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The Heart of Everything That Is: The Untold Story of Red Cloud, an American Legend
An astonishing untold story of the american West
Red Cloud, the great Sioux warrior-statesman, was the only American Indian in history to defeat the United States Army in a war, forcing the government to sue for peace on his terms. At the peak of Red Cloud's powers the Sioux could claim control of one-fifth of the contiguous United States and the loyalty of thousands of fierce fighters. But the fog of history has left Red Cloud strangely obscured. Now, thanks to the rediscovery of a lost autobiography and painstaking research by two award winning authors, the story of our nation's most powerful and successful Indian warrior can finally be told. This fiery narrative, fueled by contemporary diaries and journals, newspaper reports, eyewitness accounts and meticulous firsthand sourcing, is the definitive chronicle of the conflict between an expanding white civilization and the Plains Indians who stood in its way.
414 pages, Paperback
First published November 5, 2013
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June 27, 2022
“Back at the rock pile [Captain William Judd] Fetterman was also fast losing soldiers. His skirmish lines had devolved into two loosely concentric rings rapidly collapsing in on themselves – a tightening noose with the captain in its center. Their position at the top of the rise bought them some time, but daring Indians burst through the defenses on horse and on foot, first singly, then by twos and threes, and finally a second storm of arrows preceded a wave of thrusting lances and swinging war clubs. Warriors in front were pushed ahead by a surge from behind. The soldiers fired their old Springfields, but the Indians were so close that there was no time to reload…”
- Bob Drury & Tom Clavin, The Heart of Everything That Is: The Untold Story of Red Cloud, An American Legend
When you read about the history of U.S.-Indian relations, you quickly learn that the only coherent thread of an otherwise incoherent, schizophrenic policy, was this: divide and conquer. The U.S. Government treated with the tribes seemingly at random. Some Indians were slaughtered. Some were moved and removed. Others were rewarded. Sometimes governmental policy was benignly misguided (see Grant, Ulysses); at other times it was premeditatedly cruel (see Jackson, Andrew). Seldom did it make any sense.
The results of that inconsistency exists to this day. During my high school years, I lived in Prior Lake, Minnesota, two minutes away from the Mdewakanton Sioux reservation, which owns Mystic Lake Casino. The tribe’s resorts and casinos provide a six-figure income for every member. The tribe makes so much money they literally don’t know what to do with it all. At one point, I think they might have bought a fire truck that turns into a robot. Or vice versa. Go a few hundred miles west, and you have Pine Ridge Reservation, which is as blasted-out as any third-world country.
The reason that divide-and-conquer worked as an unofficial and ad hoc policy was because the American Indians were not (and are not) a monolithic group. There are hundreds of tribes, and those tribes have various sub-divisions. Before Europeans arrived, these tribes existed within their own political-economic-military context. Tribes traded with each other, fought with each other, formed and broke alliances, in the same way as the nations of Europe. When white people hit these shores, those tribes didn't magically forget those old quarrels and compromises. They might have gained a common enemy, but they didn't lose their own unique histories.
Because of this, and despite facing their own imminent destruction, the Indian Wars feature only a handful of pan-Indian alliances to face the white tide. The most famous of these are the confederations led by the Shawnee Tecumseh circa 1810 and the Ottawa Pontiac in 1763.
On the Great Plains, there was one great pan-Indian leader, a man who joined the various tribes and held them together for a singular purpose. This man wasn’t Crazy Horse, he wasn’t Sitting Bull. He was an Oglala Lakota called Red Cloud.
Red Cloud is the subject of Bob Drury’s and Tom Clavin’s The Heart of Everything That Is (the title refers to one of many conceptions of the Black Hills). The book is billed as a biography of the Oglala leader, and for about half its length, it is just that.
Certainly, Red Cloud is a fascinating man, and worthy of the chance to step out from the shadows of more famous Indians. He came from a broken family, his father an alcoholic who died young. The desire to compensate for his father’s shame likely spurred Red Cloud to his incredible feats of warlike daring. In his autobiography, which is used as a major source (though, unfortunately, its veracity is never discussed), Red Cloud claims some 80 coups. A coup could mean anything from touching an enemy on the shoulder to tearing out his heart. Whatever it meant, whether enemies killed or shamed, it shows Red Cloud to be an absolutely ferocious warrior.
Too often, in my opinion, we tend to view American Indians in one of two ways, either as the Noble Victim or the Unrepentant Savage. I call this the Dances With Wolves Dichotomy (trademark pending) because the Oscar-winning movie perfectly embodies this split, by separating Indians into good (Rodney A. Grant’s Wind in His Hair, and Graham Greene’s Kicking Bird) and bad (Wes Studi’s murderous Pawnee warrior).
Drury and Clavin do a very good job of breathing life into Red Cloud, into making him into a multi-dimensional human being. He is not simply a stone-faced warrior with a fearsome reputation, but a man with complex motivations, ambitions, and desires.
Red Cloud’s transformational moment came in the 1866 blockade of Fort Phil Kearny in present-day north-central Wyoming. The United States Government had sent the Army up the Bozeman Trail to build a string of forts to protect miners on their way to the mineral-fields of Virginia City. The Bozeman Trail and the accompanying forts cut right through the heart of the Powder River County, homeland to the Lakota, Arapaho, and Cheyenne.
Red Cloud led the resistance. The war that later bore his name was atypical of Plains Indian contests. It was marked by the usual hit-and-run style raids, which nullified white firepower advantages by exploiting numerical disparities and leveraging surprise. But under Red Cloud’s leadership, these raids maintained a level of intensity and duration never seen before or since on the Plains. From the moment Fort Phil Kearny came into existence, it was under a constant state of siege.
Woodcutters sent from the fort were harassed. Emigrant trains along the trail were attacked. Cattle and horses were stolen. Anyone foolish enough to wander off alone was like to end up dead. This strategy of attrition, a death by a thousand cuts, culminated in the December 1866 Fetterman Fight.
Eighty-one officers and men (including two civilians with repeating rifles) under the command of Captain William J. Fetterman were ordered by Fort Phil Kearny’s commander, Henry Carrington, to go to the aid of a woodcutting party that had come under attack. Fetterman was ordered – according to Carrington, who spent the rest of his life explaining – to pursue the attackers only as far as a geographical feature called Lodge Trail Ridge. To pass beyond the ridge meant passing beyond sight of the fort.
Fetterman’s detachment, consisting both of mounted cavalry and dismounted infantry, marched out of the fort. The Indians attacking the woodcutting party fled. A small band of Indians acting as decoys lured Fetterman (or more likely, lured Fetterman’s impetuous subordinate, George W. Grummond) over the ridge. Waiting for them were a thousand or more warriors, who destroyed Fetterman’s band after a brisk, fierce fight. (I think a strong argument can be made that Fetterman’s tiny band put up a much sharper fight than Custer’s more-lauded 7th Cavalry a decade later).
The siege of Fort Phil Kearny and Fetterman’s demise are roughly half this book. Unfortunately, once Drury and Clavin get to this place, the viewpoint shifts to the white side of the story. During his greatest victory, Red Cloud is almost forgotten. The narrative, meanwhile, focuses on Carrington and Fetterman and the soap-opera-worthy dysfunction of Carrington’s military command. (A finer collection of drunks, incompetents, and back-stabbers has seldom been seen. And that doesn’t even include the insubordinate bigamist who might have triggered Fetterman’s ambush. King’s Landing doesn’t have nothing on Fort Phil Kearny!).
I’m assuming the reason for this viewpoint shift is a factor of the lack of primary sources within the Indian camps. With a few exception, Plains Indian traditions are oral and pictorial (referring to the fascinating winter counts), meaning that the written tradition of the whites often takes precedence. In some cases, it means that the white side is the only side that still exists.
Drury and Clavin can’t be held responsible for reporting facts that have been lost to our world. I can hold them responsible for their lackadaisical sourcing. The authors use the “trailing phrases” method of citing their work, which is just about the least helpful manner of citation known to man. They explain this choice as an artistic one, saying they were “primarily interested in telling a good yarn.” This is a classic cop-out. Scholarly and readable are not mutually exclusive. John Monnett’s Where A Hundred Soldiers Were Killed is not only a great “yarn,” but it has annotated citations that allow interested readers to go to the source. Likely, it came down to doing the simpler thing.
This is unfortunate, because Drury and Clavin presented facts that I’d never read before. Facts that called out for specific pinpoint citations. Facts that begged to be supported.
If this sounds like nitpicking…It is! But I ama part-time drunk a notorious grifter an amateur student of the Indian Wars. I might be the only person you know who has read the entire records of the Senate inquiry into the Fetterman Fight. I’ve been to the battlefield five times. (I’ve been to Rome once. Never to Vienna. But five times to a lonely, windswept hill. I have no regrets). I want to know everything Drury and Clavin used, so I can trust their work, and perhaps look at their sources myself.
Of course, the same part of me that can be highly critical over a minor matter is pretty happy that these authors took on this subject. As Americans, I feel we tend to ignore the Indian Wars whenever we can, because they don’t reflect particularly well upon us. When we do sneak a glance, we tend to focus on white defeats, such as the Little Big Horn, perhaps because it mitigates some residual guilt.
Anything that gets people reading about this oft-ignored time period is a good thing, in my opinion. All the better that it steps beyond the obvious Indian heroes, to shed some light on a fascinating figure – part killer, part genius – and one of the few Indians who can say he won his war against the whites.
- Bob Drury & Tom Clavin, The Heart of Everything That Is: The Untold Story of Red Cloud, An American Legend
When you read about the history of U.S.-Indian relations, you quickly learn that the only coherent thread of an otherwise incoherent, schizophrenic policy, was this: divide and conquer. The U.S. Government treated with the tribes seemingly at random. Some Indians were slaughtered. Some were moved and removed. Others were rewarded. Sometimes governmental policy was benignly misguided (see Grant, Ulysses); at other times it was premeditatedly cruel (see Jackson, Andrew). Seldom did it make any sense.
The results of that inconsistency exists to this day. During my high school years, I lived in Prior Lake, Minnesota, two minutes away from the Mdewakanton Sioux reservation, which owns Mystic Lake Casino. The tribe’s resorts and casinos provide a six-figure income for every member. The tribe makes so much money they literally don’t know what to do with it all. At one point, I think they might have bought a fire truck that turns into a robot. Or vice versa. Go a few hundred miles west, and you have Pine Ridge Reservation, which is as blasted-out as any third-world country.
The reason that divide-and-conquer worked as an unofficial and ad hoc policy was because the American Indians were not (and are not) a monolithic group. There are hundreds of tribes, and those tribes have various sub-divisions. Before Europeans arrived, these tribes existed within their own political-economic-military context. Tribes traded with each other, fought with each other, formed and broke alliances, in the same way as the nations of Europe. When white people hit these shores, those tribes didn't magically forget those old quarrels and compromises. They might have gained a common enemy, but they didn't lose their own unique histories.
Because of this, and despite facing their own imminent destruction, the Indian Wars feature only a handful of pan-Indian alliances to face the white tide. The most famous of these are the confederations led by the Shawnee Tecumseh circa 1810 and the Ottawa Pontiac in 1763.
On the Great Plains, there was one great pan-Indian leader, a man who joined the various tribes and held them together for a singular purpose. This man wasn’t Crazy Horse, he wasn’t Sitting Bull. He was an Oglala Lakota called Red Cloud.
Red Cloud is the subject of Bob Drury’s and Tom Clavin’s The Heart of Everything That Is (the title refers to one of many conceptions of the Black Hills). The book is billed as a biography of the Oglala leader, and for about half its length, it is just that.
Certainly, Red Cloud is a fascinating man, and worthy of the chance to step out from the shadows of more famous Indians. He came from a broken family, his father an alcoholic who died young. The desire to compensate for his father’s shame likely spurred Red Cloud to his incredible feats of warlike daring. In his autobiography, which is used as a major source (though, unfortunately, its veracity is never discussed), Red Cloud claims some 80 coups. A coup could mean anything from touching an enemy on the shoulder to tearing out his heart. Whatever it meant, whether enemies killed or shamed, it shows Red Cloud to be an absolutely ferocious warrior.
Too often, in my opinion, we tend to view American Indians in one of two ways, either as the Noble Victim or the Unrepentant Savage. I call this the Dances With Wolves Dichotomy (trademark pending) because the Oscar-winning movie perfectly embodies this split, by separating Indians into good (Rodney A. Grant’s Wind in His Hair, and Graham Greene’s Kicking Bird) and bad (Wes Studi’s murderous Pawnee warrior).
Drury and Clavin do a very good job of breathing life into Red Cloud, into making him into a multi-dimensional human being. He is not simply a stone-faced warrior with a fearsome reputation, but a man with complex motivations, ambitions, and desires.
Red Cloud’s transformational moment came in the 1866 blockade of Fort Phil Kearny in present-day north-central Wyoming. The United States Government had sent the Army up the Bozeman Trail to build a string of forts to protect miners on their way to the mineral-fields of Virginia City. The Bozeman Trail and the accompanying forts cut right through the heart of the Powder River County, homeland to the Lakota, Arapaho, and Cheyenne.
Red Cloud led the resistance. The war that later bore his name was atypical of Plains Indian contests. It was marked by the usual hit-and-run style raids, which nullified white firepower advantages by exploiting numerical disparities and leveraging surprise. But under Red Cloud’s leadership, these raids maintained a level of intensity and duration never seen before or since on the Plains. From the moment Fort Phil Kearny came into existence, it was under a constant state of siege.
Woodcutters sent from the fort were harassed. Emigrant trains along the trail were attacked. Cattle and horses were stolen. Anyone foolish enough to wander off alone was like to end up dead. This strategy of attrition, a death by a thousand cuts, culminated in the December 1866 Fetterman Fight.
Eighty-one officers and men (including two civilians with repeating rifles) under the command of Captain William J. Fetterman were ordered by Fort Phil Kearny’s commander, Henry Carrington, to go to the aid of a woodcutting party that had come under attack. Fetterman was ordered – according to Carrington, who spent the rest of his life explaining – to pursue the attackers only as far as a geographical feature called Lodge Trail Ridge. To pass beyond the ridge meant passing beyond sight of the fort.
Fetterman’s detachment, consisting both of mounted cavalry and dismounted infantry, marched out of the fort. The Indians attacking the woodcutting party fled. A small band of Indians acting as decoys lured Fetterman (or more likely, lured Fetterman’s impetuous subordinate, George W. Grummond) over the ridge. Waiting for them were a thousand or more warriors, who destroyed Fetterman’s band after a brisk, fierce fight. (I think a strong argument can be made that Fetterman’s tiny band put up a much sharper fight than Custer’s more-lauded 7th Cavalry a decade later).
The siege of Fort Phil Kearny and Fetterman’s demise are roughly half this book. Unfortunately, once Drury and Clavin get to this place, the viewpoint shifts to the white side of the story. During his greatest victory, Red Cloud is almost forgotten. The narrative, meanwhile, focuses on Carrington and Fetterman and the soap-opera-worthy dysfunction of Carrington’s military command. (A finer collection of drunks, incompetents, and back-stabbers has seldom been seen. And that doesn’t even include the insubordinate bigamist who might have triggered Fetterman’s ambush. King’s Landing doesn’t have nothing on Fort Phil Kearny!).
I’m assuming the reason for this viewpoint shift is a factor of the lack of primary sources within the Indian camps. With a few exception, Plains Indian traditions are oral and pictorial (referring to the fascinating winter counts), meaning that the written tradition of the whites often takes precedence. In some cases, it means that the white side is the only side that still exists.
Drury and Clavin can’t be held responsible for reporting facts that have been lost to our world. I can hold them responsible for their lackadaisical sourcing. The authors use the “trailing phrases” method of citing their work, which is just about the least helpful manner of citation known to man. They explain this choice as an artistic one, saying they were “primarily interested in telling a good yarn.” This is a classic cop-out. Scholarly and readable are not mutually exclusive. John Monnett’s Where A Hundred Soldiers Were Killed is not only a great “yarn,” but it has annotated citations that allow interested readers to go to the source. Likely, it came down to doing the simpler thing.
This is unfortunate, because Drury and Clavin presented facts that I’d never read before. Facts that called out for specific pinpoint citations. Facts that begged to be supported.
If this sounds like nitpicking…It is! But I am
Of course, the same part of me that can be highly critical over a minor matter is pretty happy that these authors took on this subject. As Americans, I feel we tend to ignore the Indian Wars whenever we can, because they don’t reflect particularly well upon us. When we do sneak a glance, we tend to focus on white defeats, such as the Little Big Horn, perhaps because it mitigates some residual guilt.
Anything that gets people reading about this oft-ignored time period is a good thing, in my opinion. All the better that it steps beyond the obvious Indian heroes, to shed some light on a fascinating figure – part killer, part genius – and one of the few Indians who can say he won his war against the whites.
December 22, 2013
You will not "like" this story; you should not. That is not a reflection on the innumerable talents of the authors. This is the story of an American Tragedy, not something to "like" really. Although it depicts savage violent acts of the Indians, the ultimate savagery is inflicted on them in the ill-informed and vengeful efforts to exterminate their people. For that, you should feel everything from sadness and despair to rage and loss. Before I proceed with my review, I add by way of clarification that I am not an objective reader or writer. I am of American Indian descent (not Sioux) and regard the treatment of the American Indians on par with other sweeping extermination campaigns; the only difference is the American Indians (as a group or in the multiplicity of their tribes) have never been given the same attention and study as the horrendous acts against the Jewish people and the despicable age of slavery. This is a horrible and unjust gap in our education.
If you have ever felt that war lacked purpose or reason, this book will sharpen those feelings like needles in your soul. The loss is not just of lives in battle, but the loss of an Indian culture that lived in harmony with nature before the purposeful fomenting of Indian rage and desperation by the American government. At various turns, the officers and soldiers suffer grievous losses because they fail to understand the Indians--how they fought, thought and lived. This disregard and unfathomable loss of life was replayed in my generation in the Vietnam War in lack of understanding of the VC, again fueling prolonged "senseless" battle. (At the end of The Heart of Everything That Is, the battle with the Indians is called the longest U.S. war. You can read to see why.)
What we fail to understand, we cannot value. And what we do not value, we lose. And so it was with the Indian culture. I cannot help but wonder how different things might be today if we had learned from their example of living in harmony with nature (though truly they did not live in harmony with each other before the settlers came). How might our own culture be enriched by learning from these people and honoring them and their ways rather them routing them from their land for the purpose of "civilization," a term that is so contrary to the horrible acts that preceded it in the Old West?
If you have ever felt that war lacked purpose or reason, this book will sharpen those feelings like needles in your soul. The loss is not just of lives in battle, but the loss of an Indian culture that lived in harmony with nature before the purposeful fomenting of Indian rage and desperation by the American government. At various turns, the officers and soldiers suffer grievous losses because they fail to understand the Indians--how they fought, thought and lived. This disregard and unfathomable loss of life was replayed in my generation in the Vietnam War in lack of understanding of the VC, again fueling prolonged "senseless" battle. (At the end of The Heart of Everything That Is, the battle with the Indians is called the longest U.S. war. You can read to see why.)
What we fail to understand, we cannot value. And what we do not value, we lose. And so it was with the Indian culture. I cannot help but wonder how different things might be today if we had learned from their example of living in harmony with nature (though truly they did not live in harmony with each other before the settlers came). How might our own culture be enriched by learning from these people and honoring them and their ways rather them routing them from their land for the purpose of "civilization," a term that is so contrary to the horrible acts that preceded it in the Old West?
December 22, 2016
Should be said this is more of an overview of everything that was happening in present day Wyoming, Montana and South Dakota in the 1860s than a biography of Red Cloud. It’s also a less idealised account of the Lakota than how they were presented in Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee. We get graphic accounts of the tortures they subjected white settlers to and as a result perhaps understand better why they had to be subjugated. The book is fabulously researched, benefiting from numerous journals and letters which enables the authors to bring to life the events in a thoroughly immersive and exciting manner. A tremendously engaging read.
June 22, 2022
I have read a great deal of American Indian history and was looking forward to this book. However, this work is a waste of time for anyone interested in an accurate investigation into the history of European whites and Native Americans.
Some of my issues with the book are:
1. This is not an "untold" story since Red Cloud has been the subject of many works.
2. There are many factual errors regarding the Plains Indians, e.g., the Lakota are a matriarchal society not patriarchal as stated in the book, the Cree were not the first Native Americans to receive firearms as the authors state, etc.
3. The book uses pejorative terms when describing the Native Americans, and much less so when describing whites who after all stole Native American land and caused millions of Native American deaths.
4. The text is very repetitive and includes quite a bit of information not pertinent to the tale. The book could have been half its length.
5. Even though this purports to be about Red Cloud, the man himself never becomes "real" in the book; rather he is a shallowly constructed character. We never get a feel for the true person or even an inkling of him.
6. My greatest concern is that many people will read this book thinking it is accurate history when it is not.
Some of my issues with the book are:
1. This is not an "untold" story since Red Cloud has been the subject of many works.
2. There are many factual errors regarding the Plains Indians, e.g., the Lakota are a matriarchal society not patriarchal as stated in the book, the Cree were not the first Native Americans to receive firearms as the authors state, etc.
3. The book uses pejorative terms when describing the Native Americans, and much less so when describing whites who after all stole Native American land and caused millions of Native American deaths.
4. The text is very repetitive and includes quite a bit of information not pertinent to the tale. The book could have been half its length.
5. Even though this purports to be about Red Cloud, the man himself never becomes "real" in the book; rather he is a shallowly constructed character. We never get a feel for the true person or even an inkling of him.
6. My greatest concern is that many people will read this book thinking it is accurate history when it is not.
May 22, 2020
The white man made me a lot of promises, and they only kept one. They promised to take my land, and they took it.
I am shocked with myself that so far I had dismissed the American West history as 'boring'. My strong impression of guns, wars, violence, squalor, scarcity, thievery and general nastiness no doubt comes from the legend of the West, rather than any real knowledge. While much of this is also true, somehow I had missed the point that these were real people living with real problems, and this is real, live history. Well, no more! I have some more books on this subject lined up.
This is my first book on this period in history, so I really cannot vouch for the accuracy of any of the details. But I think I learned a lot. The best thing about the book is that it is very evocative in its descriptions. It transports you to Old America and you begin to feel really close to the subjects. You can see the lush greenery and the buffaloes, and the tents of the Native Americans. You can also picture the army barracks and men in uniform struggling to keep control with limited resource. You can picture in your mind’s eye the large train of wagons with hundreds of people travelling to the gold fields. And if you can’t, here are some real pictures to help your imagination along!
The first part of the book was brilliant. It basically focussed on Red Cloud’s family, antecedents, way of life and discussed the various alliances and enmities between the various tribes. It gives a real insight into the way of life of the Sioux, which is why I read the book in the first place. Then halfway through the book, the focus shifts to the army. So far, so good, because it was interesting to see how the army functioned under the circumstances. The last part of the book, however, simply degenerates into just repetitions of one attack after the other.
This brings me to another problem in the book – repetitive narrative. It got exceedingly tiresome to read about how the natives attacked from the west and then killed four people and then the army attacked from the north and killed five people. Then again the same thing the next day, only this time from a different direction. And the next, maybe from the top of a hill. And so on. A hundred pages of this and it is like war of boredom being declared against the reader personally. There was also plenty of superfluous stuff, like some cowboy turned cattle baron, who marched through the trail. It was not relevant to the story and was simply stuffed in for no reason. Perhaps the authors didn’t want their research to go waste, but this occurred regularly and the story veered off to include random side characters who were of little importance. The narrative itself is not very consistent or coherent and jumps back and forth all the time, even within the same paragraph. The entire book could have been cut down by hundred pages for better effect.
A final problem was that this book is not what it really claims to be. This is not a biography of Red Cloud; it is a story about the clashes that took place between the US army and the Native Americans led by Red Cloud. What is interesting to me is Red Cloud and his life in entirety. I am not really interested in a list of how many people he killed, and where and how he killed them. Though there were snippets of his personal life once in a while, the story really never focused on the man himself. The book even ended after the Fetterman Massacre in 1866, even though Red Cloud lived on until 1909 and campaigning for the rights of Native Americans till the very end. I would have been far more interested in that stuff than the endless and boring list of battles.
That said, I must say I really enjoyed the book because it had flashes of some really brilliant writing as well as some interesting information. With a lot of editing, it might even make it to 4 stars! Even with all its faults, it is still a book worth reading for those interested in the subject.
I am shocked with myself that so far I had dismissed the American West history as 'boring'. My strong impression of guns, wars, violence, squalor, scarcity, thievery and general nastiness no doubt comes from the legend of the West, rather than any real knowledge. While much of this is also true, somehow I had missed the point that these were real people living with real problems, and this is real, live history. Well, no more! I have some more books on this subject lined up.
This is my first book on this period in history, so I really cannot vouch for the accuracy of any of the details. But I think I learned a lot. The best thing about the book is that it is very evocative in its descriptions. It transports you to Old America and you begin to feel really close to the subjects. You can see the lush greenery and the buffaloes, and the tents of the Native Americans. You can also picture the army barracks and men in uniform struggling to keep control with limited resource. You can picture in your mind’s eye the large train of wagons with hundreds of people travelling to the gold fields. And if you can’t, here are some real pictures to help your imagination along!
The first part of the book was brilliant. It basically focussed on Red Cloud’s family, antecedents, way of life and discussed the various alliances and enmities between the various tribes. It gives a real insight into the way of life of the Sioux, which is why I read the book in the first place. Then halfway through the book, the focus shifts to the army. So far, so good, because it was interesting to see how the army functioned under the circumstances. The last part of the book, however, simply degenerates into just repetitions of one attack after the other.
This brings me to another problem in the book – repetitive narrative. It got exceedingly tiresome to read about how the natives attacked from the west and then killed four people and then the army attacked from the north and killed five people. Then again the same thing the next day, only this time from a different direction. And the next, maybe from the top of a hill. And so on. A hundred pages of this and it is like war of boredom being declared against the reader personally. There was also plenty of superfluous stuff, like some cowboy turned cattle baron, who marched through the trail. It was not relevant to the story and was simply stuffed in for no reason. Perhaps the authors didn’t want their research to go waste, but this occurred regularly and the story veered off to include random side characters who were of little importance. The narrative itself is not very consistent or coherent and jumps back and forth all the time, even within the same paragraph. The entire book could have been cut down by hundred pages for better effect.
A final problem was that this book is not what it really claims to be. This is not a biography of Red Cloud; it is a story about the clashes that took place between the US army and the Native Americans led by Red Cloud. What is interesting to me is Red Cloud and his life in entirety. I am not really interested in a list of how many people he killed, and where and how he killed them. Though there were snippets of his personal life once in a while, the story really never focused on the man himself. The book even ended after the Fetterman Massacre in 1866, even though Red Cloud lived on until 1909 and campaigning for the rights of Native Americans till the very end. I would have been far more interested in that stuff than the endless and boring list of battles.
That said, I must say I really enjoyed the book because it had flashes of some really brilliant writing as well as some interesting information. With a lot of editing, it might even make it to 4 stars! Even with all its faults, it is still a book worth reading for those interested in the subject.
October 30, 2013
“The Heart of Everything That Is” by Bob Drury and Tom Clavin, published by Simon & Schuster.
Category – American History Publication Date – November 05, 2013
I can remember the name Red Cloud from my college history books, and if I am not mistaken he received a total of 3 or 4 paragraphs, if that. The reason he has not received the notoriety that he deserves was that he was an American Indian and that he defeated the United States Government. In fact, he is the only American Indian to defeat the United States Army in a war. He forced the United States Government to sue for peace in what is known as the “Red Cloud War”. It’s amazing how we hide our failures. The book though is more than the story of Red Cloud, it is the story of the Plain Indians. It details their lives, how they lived, how they fought, and how they were screwed by the United States Government. The Plain Indians consisted of several tribes that for the most part fought among themselves until Red Cloud was able to consolidate them into a unified fighting unit. Red Cloud was also smart enough to fight an unconventional war that continually defeated the U.S. Army in battle. The Indians instilled great fear in their foes because of the atrocities they committed on their enemies, including but not exclusive to scalping and mutilation. Why did Red Cloud go to war? It wasn’t because he hated the white man, it was because he was taking away his land. A land that provided him everything he needed to survive, water, food, and shelter. Not only was his land being taken away but the U.S. Government reneged on all the conditions of the treaties made with the Indians, leading to poverty, starvation, and death.
A great read for both those who enjoy history and those who are looking for a good true story.
Category – American History Publication Date – November 05, 2013
I can remember the name Red Cloud from my college history books, and if I am not mistaken he received a total of 3 or 4 paragraphs, if that. The reason he has not received the notoriety that he deserves was that he was an American Indian and that he defeated the United States Government. In fact, he is the only American Indian to defeat the United States Army in a war. He forced the United States Government to sue for peace in what is known as the “Red Cloud War”. It’s amazing how we hide our failures. The book though is more than the story of Red Cloud, it is the story of the Plain Indians. It details their lives, how they lived, how they fought, and how they were screwed by the United States Government. The Plain Indians consisted of several tribes that for the most part fought among themselves until Red Cloud was able to consolidate them into a unified fighting unit. Red Cloud was also smart enough to fight an unconventional war that continually defeated the U.S. Army in battle. The Indians instilled great fear in their foes because of the atrocities they committed on their enemies, including but not exclusive to scalping and mutilation. Why did Red Cloud go to war? It wasn’t because he hated the white man, it was because he was taking away his land. A land that provided him everything he needed to survive, water, food, and shelter. Not only was his land being taken away but the U.S. Government reneged on all the conditions of the treaties made with the Indians, leading to poverty, starvation, and death.
A great read for both those who enjoy history and those who are looking for a good true story.
March 11, 2014
I have to admit that I am conflicted about this book. I bought it, interested in the subject already, and having read several other works about the Sioux people, in addition to the obligatory Sitting Bull/Crazy Horse/Custer library, I was hoping this was indeed "The Untold Story of Red Cloud" as advertised. And right off the bat, I was caught up in the quality of the prose.
Slowly the questions and difficulties emerged; the sourcing is imprecise, the system of "trailing phrases" notation and citation is frustrating (to me, it's sloppy and allows for too much "wiggle room"), and although the effort to give the Sioux their "voice" in the narrative is great, it assumes much on the motives, thoughts and beliefs of some of the players (whites included) than could possible be really known. While dutifully noting many of the atrocities, underhanded dealings and violence of the whites, it does get too heavy handed at times, sometimes even doling harsh judgement to one side and dismissing such judgement to the other. This is where S.C. Gwynne excels with his excellent look at the Comanche: Empire of the Summer Moon. Gwynne examines the conflicts in the west as a clash of cultures: whites, Latinos and Native American peoples. Atrocities are accounted for and good and bad intentions and actions presented for all. Drury and Clavin present the conflicts, violence and battles almost as unforgivable in some sections of the narrative and at other points, a misunderstood way of life.
So in some ways, the book itself is conflicted. What is designed and advertised as an "untold" biography becomes a tale of the conflict primarily from the Army's point of view about 2/3rds of the way into the book. And I am somewhat confused as to which parts are really untold. Looking at the list of sources also seems conflicted; some great archival research and primary sources, but folded into the mix of secondary sources are some older works- which can be good, unless more recent work with new scholarship is available. There are some old chestnuts about Native American Folkways and culture that are repeated here as well, and something's that are asserted that need more specific citations, etc that end up lost in the "trailing phrases" notations.
Overall, I was encouraged by the work and the effort of the authors; the writing was excellent and it's evident that good research was done, but perhaps the documentation isn't as tight as it needs to be. It reads like the first attempt of these authors to tackle the West (which according to the list of their work, seems to be the case), but -again following the conflicted theme again- still the work of excellent historians. I will be definitely checking out their other work. In the meantime, I applaud the authors for focusing more on the sometimes overlooked Red Cloud. And while it's important such work is done and the Sioux have been enjoying a little surge in their bibliography, I hope the same will be true for the Cheyenne, The Osage, the Pawnee and other Plains tribes.
Slowly the questions and difficulties emerged; the sourcing is imprecise, the system of "trailing phrases" notation and citation is frustrating (to me, it's sloppy and allows for too much "wiggle room"), and although the effort to give the Sioux their "voice" in the narrative is great, it assumes much on the motives, thoughts and beliefs of some of the players (whites included) than could possible be really known. While dutifully noting many of the atrocities, underhanded dealings and violence of the whites, it does get too heavy handed at times, sometimes even doling harsh judgement to one side and dismissing such judgement to the other. This is where S.C. Gwynne excels with his excellent look at the Comanche: Empire of the Summer Moon. Gwynne examines the conflicts in the west as a clash of cultures: whites, Latinos and Native American peoples. Atrocities are accounted for and good and bad intentions and actions presented for all. Drury and Clavin present the conflicts, violence and battles almost as unforgivable in some sections of the narrative and at other points, a misunderstood way of life.
So in some ways, the book itself is conflicted. What is designed and advertised as an "untold" biography becomes a tale of the conflict primarily from the Army's point of view about 2/3rds of the way into the book. And I am somewhat confused as to which parts are really untold. Looking at the list of sources also seems conflicted; some great archival research and primary sources, but folded into the mix of secondary sources are some older works- which can be good, unless more recent work with new scholarship is available. There are some old chestnuts about Native American Folkways and culture that are repeated here as well, and something's that are asserted that need more specific citations, etc that end up lost in the "trailing phrases" notations.
Overall, I was encouraged by the work and the effort of the authors; the writing was excellent and it's evident that good research was done, but perhaps the documentation isn't as tight as it needs to be. It reads like the first attempt of these authors to tackle the West (which according to the list of their work, seems to be the case), but -again following the conflicted theme again- still the work of excellent historians. I will be definitely checking out their other work. In the meantime, I applaud the authors for focusing more on the sometimes overlooked Red Cloud. And while it's important such work is done and the Sioux have been enjoying a little surge in their bibliography, I hope the same will be true for the Cheyenne, The Osage, the Pawnee and other Plains tribes.
April 25, 2022
I was somewhat troubled by a few of the authors' characterizations prior to page 94, but was willing to give them the benefit of the doubt. Then I read this sentence: "Red Cloud possessed forethought unusual in an Indian, and the possibility must have crossed his mind that one day he might have to look down the barrels of those guns."
After reading that sentence I cannot in good conscience continue reading this book. Usually when I cannot finish a book I don't leave a review unless there is an egregious problem; I like to give authors the benefit of the doubt and I realize that some books are just not my cup of tea. But racism on the part of the author or authors is an egregious problem. If they had written, "Red Cloud possessed forethought unusual in most people..." or "Red Cloud had the foresight to realize...," but they did not. The authors wrote "forethought unusual in an Indian," and that is racist. Forethought is no more or less unusual in Indians than in any other group of human beings. Human beings often have difficulty with foresight or seeing the big picture.
I cannot continue reading the book because my trust in the authors' ability to tell Red Cloud's story or any story involving Native Americans is gone.
After reading that sentence I cannot in good conscience continue reading this book. Usually when I cannot finish a book I don't leave a review unless there is an egregious problem; I like to give authors the benefit of the doubt and I realize that some books are just not my cup of tea. But racism on the part of the author or authors is an egregious problem. If they had written, "Red Cloud possessed forethought unusual in most people..." or "Red Cloud had the foresight to realize...," but they did not. The authors wrote "forethought unusual in an Indian," and that is racist. Forethought is no more or less unusual in Indians than in any other group of human beings. Human beings often have difficulty with foresight or seeing the big picture.
I cannot continue reading the book because my trust in the authors' ability to tell Red Cloud's story or any story involving Native Americans is gone.
November 30, 2013
Evidently well researched, probably the best book treating the Red Cloud part of the Indian Wars of the 1860a. As a biography it has pace and activity. However a biography of a tribal leader of historic importance, of battles against ruthless white domination, it must provide the subject's side of the story. The authors do well on the story, but fail on letting this Indian Chief Red Cloud tell his side of the story.
"It is said that years later as an old man [of age 72], Red Cloud recounted his exchange [with US military forces] to his lifelong campfire companion Sam Deon, a white trapper and trader who became the conduit through which the great Chief told his life story." The authors attest that "The wise warrior chief ws reluctant to address his battles against the United States [since] such reminiscences could still get him killed." Parts were orally conveyed by Deon in 1893 to newspaperman Charles Wesley Allen, whose aim was to compile and publish this as an autobiography. Allen turned all his "excerpted portions" over to the Nebraska State historical Society, as a 134-page double-spaced typescript.
The bibliography lists the so-called "autobiography" under E. Eli Paul - not as a work by Red Cloud. And the Notes for chapter 15 to 38 make no use of Paul's edited "autobiography" The authors had Red Cloud descendants "speak publicly about their famous forefather's life in general, and in particular his role in the Fetterman Massacre." And in the final chapter: "Red Cloud never spoke to any whites of his great victory, so we are left to imagine his thoughts...." While the authors have attempted an objective journalists' report, this portrayal of Red Cloud is flat. A disappointing biography to say the least.
The reader finds this a well-done partial story of "Red Cloud's War" so famous in American history. This is a superior description of the War. Yet, at the same time, this is a defective biography of Chief Red Cloud, portrayed as viewed by adversaries. It is not the "autobiography" - the "untold story of Red Cloud" - as the authors attest and as the publisher promoted the book in its quoting Ken Burns "Finally, there is a portrait worthy of the man, fully drawn and realized, all the complicated undertow acknowledge and embraced." Not at all honest advertising.
"It is said that years later as an old man [of age 72], Red Cloud recounted his exchange [with US military forces] to his lifelong campfire companion Sam Deon, a white trapper and trader who became the conduit through which the great Chief told his life story." The authors attest that "The wise warrior chief ws reluctant to address his battles against the United States [since] such reminiscences could still get him killed." Parts were orally conveyed by Deon in 1893 to newspaperman Charles Wesley Allen, whose aim was to compile and publish this as an autobiography. Allen turned all his "excerpted portions" over to the Nebraska State historical Society, as a 134-page double-spaced typescript.
The bibliography lists the so-called "autobiography" under E. Eli Paul - not as a work by Red Cloud. And the Notes for chapter 15 to 38 make no use of Paul's edited "autobiography" The authors had Red Cloud descendants "speak publicly about their famous forefather's life in general, and in particular his role in the Fetterman Massacre." And in the final chapter: "Red Cloud never spoke to any whites of his great victory, so we are left to imagine his thoughts...." While the authors have attempted an objective journalists' report, this portrayal of Red Cloud is flat. A disappointing biography to say the least.
The reader finds this a well-done partial story of "Red Cloud's War" so famous in American history. This is a superior description of the War. Yet, at the same time, this is a defective biography of Chief Red Cloud, portrayed as viewed by adversaries. It is not the "autobiography" - the "untold story of Red Cloud" - as the authors attest and as the publisher promoted the book in its quoting Ken Burns "Finally, there is a portrait worthy of the man, fully drawn and realized, all the complicated undertow acknowledge and embraced." Not at all honest advertising.
May 8, 2024
In this book about the life of Sioux warrior Red Cloud, the scenes of bloodshed, gore and atrocities are endless. But the most arresting visual I took away from it is a final scene reported in the book's endnotes. It's an "I'm Not Rappaport" kind of scene in which the vanquished Red Cloud, living out his last years on a reservation, is recounting his life to an old friend in a series of interviews. The conversations are turned into a manuscript that is then lost for a hundred years.
Authors Bob Drury and Tom Clavin are fortunate to have that biography to add to the copious research they themselves carried out for this book. Theirs is an exhaustive look not merely at one Native American warrior, but a broader examination of the gradual defeat of the native tribes by the ever-expanding United States. It is a meticulous treatment of events that could easily have been lost to history, although the authors frequently have to admit that some things just can't be known.
My knowledge of Native American history is sketchy at best. It was hard for me to follow all the individual tribes and what nations they belonged to. A map of the Western tribes prior to the Civil War contains more than thirty names. But the overall trajectory of the book is easily grasped. The authors trace how Red Cloud rose to power over a wide swath of the West, and how he came to claim military victory -- albeit a fleeting one -- over U.S. forces.
Authors Bob Drury and Tom Clavin are fortunate to have that biography to add to the copious research they themselves carried out for this book. Theirs is an exhaustive look not merely at one Native American warrior, but a broader examination of the gradual defeat of the native tribes by the ever-expanding United States. It is a meticulous treatment of events that could easily have been lost to history, although the authors frequently have to admit that some things just can't be known.
My knowledge of Native American history is sketchy at best. It was hard for me to follow all the individual tribes and what nations they belonged to. A map of the Western tribes prior to the Civil War contains more than thirty names. But the overall trajectory of the book is easily grasped. The authors trace how Red Cloud rose to power over a wide swath of the West, and how he came to claim military victory -- albeit a fleeting one -- over U.S. forces.
October 6, 2013
Let me say this was a great book. The untold story of Red Cloud is truly a history lesson on the old west but also on guerrilla warfare. But the story begins with Red Cloud as a young boy who's father dies by drinking to death. Not honorable in the Tribe. But a leader takes him in and helps him in the young warrior ways. What is seen is a keen skill in hunting and tracking. He is able to bring in large amounts and he takes care of the older ones in Tribe and sick ones. By this time he is allowed to be around the leaders. He is there for one of the very first traeties signed. He of course can not sat any thing or do any thing. Some of the things he does take in is the weapons the the army had and how they drilled. For a show of power the armt fired a cannon. He thought two things. First one shot could take out alot of braves but in the time it took them to reload they could attack and kill them before the next shot. As he moved into his 20's his racking continued to grow in the Tribe. He was also becoming well known around other Tirbes, they were afraid of him as well. He could hunt, plan attacks on other Tribes and do all of this as a team with the other braves that followed him. He continued to rise in power and he continued to see the decline of the buffalo and other animals. Lands that were agreed on were now being over run. Other Tribes were being killed by troops. By the time of the end of the civil war he was now chief. He married into the family. Now treaties did not matter like they did any way. The goverment needed money after the war so when gold was discoverd it did not matter where. They sent the 18 inf.to build a fort in one of the places they said they would not. To Red Cloud this was the last straw this was scarred ground.He was able to unite 7 Tribes which is amazing and then get them to fight as a unit. They attacked an attachment from Fort Kearney. They had been watching them for weeks. They attacked once wiped out the first part and when the reenfourcements showed up they wiped them out as well. The next day what was left at the fort went out to see what wsa left. After this the fort was closed down for about 8mos. He then started back with the attacks not just on this fort but on two others as well. He would also attack two forts at the same time.During this time is when Custer was killed with his men. The Army or Dep. or the Dep of the Army. Issued new springfield ripping rifles, on the next attack that Red Cloud made on the fort he lost over 100 braves. He now saw that they had no way of defeating that rifle. He brought his people, his Tribe to a reservation in Montana, where he lived out his remaining days.His battles against the Army are truly things of work of art. Now our snipers are trained to blend into the land around them, get close to the enemy without being seen. Just some of the things we now do from the Indians. Red Cloud is still the only Chief that has ever claim victory over the United States. One last thought the fight against the indians or indigenous people, the single most continous war, over 300 years. A great book. I got this from Net Galley.
November 5, 2020
I recently finished reading a very good biography of Cochise and his Apache tribe and that inspired me to pick up this book. This is a very good biography about an Indian chief that apparently accomplished more than any of the chiefs the American public is familiar with and that is a shame. Our 19th century Indian history is an area that I admit not being terribly knowledgable about but this book and the recently read Cochise biography have helped cure that somewhat. Unfortunately after reading these books I find myself understanding Mark Twain's disdain for "the myth of the noble red man". While a good biography this book's real value is in its exploration of native American cultures and inter-tribal relationships and then their relationships with the encroaching whites. The native Americans were extremely primitive and violent. Their treatment of enemies be they whites or rival Indian tribes was nothing short of barbaric. That their brutality could inspire white hatred and desires for revenge like the Sand Creek episode becomes understandable. The whites Red Cloud had to deal with might have been more technologically advanced but their evolution from the primitive was not so far in the past that resort to it couldn't be done quickly and easily. Neither side of this history has clean hands and given the circumstances of the time I do not know if there could ever have been a more equitable and less costly and violent solution. Red Cloud came to see the the hopelessness of his quest for his people and laid down his weapons. The chiefs we all know from countless works of pulp fiction and movies did not. Isn't it a shame that these are the ones we know while the one that actually accomplished a victory we know not at all? An excellent biography and Western American history that is well worth reading.
March 25, 2015
I enjoyed the book but I was a little bothered by the tone of the authors. At times, Bob Drury and Ron Clavin seem to be less than objective. In fact, they seemed to have a bias in favor of the Sioux. Throughout the book there are several examples of this. For example, they are skeptical of US Army reports but accept verbal histories from relatives of Crazy Horse, passed down around the campfire for generations as fact. In regard to the author’s account of Crazy Horse mooning Fetterman in a last ditch effort to lure the US Army over the ridge line. They make a statement in the bibliography that “while some academics may not consider this information sufficiently scholarly, we think it would be wrong to discount or disrespect the strong oral tradition of the Crazy Horse family.” Meanwhile, the written history of the Army is scrutinized and questioned at every turn.
They seem to go out of their way to point out that most everyone in the US Army is incompetent, immoral, or corrupt on some level. Meanwhile, the Sioux seem to get a free pass. Let us not forget that the Sioux enjoyed being the scourge of the Great Plains. They subjugated the neighboring tribes. They murdered and tortured their enemies, both Indian and white. They raped, stole, and murdered and their women were virtually slaves. Look at the captions on the photos included with the edition I purchased. They have a nasty comment about many of the white men. I think it is ironic that they mention “the bigamist Lt. Geroge Grummand….” In one photo when you consider that a Sioux brave could take many wives. They also mention that unlike the white man the Sioux didn’t waste any of the Buffalo. According to accounts by Evan S. Connell in The Son of the Morning Star this is pure fantasy.
I didn't like how the authors, trying to rationalize for the way the Sioux tortured their enemies, used the moral equivalency argument. The authors correctly mentioned that the white man forgot about Spanish Inquisition etc. Elsewhere in the book they mention examples of US atrocities throughout history such as Sand Creek, Mai Lai, Biscari and Abu Garib. I wish they would remove Abu Ghraib as an example of an atrocity. Making prisoners climb into naked pyramids is not the equivalent of the Army running-a-muck at Sand Creek. It is also not the equivalent of the typical Indian tortures of cutting off a man’s penis and shoving it down his throat and cutting off their fingers and busting out all their teeth and making a fire in their belly while the man is still alive.
I see that the authors dedicated this book to the Red Cloud family and the residents of Pine Ridge. I think they may have grown too close to the subject to remain objective. I would like to remind them that if they had covered Red Cloud’s war like modern day war correspondents and if they fell into the hands of the Sioux they most probably would have been murdered in a slow horrific fashion much like the photographer Ridgeway Glover was in the book. It is funny how 150 years can change your perspective.
In my opinion the Sioux certainly do not have sole possession of the moral high ground. As the authors point out in the book, the Sioux had to run off the Crow to take possession of the Bad Lands just a few generations prior to the coming of the whites. Also, the detailed accounts of the Plains Indian’s tortures make one understand how the Sand Creek massacre – as awful as it was – can happen. I thank the authors, Bob Drury and Ron Clavin for not sparing the details of these kinds of massacres. This story needs to be told.
All in all, this was a good read. I preferred the Gwynne’s Empire of the Summer Moon; Hampton Side’s Blood and Thunder; Even S. Connell’s Son of the Morning Star; and Winston Groom’s Kearny’s March. However, “The Heart of Everything That Is” is also a good read if you can sort through the thinly veiled white guilt.
They seem to go out of their way to point out that most everyone in the US Army is incompetent, immoral, or corrupt on some level. Meanwhile, the Sioux seem to get a free pass. Let us not forget that the Sioux enjoyed being the scourge of the Great Plains. They subjugated the neighboring tribes. They murdered and tortured their enemies, both Indian and white. They raped, stole, and murdered and their women were virtually slaves. Look at the captions on the photos included with the edition I purchased. They have a nasty comment about many of the white men. I think it is ironic that they mention “the bigamist Lt. Geroge Grummand….” In one photo when you consider that a Sioux brave could take many wives. They also mention that unlike the white man the Sioux didn’t waste any of the Buffalo. According to accounts by Evan S. Connell in The Son of the Morning Star this is pure fantasy.
I didn't like how the authors, trying to rationalize for the way the Sioux tortured their enemies, used the moral equivalency argument. The authors correctly mentioned that the white man forgot about Spanish Inquisition etc. Elsewhere in the book they mention examples of US atrocities throughout history such as Sand Creek, Mai Lai, Biscari and Abu Garib. I wish they would remove Abu Ghraib as an example of an atrocity. Making prisoners climb into naked pyramids is not the equivalent of the Army running-a-muck at Sand Creek. It is also not the equivalent of the typical Indian tortures of cutting off a man’s penis and shoving it down his throat and cutting off their fingers and busting out all their teeth and making a fire in their belly while the man is still alive.
I see that the authors dedicated this book to the Red Cloud family and the residents of Pine Ridge. I think they may have grown too close to the subject to remain objective. I would like to remind them that if they had covered Red Cloud’s war like modern day war correspondents and if they fell into the hands of the Sioux they most probably would have been murdered in a slow horrific fashion much like the photographer Ridgeway Glover was in the book. It is funny how 150 years can change your perspective.
In my opinion the Sioux certainly do not have sole possession of the moral high ground. As the authors point out in the book, the Sioux had to run off the Crow to take possession of the Bad Lands just a few generations prior to the coming of the whites. Also, the detailed accounts of the Plains Indian’s tortures make one understand how the Sand Creek massacre – as awful as it was – can happen. I thank the authors, Bob Drury and Ron Clavin for not sparing the details of these kinds of massacres. This story needs to be told.
All in all, this was a good read. I preferred the Gwynne’s Empire of the Summer Moon; Hampton Side’s Blood and Thunder; Even S. Connell’s Son of the Morning Star; and Winston Groom’s Kearny’s March. However, “The Heart of Everything That Is” is also a good read if you can sort through the thinly veiled white guilt.
July 3, 2020
The Sioux are written in full color horror here. Fierce and vicious, they are described as raping, slowly torturing, killing, dismembering (various body parts) of their rivals the Pawnee and Crow. Stealing children and bashing their little heads against rocks to save on using an arrow. The excessive amounts of brutality against other tribes was horrible to read. I can appreciate Red Cloud for his mind, and the way he was able to understand and use military tactical plans against the US Government. How he was a mentor to Crazy Horse, but I just didn’t enjoy this book at all.
I was taught that the Oglala Lakota were a matriarchal society. But in the book they state, over and over again how women were treated. How they were traded for, raped, and used as pack labor to carry all the tribes goods from camp to camp. It’s even said that the worse insult you could give a Sioux man was to call him a woman.
This book shows that no matter our skin color, we’ve discriminated, and practiced horrible atrocities against each other for years.
I was taught that the Oglala Lakota were a matriarchal society. But in the book they state, over and over again how women were treated. How they were traded for, raped, and used as pack labor to carry all the tribes goods from camp to camp. It’s even said that the worse insult you could give a Sioux man was to call him a woman.
This book shows that no matter our skin color, we’ve discriminated, and practiced horrible atrocities against each other for years.
August 14, 2022
Kudos!
I just finished The Heart of Everything That Is and comparing with over a hundred other books on the American West that I have read through the years, this history on Red Cloud and the Oglala ranks up there with the very best.
In addition to the battles and treaties dramatically detailed here there is a significant narrative on the Oglala Sioux before Red Cloud became chief. It is an excellent big picture narrative presented in a linear timeline that was never tedious.
I have been to the sites of most of the fort locations in this book which are predominantly in Wyoming, Nebraska and Colorado . Most of the forts are long gone of course but it was so interesting to see how they tied to Red Cloud and how relevant they all were to the Oglala history. It is amazing how many hundreds (and even thousands) of miles that these tribes traveled each year.
This is also best written account of the Fetterman Massacre and the Wagon Box Fight that I have read.
5 stars. Highly recommended.
I just finished The Heart of Everything That Is and comparing with over a hundred other books on the American West that I have read through the years, this history on Red Cloud and the Oglala ranks up there with the very best.
In addition to the battles and treaties dramatically detailed here there is a significant narrative on the Oglala Sioux before Red Cloud became chief. It is an excellent big picture narrative presented in a linear timeline that was never tedious.
I have been to the sites of most of the fort locations in this book which are predominantly in Wyoming, Nebraska and Colorado . Most of the forts are long gone of course but it was so interesting to see how they tied to Red Cloud and how relevant they all were to the Oglala history. It is amazing how many hundreds (and even thousands) of miles that these tribes traveled each year.
This is also best written account of the Fetterman Massacre and the Wagon Box Fight that I have read.
5 stars. Highly recommended.
May 8, 2020
Potężny i szczegółowy opis historii Czerwonej Chmury, wodza Siuksów, któremu udała się rzecz niewyobrażalna - zjednoczył kilka plemion indiańskich w walce przeciwko Stanom Zjednoczonym. Detaliczny zapis czasów, kiedy osadnicy w Stanach zaczęli odkrywać Zachód kontynentu - urodzajne ziemie, bogactwo zwierzyny, a do tego jeszcze gorączka złota. To wszystko skutkowało zaborem ziem pierwszym narodom - zaganianiem ich do coraz to mniejszych i biedniejszych skrawków Ameryki Północnej. W końcu Indianie się zbuntowali i to właśnie pod przywództwem Czerwonej Chmury.
Polecam zainteresowanym tematem, bo szczegółowość opisów dla mniej ciekawych nie będzie interesująca.
Polecam zainteresowanym tematem, bo szczegółowość opisów dla mniej ciekawych nie będzie interesująca.
July 20, 2013
ARC provided by NetGalley
Sitting Bully, Crazy Horse, Geronimo...their stories have all been told. But Red Cloud, the most powerful Indian commander of the Oglala Sioux, has been lost to the times of history. Until now. In this well researched and well written book, Bob Drury and Tom Calvin have lifted the veils of time to bring Red Cloud's story to light.
So often when we read the history textbooks or hear about the history of the west, we're told how savage the Indians were. But as you dig deeper into it you discover there's a greater truth that we try to bury, that they just wanted to be free. In this book we learn about the history of Red Cloud, the only Plains Indian to defeat the US Army and one who could lay claim to 1/5 of the US. These two authors weave together a powerful story, one that's been waiting years to be told.
Native American history is one of my passions. In one way it's depressing that we've lost this culture, these lives and histories due to our own arrogance believing that we were the better and less savage group. But it gives me hope that books like this one on Red Cloud are being researched and are being published by major publishers, because people have an interest in learning the truth and that perhaps it isn't too late.
I'd highly recommend this book, whether they have an interest in history, culture, or just want to know more about this story of this great Sioux Chief. I give the book 4 out of 5 stars.
Sitting Bully, Crazy Horse, Geronimo...their stories have all been told. But Red Cloud, the most powerful Indian commander of the Oglala Sioux, has been lost to the times of history. Until now. In this well researched and well written book, Bob Drury and Tom Calvin have lifted the veils of time to bring Red Cloud's story to light.
So often when we read the history textbooks or hear about the history of the west, we're told how savage the Indians were. But as you dig deeper into it you discover there's a greater truth that we try to bury, that they just wanted to be free. In this book we learn about the history of Red Cloud, the only Plains Indian to defeat the US Army and one who could lay claim to 1/5 of the US. These two authors weave together a powerful story, one that's been waiting years to be told.
Native American history is one of my passions. In one way it's depressing that we've lost this culture, these lives and histories due to our own arrogance believing that we were the better and less savage group. But it gives me hope that books like this one on Red Cloud are being researched and are being published by major publishers, because people have an interest in learning the truth and that perhaps it isn't too late.
I'd highly recommend this book, whether they have an interest in history, culture, or just want to know more about this story of this great Sioux Chief. I give the book 4 out of 5 stars.
January 6, 2016
The Heart of Everything That Is: The Untold Story of Red Cloud, An American Legend is perhaps the worst book I have ever read. I don't say that lightly: I've read a lot of books, and this one really earns those honors of being perhaps the most horrible book I have ever had the misfortune to set eyes on. It's a shame, because the subject is so rich and so interesting, and yet the authors completely fail to do it justice; instead, they only preserve the harmful narrative of cowboys versus Indians that every other book in history created. I always take notes while I read, and there were plenty of expletive-laden notes during this one, so let's take a gander inside.
First, the authors start the book, the very first page, with a portrait of the army, not Red Cloud — despite the chief being the titular focus of the book — and they automatically set up the scene so you will sympathize the plight of the army and view Indians as savage killers. That tone is set immediately in this book and never left behind. The authors don't shy away from putting their opinions in this book, very obviously in some places, and more subtly in others, using language and tone like they did on the first page to present the image of the Indian man that they want their readers to get. For instance, there are pages of description of how violent and bloodthirsty the Sioux tribes were in the war, and they describe the horror the white Americans felt upon learning all of these things, first, as though they never did it themselves, and second, as if all of these acts really occurred. I doubt that many of these mutilations and such actually occurred, or certainly not to the degree they described in the book. It definitely plays into the idea that Indians are savage brutes no matter what, because if the authors didn't go into detail about that, it wouldn't be a compelling read and it wouldn't hold up the idea of the Indian wild man that still exists. They clearly wanted to set up the good vs. evil, cowboy vs. Indian, American military might vs. primitive indigenous tribal warriors. The authors also call the pre-Columbian society of Native Americans a "Hobbesian dystopia." Nope. NOPE.
As I said, I doubt that many of the events described in this book even happened to the degree they are described, but the problem is that the authors' source material is so lacking that, in fact, there is practically none. There are so many places where primary sources or evidentiary documents would be great to pull from, but instead the authors editorialize and spew out some facts that are questionable at best. For instance, there is often quoted material from surviving officers of the United States army, or their wives, or white eyewitnesses. Nowhere in the important narratives of the book are the accounts of the Lakota themselves. The authors mention Red Cloud's autobiography at the very end but they never pull from it during the book.
So not only are there practically no sources at all, the sources and information that are in the book are wrong. There are mistranslations everywhere. Word order and sentence structure are different in English than they are in Lakota — even I know this, and I know next to nothing about the latter language. Additionally, the maps that the authors and publishers included are wrong and do not include all the relevant tribes while mislabeling others. They don't specify between the correct tribal variations of Sioux, which is infuriating.
They completely disregard the existence of the Native American in telling this story, as far as I can tell. In one section, the authors spend an entire paragraph talking about the origin myths of the Sioux, and then immediately in the next paragraph they say, "in reality," and completely invalidate what they just said. Sure, I don't believe in the origin myth either, but it's reality to many Lakota people, so why deny it and say it's not real? It's very real to them. They invalidate and belittle the Lakota people, and they jump in with editorializations and irrelevant opinions, claiming that racism is over and just because a white man married a Native woman, that somehow means racial harmony among everyone. They assume so much.
Another pet peeve: this book is written like a fifth-grade social studies textbook. Or worse. The authors keep using the same words over and over, with a very limited vocabulary. Plus, there are sections toward the ends of chapters when the authors set up a clear cliffhanger and then don't let it go anywhere. You don't set up suspense by saying "Little did they know...." but that's what these fellows do. It's like a Dan Brown book, only worse. They have great sentences here and there, with great opportunity to expand upon them for more information, but they mess it up almost every time. A section at the end of the book mentions how Red Cloud's men themselves, although the clear leaders of the battle, are also getting tired out, and in this area, they could have opened this up further and examined the moral among Red Cloud's people — indeed, in Red Cloud himself — but instead they ignore their own nice setup and immediately turn it back to the army's perspective of things.
Which leads me to probably the number reason I hated this book. Just like so many other books I've read about the Indian Wars, this book focuses so much on the army that half of the story is lost. There is so much detail given here to the individual moves of the army that my eyes glazed over and I skimmed until I got back to the parts about Red Cloud. No matter even if the authors were talking directly about Red Cloud, the subject is still very much the army. The Lakota were always passive; the white army men were always active. The army was doing things to the Lakota; the Lakota were the victims. Red Cloud was preparing for things from the army; he was never planning things on his own. It's difficult to describe to someone who perhaps hasn't read the book, but rather than having the Natives be the active people in most situations, they are merely passively involved. Even though the war is Red Cloud's War and the book's very title calls him "an American Legend."
The book doesn't do Red Cloud's War justice at all. It could be an interesting read about an interesting and crucial military engagement, but this book butchers it and makes it an infuriating read instead. I do want to know more about Red Cloud and his war prowess, but this book clearly isn't the one to accomplish that.
First, the authors start the book, the very first page, with a portrait of the army, not Red Cloud — despite the chief being the titular focus of the book — and they automatically set up the scene so you will sympathize the plight of the army and view Indians as savage killers. That tone is set immediately in this book and never left behind. The authors don't shy away from putting their opinions in this book, very obviously in some places, and more subtly in others, using language and tone like they did on the first page to present the image of the Indian man that they want their readers to get. For instance, there are pages of description of how violent and bloodthirsty the Sioux tribes were in the war, and they describe the horror the white Americans felt upon learning all of these things, first, as though they never did it themselves, and second, as if all of these acts really occurred. I doubt that many of these mutilations and such actually occurred, or certainly not to the degree they described in the book. It definitely plays into the idea that Indians are savage brutes no matter what, because if the authors didn't go into detail about that, it wouldn't be a compelling read and it wouldn't hold up the idea of the Indian wild man that still exists. They clearly wanted to set up the good vs. evil, cowboy vs. Indian, American military might vs. primitive indigenous tribal warriors. The authors also call the pre-Columbian society of Native Americans a "Hobbesian dystopia." Nope. NOPE.
As I said, I doubt that many of the events described in this book even happened to the degree they are described, but the problem is that the authors' source material is so lacking that, in fact, there is practically none. There are so many places where primary sources or evidentiary documents would be great to pull from, but instead the authors editorialize and spew out some facts that are questionable at best. For instance, there is often quoted material from surviving officers of the United States army, or their wives, or white eyewitnesses. Nowhere in the important narratives of the book are the accounts of the Lakota themselves. The authors mention Red Cloud's autobiography at the very end but they never pull from it during the book.
So not only are there practically no sources at all, the sources and information that are in the book are wrong. There are mistranslations everywhere. Word order and sentence structure are different in English than they are in Lakota — even I know this, and I know next to nothing about the latter language. Additionally, the maps that the authors and publishers included are wrong and do not include all the relevant tribes while mislabeling others. They don't specify between the correct tribal variations of Sioux, which is infuriating.
They completely disregard the existence of the Native American in telling this story, as far as I can tell. In one section, the authors spend an entire paragraph talking about the origin myths of the Sioux, and then immediately in the next paragraph they say, "in reality," and completely invalidate what they just said. Sure, I don't believe in the origin myth either, but it's reality to many Lakota people, so why deny it and say it's not real? It's very real to them. They invalidate and belittle the Lakota people, and they jump in with editorializations and irrelevant opinions, claiming that racism is over and just because a white man married a Native woman, that somehow means racial harmony among everyone. They assume so much.
Another pet peeve: this book is written like a fifth-grade social studies textbook. Or worse. The authors keep using the same words over and over, with a very limited vocabulary. Plus, there are sections toward the ends of chapters when the authors set up a clear cliffhanger and then don't let it go anywhere. You don't set up suspense by saying "Little did they know...." but that's what these fellows do. It's like a Dan Brown book, only worse. They have great sentences here and there, with great opportunity to expand upon them for more information, but they mess it up almost every time. A section at the end of the book mentions how Red Cloud's men themselves, although the clear leaders of the battle, are also getting tired out, and in this area, they could have opened this up further and examined the moral among Red Cloud's people — indeed, in Red Cloud himself — but instead they ignore their own nice setup and immediately turn it back to the army's perspective of things.
Which leads me to probably the number reason I hated this book. Just like so many other books I've read about the Indian Wars, this book focuses so much on the army that half of the story is lost. There is so much detail given here to the individual moves of the army that my eyes glazed over and I skimmed until I got back to the parts about Red Cloud. No matter even if the authors were talking directly about Red Cloud, the subject is still very much the army. The Lakota were always passive; the white army men were always active. The army was doing things to the Lakota; the Lakota were the victims. Red Cloud was preparing for things from the army; he was never planning things on his own. It's difficult to describe to someone who perhaps hasn't read the book, but rather than having the Natives be the active people in most situations, they are merely passively involved. Even though the war is Red Cloud's War and the book's very title calls him "an American Legend."
The book doesn't do Red Cloud's War justice at all. It could be an interesting read about an interesting and crucial military engagement, but this book butchers it and makes it an infuriating read instead. I do want to know more about Red Cloud and his war prowess, but this book clearly isn't the one to accomplish that.
February 22, 2024
Kind of a fractured narrative about Red Cloud that I found tedious and kind of boring. I had a hard time staying engaged and felt like I learned more from just reading Wikipedia entries.
April 4, 2014
“The Heart of everything that is” is a Sioux expression for their sacred homeland in the Black Hills of South Dakota. I was familiar with all the battles, people and problems presented in the book but this is the first time I have encountered it all in one place. Drury and Clavin chronicled in great detail the shameful treatment of the Indians across the plains and the destruction of their way of life. Red Cloud (1821-1909) chief of the Oglala Sioux presided over a vast swath of the western United States, from Canada to Kansas, from Minnesota to Wyoming. Red Cloud’s father died of alcoholism, so Red Cloud never drank and hated the Whiteman who provided the “fire water”. The author’s tell the tale of the Fetterman Massacre and the battles along the Bozeman trail in great detail. Red Cloud had the unique ability to unite various tribes of the Sioux, as well as the Cheyenne, and Arapaho to fight the white men.
Red Cloud changed his battle tactic to keep the Army off guard. The defeat of Capt. Fetterman was the largest defeat of the U.S. Army by the Indians up to that date. Of course, eleven years later Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse would “chastise” George Armstrong Custer at the little Big Horn using the tactics they learned from Red Cloud. Red Cloud proved to be not only a brilliant military tactician but a shrewd negotiator. He went to Washington and secured land in Nebraska. The reservation was named after Red Cloud. Of course, the government took this land away from them when settlers wanted the land. Red Cloud and his people were moved to the grim Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. Red Cloud took repeated trips to Washington seeking better treatment for his people. Lots of famous names dance e across the pages such as Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse, Man afraid of his horse, Jim Bridger, President Grant and Hays, Col. Henry Carrington, Capt. Fetterman, Phil Kearny, Ridgway Glover, John Protégée Phillips. I found it great to have all these events and people I was aware put into one place in chronological order. The treatment of the Native Americans is one of the more disgraceful events in our history. If you enjoy history you will enjoy this book. I read this as an audio book downloaded from Audible. George Newbern did a good job narrating the book.
Red Cloud changed his battle tactic to keep the Army off guard. The defeat of Capt. Fetterman was the largest defeat of the U.S. Army by the Indians up to that date. Of course, eleven years later Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse would “chastise” George Armstrong Custer at the little Big Horn using the tactics they learned from Red Cloud. Red Cloud proved to be not only a brilliant military tactician but a shrewd negotiator. He went to Washington and secured land in Nebraska. The reservation was named after Red Cloud. Of course, the government took this land away from them when settlers wanted the land. Red Cloud and his people were moved to the grim Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. Red Cloud took repeated trips to Washington seeking better treatment for his people. Lots of famous names dance e across the pages such as Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse, Man afraid of his horse, Jim Bridger, President Grant and Hays, Col. Henry Carrington, Capt. Fetterman, Phil Kearny, Ridgway Glover, John Protégée Phillips. I found it great to have all these events and people I was aware put into one place in chronological order. The treatment of the Native Americans is one of the more disgraceful events in our history. If you enjoy history you will enjoy this book. I read this as an audio book downloaded from Audible. George Newbern did a good job narrating the book.
January 17, 2014
I happened to visit the National Archives in Washington DC on the same day that I purchased this book and there on the wall I found the same picture of Red Cloud (that adorned the cover of this book). What I thought was a book about an obscure Native American was looking at me bigger than life. What I found at the National Archives was a complete display on Red Cloud and the Lakota Wars. What I learned in 20 minutes reading copies of primary source documents provided me far more understanding of Red Cloud than reading 365 pages of this book.
I just wish the authors would have spent more time trying to understand Red Cloud rather than report what had been written many times before. The authors even admitted that Red Cloud did not talk about his war years and yet the whole book was about the war years of Red Cloud. This book was about the Fetterman Massacre not Red Cloud and was more like a "dime store" novel than an attempt to tell the "Untold" story of Red Cloud.
I found a quote: “I was interested, but I’m no scholar of the west,” says Drury, maybe that explains why this wasn't a very good book. At the completion of this book I realized that the Red Cloud story remains untold.
I just wish the authors would have spent more time trying to understand Red Cloud rather than report what had been written many times before. The authors even admitted that Red Cloud did not talk about his war years and yet the whole book was about the war years of Red Cloud. This book was about the Fetterman Massacre not Red Cloud and was more like a "dime store" novel than an attempt to tell the "Untold" story of Red Cloud.
I found a quote: “I was interested, but I’m no scholar of the west,” says Drury, maybe that explains why this wasn't a very good book. At the completion of this book I realized that the Red Cloud story remains untold.
June 10, 2015
The title derives from what the Lakota called the Black Hills, “Paha Sapa,” the heart of everything that is. One vignette in this book virtually encapsulates the entire history of the relationship between Americans and native peoples. On one of his many trips to Washington attempting to keep the Americans out of Lakota territory, Red Cloud told an Army officer the Black Hills were where his ancestors came from. The officer responded that was simply a myth: the Lakota had only been there at most two generations, they had taken the land from the Crow because they could and, “We will take it from you because we can.”
This is the clear-eyed story of the Plains Indians, focusing on Red Cloud, the only warrior to defeat the United States, and his war from 1866 to 1868. Engaging and taken from exhaustive research in original sources, you get a real sense of the feelings, blunders, and viciousness on both sides. I don’t think you can find any better than this.
This is the clear-eyed story of the Plains Indians, focusing on Red Cloud, the only warrior to defeat the United States, and his war from 1866 to 1868. Engaging and taken from exhaustive research in original sources, you get a real sense of the feelings, blunders, and viciousness on both sides. I don’t think you can find any better than this.
August 11, 2013
This is not only the story of Red Cloud, the only Native American Sioux leader who could beat the American Army, but also a story of a clash of cultures, completely alien to each other.
Just at the time when the USA is recovering from the Civil War, and the reorganized Army is weaker than ever, a big move westward starts. Under the banner of "Manifest Destiny" (a nice euphemism for stealing lands through unbridled greed and unspeakable arrogance), gold diggers, farmers, ranchers, and all kinds of fortune seekers rush to the West and force the Indian tribes more and more out of their home lands. Over and over, peace treaties and promises are broken by the USA.
Red Cloud, a daring fighter, but also a smart politician and military strategist, rises to power, brings several tribes together, and stands up to save his High Plains.
Great story, smashing history!!!!!
Just at the time when the USA is recovering from the Civil War, and the reorganized Army is weaker than ever, a big move westward starts. Under the banner of "Manifest Destiny" (a nice euphemism for stealing lands through unbridled greed and unspeakable arrogance), gold diggers, farmers, ranchers, and all kinds of fortune seekers rush to the West and force the Indian tribes more and more out of their home lands. Over and over, peace treaties and promises are broken by the USA.
Red Cloud, a daring fighter, but also a smart politician and military strategist, rises to power, brings several tribes together, and stands up to save his High Plains.
Great story, smashing history!!!!!
October 26, 2013
Most of the research for this book is taken from an as-told-to autobiography of Red Cloud which was lost for 100 years. Along with material from other diaries and letters, the story describes the people and events leading up to the Fetterman Massacre. Described in especially gruesome detail, it was the only time that a coalition of Native American warriors, led by Red Cloud, defeated the U.S. Army.
This is a page turner because even though you know the eventual outcome, you are not certain exactly how it will happen. As we all know, the Indians may have won the battle, but they certainly did not win the war. And while the tribes were certainly justified in resenting the white incursion into their lands, there was a lot of brutality on their side as well.
This is a page turner because even though you know the eventual outcome, you are not certain exactly how it will happen. As we all know, the Indians may have won the battle, but they certainly did not win the war. And while the tribes were certainly justified in resenting the white incursion into their lands, there was a lot of brutality on their side as well.
February 8, 2023
Genres: Biorgraphy/Nonfiction
I liked this biogrpahy for the most part. I listened to the audio and I liked the narration. I also liked that this had new information that I haven't heard before. This part of American history was a tragedy. My heart is always torn when I read about it because I have a foot in each camp.....ancestors on both sides. To steal land, liberty, life and identity was cruel.
What irked me a bit was the constant repetition that was used to paint the severe slant that seemed to favor the massacre of the Native Americans. I could appreciate the research and the story told from the author's POV but reader be aware: this is a very biased telling of Red Cloud's story and the friction between the Native Americans and the US government.
I liked this biogrpahy for the most part. I listened to the audio and I liked the narration. I also liked that this had new information that I haven't heard before. This part of American history was a tragedy. My heart is always torn when I read about it because I have a foot in each camp.....ancestors on both sides. To steal land, liberty, life and identity was cruel.
What irked me a bit was the constant repetition that was used to paint the severe slant that seemed to favor the massacre of the Native Americans. I could appreciate the research and the story told from the author's POV but reader be aware: this is a very biased telling of Red Cloud's story and the friction between the Native Americans and the US government.
June 6, 2020
As hard as the Native Americans fought to retain their land against white settlers, their military victories were few and far between. Most of us have at least vaguely heard of Custer's Last Stand, but before that, a battle in Wyoming called Fetterman's Fight led to the deaths of 81 soldiers of the US Army and the (temporary) withdrawal of troops from Indian territory. Bob Drury and Tom Clavin's The Heart of Everything That Is takes a deep dive the battle, from its roots in the inter-tribal warfare among the Plains Indians to the rise of Red Cloud as a leader among the Lakota to his (ultimately short-lived) martial triumph. It has significant biographical detail about Red Cloud, but it's not trying to be a comprehensive look at him in particular. Rather, it uses Fetterman's Fight as a microcosm of the greater struggle of the Plains and Western tribes against the changes to their lifestyles wrought by white Americans driving further and further west.
Drury and Clavin strive to present a straightforward, unvarnished look at their subjects and push back against the idea that before protracted contact with whites, Native Americans lived as idyllic pacifists. Tribes had allies and enemies and some of them were very comfortable inflicting brutal violence against the latter. Red Cloud was brought up among his mother's people, the Oglala Lakota, one of the more aggressive branches of the greater Lakota nation, and was groomed for leadership by his mother's uncle. As he grew up, his people were pushed farther and farther from their traditional territory and he fought against enemy tribes in his youth, gaining renown, before turning his attention to the threats posed by the continually promise-breaking whites.
After a series of skirmishes, things came to a head at Fort Phil Kearney. It was a perfect storm: angry at yet another incursion into their land, the Lakota were able to ally with other tribes. The leadership at the fort was both arrogant and foolhardy. Red Cloud was a smarter tactician than his opponents. And the United States was forced to retreat, to abandon its forts. But it lasted less than a decade. The book covers the immediate aftermath of the battle, but only touches on the long run: Red Cloud, taking a trip to Washington, DC, realized the scale of the threat to his people and the ultimate hopelessness of continuing the fight, and led those that would follow him onto the reservation.
Pretty much any book about Native American history is inevitably compared to Dee Brown's Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee simply because of that book's prominence. And I'd say this book is an excellent companion. It doesn't have, and honestly doesn't try for, the scope of Bury of My Heart, which covers more tribes over a longer time period. Instead, it takes a little known episode (I'd never heard of the Fetterman Fight) and explains it, placing its people and events into a larger context. And the book succeeds at this task, developing not only Red Cloud and to a lesser extent, his young protege Crazy Horse, as compelling and sympathetic characters, but also presenting the life of the Army fort, populated not just with soldiers but with families. No one is a cardboard cutout villain.
That being said, this book does occasionally get a little dry. I know some people are fascinated with military history and can happily read about tactics and battles for hours, but I am not one of those people. I find it deeply boring to read about attack techniques, and so I did experience waning interest when I think I was supposed to be the most engaged, during the climactic battle itself. I also found myself wanting more of the aftermath, more of Red Cloud's long life after this particular point. Overall, though, it's an interesting look at a part of history that's not well-understood by most potential readers, and I'd definitely recommend it as a way of broadening one's knowledge base about the formation of the United States as we know it today.
Drury and Clavin strive to present a straightforward, unvarnished look at their subjects and push back against the idea that before protracted contact with whites, Native Americans lived as idyllic pacifists. Tribes had allies and enemies and some of them were very comfortable inflicting brutal violence against the latter. Red Cloud was brought up among his mother's people, the Oglala Lakota, one of the more aggressive branches of the greater Lakota nation, and was groomed for leadership by his mother's uncle. As he grew up, his people were pushed farther and farther from their traditional territory and he fought against enemy tribes in his youth, gaining renown, before turning his attention to the threats posed by the continually promise-breaking whites.
After a series of skirmishes, things came to a head at Fort Phil Kearney. It was a perfect storm: angry at yet another incursion into their land, the Lakota were able to ally with other tribes. The leadership at the fort was both arrogant and foolhardy. Red Cloud was a smarter tactician than his opponents. And the United States was forced to retreat, to abandon its forts. But it lasted less than a decade. The book covers the immediate aftermath of the battle, but only touches on the long run: Red Cloud, taking a trip to Washington, DC, realized the scale of the threat to his people and the ultimate hopelessness of continuing the fight, and led those that would follow him onto the reservation.
Pretty much any book about Native American history is inevitably compared to Dee Brown's Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee simply because of that book's prominence. And I'd say this book is an excellent companion. It doesn't have, and honestly doesn't try for, the scope of Bury of My Heart, which covers more tribes over a longer time period. Instead, it takes a little known episode (I'd never heard of the Fetterman Fight) and explains it, placing its people and events into a larger context. And the book succeeds at this task, developing not only Red Cloud and to a lesser extent, his young protege Crazy Horse, as compelling and sympathetic characters, but also presenting the life of the Army fort, populated not just with soldiers but with families. No one is a cardboard cutout villain.
That being said, this book does occasionally get a little dry. I know some people are fascinated with military history and can happily read about tactics and battles for hours, but I am not one of those people. I find it deeply boring to read about attack techniques, and so I did experience waning interest when I think I was supposed to be the most engaged, during the climactic battle itself. I also found myself wanting more of the aftermath, more of Red Cloud's long life after this particular point. Overall, though, it's an interesting look at a part of history that's not well-understood by most potential readers, and I'd definitely recommend it as a way of broadening one's knowledge base about the formation of the United States as we know it today.
November 28, 2013
This review is of a book won from Goodreads First Reads Giveaway program.
Most numerous and most confident of their ability to defend their territory were the Oglala Tetons. At the beginning of the white man's Civil War, their outstanding leader was Red Cloud, thirty-eight years old, a shrewd warrior chief.(page 10, Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West)
We know the names Sitting Bull, Geronimo, Black Elk, Crazy Horse. Red Cloud is a name not as commonly known or recognized, yet his leadership was significant. As I've been reading Native American literature this month, his name has cropped up in other books, like Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee, as mentioned above. But the references are brief, at best, and made me realize I didn't know anything about his story. Luckily this book became available in the First Reads program and I was a winner.
This is, as the subtitle suggests, Red Cloud's untold story. But it's more than that - it details the Native American-US Army's, erm, relations in a very direct and honest way that, in my opinion, surpasses even Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee which has long been considered the best book on Native American history. While I do feel there isn't as much about Red Cloud the person as I had hoped to receive, I was not disappointed in the quality and expanse of other information that the authors included. They are clearly well-researched in the topics they wrote here and were not shy about sharing the negative (and positive, when appropriate) traits held by either the Native Americans or the "whites".
The authors included detailed maps to help those readers (like myself) who aren't as familiar with the military or tactical end of things, which helped bring me a better understanding Red Cloud's War, a series of battles over about a two year span in the late 19th century. While Red Cloud managed to defeat Captain Fetterman's unit which came to be known as the Fetterman Massacre, it managed to not be entirely successful because (let's face it) the American Indians were lied to for years to come.
I feel the authors managed to do a good job at telling both sides of the story, to the best of their ability, though it's hard to ignore the fact that it's another book written on the topic by more white men. That, however, is the American Thanksgiving wine doing its talking right now, and the issue that I cannot overlook the fact that people are gorging themselves on large quantities of food right now while so many people in the world go without, and very few think of how we came to where we are today on this great American soil. Remember that, while you're giving thanks today, wouldya? It's not just enough to be grateful for your family, it's not just enough to eat a turkey. There's a long history behind you, and if you can't take some time out of your food-filled day to think about that today, then shame on you.
/soap box
February 9, 2022
Audible.com 10 hours 5 min. Narrated by George Newbern (A)
About fifty years ago, I read The Leatherstocking Tales by James Fenimore Cooper and assumed complacently I had read all I needed to know about the American "Indians." Last year I listened to Joseph M. Martin III read his thoughtfully presented own personal story as a proud remnant of the Lakota tribe The Day The World Ended At Little Big Horn and my safe state of perpetual ignorance was punctured. Last month I very reluctantly pulled Dee Brown's "Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee" from my Wish List and listened to a story I knew I didn't want to hear, and my safe state completely collapsed. I was born in Washington, D.C., in 1947, graduated from high school in the adjoining Maryland suburbs and then from a small college. I thought I had a relatively good education. Like many of my generation I learned about "Indians" from Saturday classics like The Lone Ranger and western movies. All the real history about the native North American tribes I have learned over the past two years through my pursuit to learn more about my own country's history.
I may have been blind, but I refuse to remain ignorant. Once the wound from reading from Dee Brown's book started to heal, I searched to find more books about the original owners of the beautiful country in which I have been privileged to live. "The Heart Of Everything That Is:The Untold Story Of Red Cloud, An American Legend" is part of my journey and wasn't quite as painful as Brown's. This too is historical fiction but very well-researched and capivatingly written by two respected authors.. The narrator didn't attempt to falsely imitate a tribe's dialect and kept the story moving along. Again one of the hindrances to listening to a book on history is the absence of maps and photos. It helped that that my daughter's family took a road trip through some of this area last summer, and she documented much with photos. The writers weren't shy about the grisly treatment of one tribe against each other long before the Europeans entered the picture, and they just continued tribal practices as their oponents shifted. While the names of Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse were familiar, I didn't remember Red Cloud so my history lesson started with this great warrior, the only "foreign" soldier to defeat an American army on her "own" soil.
About fifty years ago, I read The Leatherstocking Tales by James Fenimore Cooper and assumed complacently I had read all I needed to know about the American "Indians." Last year I listened to Joseph M. Martin III read his thoughtfully presented own personal story as a proud remnant of the Lakota tribe The Day The World Ended At Little Big Horn and my safe state of perpetual ignorance was punctured. Last month I very reluctantly pulled Dee Brown's "Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee" from my Wish List and listened to a story I knew I didn't want to hear, and my safe state completely collapsed. I was born in Washington, D.C., in 1947, graduated from high school in the adjoining Maryland suburbs and then from a small college. I thought I had a relatively good education. Like many of my generation I learned about "Indians" from Saturday classics like The Lone Ranger and western movies. All the real history about the native North American tribes I have learned over the past two years through my pursuit to learn more about my own country's history.
I may have been blind, but I refuse to remain ignorant. Once the wound from reading from Dee Brown's book started to heal, I searched to find more books about the original owners of the beautiful country in which I have been privileged to live. "The Heart Of Everything That Is:The Untold Story Of Red Cloud, An American Legend" is part of my journey and wasn't quite as painful as Brown's. This too is historical fiction but very well-researched and capivatingly written by two respected authors.. The narrator didn't attempt to falsely imitate a tribe's dialect and kept the story moving along. Again one of the hindrances to listening to a book on history is the absence of maps and photos. It helped that that my daughter's family took a road trip through some of this area last summer, and she documented much with photos. The writers weren't shy about the grisly treatment of one tribe against each other long before the Europeans entered the picture, and they just continued tribal practices as their oponents shifted. While the names of Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse were familiar, I didn't remember Red Cloud so my history lesson started with this great warrior, the only "foreign" soldier to defeat an American army on her "own" soil.
December 10, 2014
It was a great story, just very badly told. You could have knocked me over with a feather when I learned that both authors of this book had both written over 8 books each and published by Simon & Schuster!
Reading this book was like pulling teeth! But I wanted to know the story that the book told, so I s-l-o-w-l-y sloshed through it, as it read at a snails-pace, because of the extremely bad editing. There must have been 500 commas that should have been used, but weren't. Every time I found one, it brought me out of the story to think about the poor punctuation. I read the e-book version. I hope the printed version is better! The title of Chapter 27 should be, "Mercifully Kill All The Wounded". Instead, "Kill" features four "L's" to be "Killll". If the chapter titles contain such terrible editing, you can imagine what the rest of the book is like!
You could tell the authors were well educated, because they used a vocabulary fitting a college professor and that simply went over my head time and again. I found myself constantly having to stop and read the definition of the word used in the built-in dictionary.
The story itself is what made reading it worthwhile. The story of Red Cloud, the only Indian to force the United States to sue for piece under HIS terms, is a good one, that I had never heard about before. It offered a lot of insights to how things really were back then in that part of the country between the white man and red man.
I would not recommend you buying this book, because it was just too hard to read, and therefore, not really an enjoyable read, though, I did find it educational.
Reading this book was like pulling teeth! But I wanted to know the story that the book told, so I s-l-o-w-l-y sloshed through it, as it read at a snails-pace, because of the extremely bad editing. There must have been 500 commas that should have been used, but weren't. Every time I found one, it brought me out of the story to think about the poor punctuation. I read the e-book version. I hope the printed version is better! The title of Chapter 27 should be, "Mercifully Kill All The Wounded". Instead, "Kill" features four "L's" to be "Killll". If the chapter titles contain such terrible editing, you can imagine what the rest of the book is like!
You could tell the authors were well educated, because they used a vocabulary fitting a college professor and that simply went over my head time and again. I found myself constantly having to stop and read the definition of the word used in the built-in dictionary.
The story itself is what made reading it worthwhile. The story of Red Cloud, the only Indian to force the United States to sue for piece under HIS terms, is a good one, that I had never heard about before. It offered a lot of insights to how things really were back then in that part of the country between the white man and red man.
I would not recommend you buying this book, because it was just too hard to read, and therefore, not really an enjoyable read, though, I did find it educational.
July 17, 2015
Everyone has that most obnoxious internal alarm alerting them when they might be hearing a story that isn't entirely true. Mine was clanging away while reading "The Heart of Everything that is."
While this book has been described as meticulously researched, the lack of any direction specific directions towards the sources of these stories of Red Cloud makes it very difficult to believe that events of his life so vividly described in detail, are entirely accurate. In a time characterized by wild accounts hyped up for the paper, I would imagine that many readers would be skeptical of stories presented in such detail. It would help, then, if the authors would have pointed to from where these stories came. Yet they don't, and so I was left wondering if this was all history, or an interpretation.
Coupled with this was what others have identified as incorrect assertions about Native Americans' beliefs and acts. Reviewers have overwhelmingly criticized the acts of torture described in near horror-movie fashion. Especially in the case of what would likely be a contentious issue, one would imagine that the authors might indicate the source of the events that they claim happened. Again, we're left to wonder.
While others have praised the prose within this book, I couldn't get passed skepticism to enjoy it. And since I have no desire to put somebody else in the situation of being caught up in conjecture, I wouldn't recommend it.
While this book has been described as meticulously researched, the lack of any direction specific directions towards the sources of these stories of Red Cloud makes it very difficult to believe that events of his life so vividly described in detail, are entirely accurate. In a time characterized by wild accounts hyped up for the paper, I would imagine that many readers would be skeptical of stories presented in such detail. It would help, then, if the authors would have pointed to from where these stories came. Yet they don't, and so I was left wondering if this was all history, or an interpretation.
Coupled with this was what others have identified as incorrect assertions about Native Americans' beliefs and acts. Reviewers have overwhelmingly criticized the acts of torture described in near horror-movie fashion. Especially in the case of what would likely be a contentious issue, one would imagine that the authors might indicate the source of the events that they claim happened. Again, we're left to wonder.
While others have praised the prose within this book, I couldn't get passed skepticism to enjoy it. And since I have no desire to put somebody else in the situation of being caught up in conjecture, I wouldn't recommend it.
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