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From Booklist
An American western with a most unusual twist, this is an imaginative fictional account of the participation of May Dodd and others in the controversial "Brides for Indians" program, a clandestine U.S. government^-sponsored program intended to instruct "savages" in the ways of civilization and to assimilate the Indians into white culture through the offspring of these unions. May's personal journals, loaded with humor and intelligent reflection, describe the adventures of some very colorful white brides (including one black one), their marriages to Cheyenne warriors, and the natural abundance of life on the prairie before the final press of the white man's civilization. Fergus is gifted in his ability to portray the perceptions and emotions of women. He writes with tremendous insight and sensitivity about the individual community and the political and religious issues of the time, many of which are still relevant today. This book is artistically rendered with meticulous attention to small details that bring to life the daily concerns of a group of hardy souls at a pivotal time in U.S. history. Grace Fill
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
From Kirkus Reviews
Long, brisk, charming first novel about an 1875 treaty between Ulysses S. Grant and Little Wolf, chief of the Cheyenne nation, by the sports reporter and author of the memoir A Hunter's Road (1992). Little Wolf comes to Washington and suggests to President Grant that peace between the Whites and Cheyenne could be established if the Cheyenne were given white women as wives, and that the tribe would agree to raise the children from such unions. The thought of miscegenation naturally enough astounds Grant, but he sees a certain wisdom in trading 1,000 white women for 1,000 horses, and he secretly approves the Brides For Indians treaty. He recruits women from jails, penitentiaries, debtors' prisons, and mental institutionsoffering full pardons or unconditional release. May Dodd, born to wealth in Chicago in 1850, had left home in her teens and become the mistress of her father's grain-elevator foreman. Her outraged father had her kidnaped, imprisoning her in a monstrous lunatic asylum. When Grant's offer arrives, she leaps at it and soon finds herself traveling west with hundreds of white and black would-be brides. All are indentured to the Cheyenne for two years, must produce children, and then will have the option of leaving. May, who keeps the journal we read, marries Little Wolf and lives in a crowded tipi with his two other wives, their children, and an old crone who enforces the rules. Reading about life among the Cheyenne is spellbinding, especially when the women show up the braves at arm-wrestling, foot-racing, bow-shooting, and gambling. Liquor raises its evil head, as it will, and reduces the braves to savagery. But the women recover, go out on the winter kill with their husbands, and accompany them to a trading post where they drive hard bargains and stop the usual cheating of the braves. Eventually, when the cavalry attacks the Cheyenne, mistakenly thinking they're Crazy Horse's Sioux, May is killed. An impressive historical, terse, convincing, and affecting. -- Copyright ©1998, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
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Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
I didn't want it to end,
This review is from: One Thousand White Women: The Journals of May Dodd (Paperback)
This book was chosen for me by our book club. It has to be one of the best books I have read in a long time. May Dodd is the type of woman we all want to be; strong, true to herself and a real leader. The story is very believable and I learnt so much from that time in history. It took me a while to finish the last 100 pages as I just didn't want it to end. I hope you all enjoy it as much as I did.Marie Suzanne Dillon, author of Two Weeks in Vieques.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
makes you think. . .,
By
This review is from: One Thousand White Women: The Journals of May Dodd (Paperback)
This book will join other classic fiction about the west. And like the best westerns (at least in my opinion) is at least based on some historical fact. In the case a little known Brides for Indians program. This was a semi top secrete program the US government instituted with the Cherokee Indians as a way to assimilate the Indians into civilized society. The author takes this actual historical situation and writes a truly original piece of western fiction! This is one of the best books I have read since "Lonesome Dove."
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars
Great premise, cliched writing,
By A Customer
This review is from: One Thousand White Women: The Journals of May Dodd (Paperback)
Upon a strong recommendation of a friend of mine, I read this book. The premise is terrific and the story kept me engaged throughout - the writing was fine, in that the images were vivid and the pacing quick and entertaining. If only the author could craft characters with a bit of complexity and depth! The racist Southerner (who realizes the errors of her ways), the proud and strong Black Woman, the noble but conflicted passionate Captain - how much more cliche can you get? This book also confirmed to me why men should not write love scenes - I rolled my eyes at nearly every passionate embrace. But, if you're looking for entertainment and not mind-expanding literature, it would be great book for the beach!
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