In the Footsteps of Crazy Horse

September 14, 2015
Jimmy McClean, 11 years old and three-quarters Lakota, is teased for appearing white by schoolmates at the Rosebud Sioux Indian Reservation. Marshall’s (Returning to the Lakota Way) novel alternates between a field trip Jimmy and his grandfather take in order for Jimmy to better understand his heritage and the principal person they study on the trip, the great Lakota leader Crazy Horse. They follow the geography of Crazy Horse’s life through South Dakota, Nebraska, Wyoming, and Montana, including a long stay at the battlefield of the Little Big Horn, where in 1876 Crazy Horse was instrumental in the most significant Native American military victory against the white invaders. Though the dates and names are clearly spelled out, the logistics of the battles and travels can be difficult to track, and a lack of descriptive detail hinders empathy with both Jimmy and Crazy Horse. The modern story is a bit too thin, and the older one not delved into thoroughly enough, to allow the book to fully evoke its noble history. Ages 10–14.

Starred review from September 1, 2015
School bullies claim Jimmy McClean's blue eyes, fair hair, and Scottish surname mean he's not a real Indian; to validate Jimmy's Lakota heritage, Grandpa Nyles suggests a road trip in search of another Lakota with fair hair and skin: Crazy Horse.Their journey takes them across the Great Plains to where Crazy Horse first witnessed attacks on his people and where he fought to end white appropriation of their homeland. Accounts of battles and stories of his integrity and commitment to providing for the weak and elderly in need bring Crazy Horse into focus. The Lakota author's first book for children (The Day the World Ended at Little Bighorn, 2007, etc.) doesn't airbrush tragic events; they are here, placed in context. At each site, Nyles tells the story (set in italics) of what happened to Crazy Horse there. Between stops, Nyles answers Jimmy's questions in conversations that allow readers distance to process often bleak events and to reflect on their meaning today (the art's storybook sensibility helps here). The story's heavy in losses and defeats, but it's also uplifting in ways seldom addressed in children's fiction. Crazy Horse could have led his last small band of warriors to a heroic end in battle. But great leadership mandates a different kind of courage. He chose surrender as the best hope for protecting his people-the vulnerable children, women, and elderly. This powerful introduction to a great warrior and leader invites readers to ponder the meaning of "hero." (author's note, glossary, bibliography) (Fiction. 9-12)

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Starred review from October 1, 2015

Gr 4-8-In this novel that seamlessly integrates Lakota history and oral tradition, Marshall takes readers along for a road trip with Jimmy and his maternal grandfather as they embark on a "vision journey," visiting famous landmarks, monuments, and landscapes integral to the life of the great warrior and leader Crazy Horse. Jimmy, a young Lakota boy, struggles with fitting in on his reservation because he does not look like the other Lakota boys; he has light hair, blue eyes, and his father is of Scottish decent. Grandpa Nyles sees an opportunity to introduce Jimmy to another Lakota who had fair hair and light skin-the famous Crazy Horse. Over the course of their trip, Grandpa Nyles recounts history and stories about the life of the Lakota hero and the events that shaped him into a powerful leader, including famous battles and standoffs against the white settlers. Although many books have been written about Crazy Horse, Marshall transports readers back in time through Grandfather's stories. Italicized passages covering Crazy Horse's childhood, adolescence, and transformation into the famed Lakota symbol of courage and wisdom are distinguished from the modern-day narrative and achieve an immediacy and emotional resonance that most history books fail to capture. As the book progresses, Jimmy and readers learn about an important period of American history from the perspective of the Lakota; readers will walk away with the sober knowledge that in war, there are no winners. As Jimmy and his grandfather's journey comes to an end, the boy has gained much more than a history lesson-he learns a great deal about courage, sacrifice, and the ties that connect him to his ancestors. VERDICT A moving narrative that should be required reading for all students of American history.-Amy Zembroski, Indian Community School, Franklin, WI

Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 15, 2015
Grades 4-6 Eleven-year-old Jimmy McClean lives on the Rosebud Sioux Indian Reservation in South Dakota. Unfortunately, though he is three-quarters Lakota and only one-quarter white, he has light brown hair and blue eyes for which he is mercilessly teased at school by two bullies. His life changes, however, when his grandfather, Nyles High Eagle, takes him on a visionary journey in which they visit sites important to the life of the great Indian leader Crazy Horse. At each stop, Grandfather brings history to dramatic life with his stories, and, in time, Jimmy learns much about his heritage and the meaning of courage. Though in an author's note, Marshallwho himself grew up on the Rosebud Reservation and is an enrolled member of the Sicangu Lakota tribeclaims not to be an expert on Crazy Horse, he writes with insight and authority. His book is a welcome addition to the slender body of work about Native Americans written from within their culture.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)