(Review from February 2021 copied from previous edition)

 "...there was no real scent, only the memory of it, the imagined power of Brokeback Mountain of which nothing was left but what he held in his hands."

This is a hard one to judge because the movie adaptation is one of my all-time favourites and so I couldn't help mentally filling in all the extras that the movie adds while I was reading. I don't know how much I would have connected to the characters if I didn't already adore them from the movie, as there's not really a ton of character development and you get much more insight into Ennis's live than Jack's so Jack especially I feel like you don't end up getting to know massively well.

I'm still really glad, though, that I read the original story behind one of my favourite movies. It's vivid and devastating and explores homophobia and the way it shapes and ruins lives - in different ways, as seen by the tragic outcomes for both Ennis and Jack - so, so well. The sense of place created and the portrayal of poor, rural life are incredible. Part of me wishes it had been longer, but part of me also really appreciates the fact that it is such a short story and the choices made to focus on certain details in order to portray messages about love and relationships and queerness and trauma and pain (though I wouldn't have minded slightly shorter passages about Jack's rodeoing, as these pretty much went right over my head!)

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Edit - June 2022

After my second read of this book, I'm bumping it up from 4.5 to 5 stars. I still stand by my previous comments, but reading this again just reminded me how completely I adore this story and its characters and the nuanced discussions it sparks and how much it packs in to so few pages. I therefore ultimately don't mind that the characters and relationships aren't as developed as they are in the movie. Both versions of this story have my whole heart, and after all, the movie wouldn't exist without this quiet, tender, haunting, brutal masterpiece.

I heard this was sad, but it was really sad. I was in high school when the movie came out, and I never saw it. I really wish people had not made fun of this deeply human story the way they did. 

The writing is innovative and vague, I'd recommend the readers to have a virtual movie playing inside their head as they uncover the plot to really fill in the gaps and make it a thorough experience. The dynamic between Ennis and Jack is frustratingly real,

once you get a feel for Jack; his restlessness and his impulsivity, you know there's no way in hell he wouldn't sleep with other men to help his frustrations. Ennis' dignified motto and it's applicability to his life is heartbreaking.