leon r. payne jr.

Joe Lopez is the story of an old Mexicano named José Villalobo Alfredo Tomaso Vicente Lopez who loses his three sons to the civil war: Thomaso at the Battle of Bull Run, Alfredo in Vicksburg, and Vicente in Gettysburg. To honor them, Joe carries each of their names.

But Joe’s sorrow doesn’t end there. When he returns home, he finds that his home has been burned to the ground and his wife and grandson are missing. As the story continues, Joe avenges the misdeeds done to his wife and grandson and captures the deputy who, with the sheriff, has come to bring him to justice.

Author Leon Payne takes the song “Joe Lopez” written and performed by his late father, Leon Payne, Sr., and brings it to life by drawing on personalities from his past and setting the story in historic Texas locations and civil war battlegrounds. A Western that is sure to delight civil war buffs and cowboy aficionados alike.