About All the Pretty Horses
The novel All the Pretty Horses is set in the late 1940s, just after World War II. It tells the story of John Grady Cole, a sixteen-year-old boy from Texas who sets out on a journey to Mexico in search of adventure. Along the way, he meets a young woman named Alejandra and the two of them fall in love. However, their relationship is ultimately doomed by the difference in their social backgrounds.The novel is divided into three sections, with each section focusing on a different stage in John Grady’s journey. In the first section, John Grady leaves his home in Texas and sets out for Mexico. Along the way, he stops in a small town called Encantada, where he meets a man named Pedro. Pedro helps John Grady to get a job working on a ranch, and it is here that John Grady first learns about horses.The second section of the novel takes place on the ranch where John Grady works. He becomes friends with the ranch owner’s son, Enrique, and the two of them spend their days riding horses and exploring the surrounding countryside. John Grady also meets Alejandra here, and the two of them quickly fall in love.However, their relationship is threatened when Alejandra’s father, a wealthy landowner, learns of their affair. He forbids Alejandra from seeing John Grady and sends her away to boarding school. John Grady is heartbroken, but he decides to stay on at the ranch and continue working with the horses.In the final section of the novel, John Grady leaves the ranch and sets out for Mexico City. Along the way, he is joined by Pedro and Enrique. The three of them get involved in a dangerous situation, and John Grady is forced to kill a man in self-defense. This act has far-reaching consequences, and John Grady is ultimately forced to flee Mexico and return to the United States.All the Pretty Horses is a novel about loss and longing, set against the backdrop of the American West. It is a story of love and adventure, and ultimately, it is a story about coming of age.
