by Sara Davidson

What does a woman want? Rodeo and Juliet,' concludes Maureen Dowd of the New York Times as she mulls over the greater sociological implications of Sara Davidson's Cowboy: A Love Story. Davidson made her mark with Loose Change, a lively account of young women coming of age and sleeping around in the '60s. Now in her 50s, she has mapped another trend: taking lovers low on the social food chain. In Cowboy, which she describes as a 'fictionalized memoir,' Davidson chronicles her real-life affair with Richard Goff, a rawhide braider who sports turquoise boots and has never heard of Anne Frank. She's 10 years his senior, was educated at Berkeley and Columbia, and was the lead director and co-executive producer of Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman. Improbable match? You bet your Stetson.

The two were tethered in 1993 when Davidson covered a cowboy poetry festival in Elko, Nevada, for the New York Times (which he seemed to think was a multiplication problem). When she returned to Los Angeles, he sent gushy, grammatically challenged letters and leathery trinkets of affection. Davidson flew her Marlboro man in for the weekend; what she thought would be an overnight fling blossomed into a romance that has lasted years. From work and family to education and upbringing, their relationship has tested every aspect of Davidson's life: her prepubescent children won't let her forget they want the 'hick' gone, her ex is threatening to take the kids away, and supporting her trailer-bound buckaroo is straining her career. Fortunately, her friends give their blessing: 'When you're 49, your close, true friends don't care if he's the Elephant Man, as long as you're happy.'

Cowboy is down-to-earth, charming, and shameless. You can't help but root for the heroine when she's plagued with self-doubt, even if the love scenes gallop out of control: 'I grabbed his hair and yanked his head back. 'God! You'll quit bucking and I'll have my way with you!' Still, it's a testament that love comes in many packages and at any age. Yee-haw! --Rebekah Warren