forums such as Change The Conversation and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Song_Suffragettes raised serious issues about women in the Country Music universe. Plus…there were plenty of articles, books, and presentations at conferences making women’s issues very visible.
That could be a major omission for today’s readers. There is but a brief mention of despicable Mickey Graham who won’t keep his hands off women and treat them like second class citizens. That’s not like including the issues of equality on Country Music radio or frequent inappropriate touching in varied settings with a bit more force throughout Country Music Cowboy.
And…surely the target Country Music Cowboy audience could deal with a touch more gender diversity. Most families have someone who is LGBTQIA. A queer presence is missing. Published in 2021, the lack of an African American presence seems out of date. The explosion in wake of George Floyd’s murder resulted in extensive discussions about race and Country Music with groups such as #MusicCityEquality leading the way.
The Grand Ole Opry committed to a variety of specific steps to increase the inclusiveness in hiring practices and having African American Country Music artists included in Opry broadcasts and concerts. Before George Floyd, there have been lots of books, articles, and presentations at academic conferences about the African American influence on Country Music.
The Opry also followed through with modest steps to be more inclusive of LGBTQIA artists. In a significant symbolic move Vince Gill and Charlie Worsham flanked gay Leslie Jordan and T.J. Osborne. The four stood inside wooden circle at the Opry House that was once part of the historic Ryman Auditorium. They sang the iconic Carter Family song Will The Circle Be Unbroken.
Kits, Cats, Sacks, and Wives…as I was going to St. Ives…I met a romance novel. Country Music Cowboy, like any work of literature, music, or art reflects the times in which it was created. It also reflects the perspective of its creator and the intended audience, the market.
A picture perfect romance? Despite some possible flaws I’ve already confessed to enjoying Country Music Cowboy. I wanted Travis King and Loretta Gram to find true love after having great sex. We might also revel in redemption of lost, lonely, and troubled souls.
Did a shipping mistake deliver me a lemon? Yes! Then again, I’ve made some lemonade. I enjoyed the unexpected results of a shipping snafu. Thanks Better World Books. I’ll order more in the future.
