Literary Fools Crow by James Welch

[sun surfer]

This is the MR Literary Club selection for February 2014. Whether you've already read it or would like to, feel free to start or join in the conversation at any time! Guests are also always welcome.


Some ebook availability-
Canada- Amazon
U.S.- Amazon

Some pbook availability-
Australia- Bookworld search
U.K.- Amazon search


So, what are your thoughts on it?

[fantasyfan]

Is this the same book?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Fools-Crow-W...rds=Fools+Crow

update: No it isn't--but it looks interesting in its own right!

[Stephjk]

Originally Posted by fantasyfan

Is this the same book? I suspect not but it's worth checking.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Fools-Crow-W...rds=Fools+Crow

I just bought that one by mistake, wasn't looking properly!

Originally Posted by fantasyfan

Is this the same book?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Fools-Crow-W...rds=Fools+Crow

update: No it isn't--but it looks interesting in its own right!

Ah serendipity. How my TBR list grows in unexpected fashion.

[Stephjk]

I can't get the James Welch one so I'll read the other instead!

[Bookpossum]

I recommend sailing over to Mexico, where I got it without any trouble.

[Stephjk]

Originally Posted by Bookpossum

I recommend sailing over to Mexico, where I got it without any trouble.

I tried that, but couldn't work it out. Maybe it's just too far away!

[paola]

Originally Posted by Stephjk

I tried that, but couldn't work it out. Maybe it's just too far away!

you should easily manage on your yacht - check your PM for a map :-)

[Stephjk]

Originally Posted by paola

you should easily manage on your yacht - check your PM for a map :-)

I found it, thank you, what a lovely place, maybe I'll sail back again one day!

[fantasyfan]

Well, I finally managed to get a copy from my faithful Book Depository. While the book is more expensive than the copies I saw in ABE, it is brand new and is sent within 48 hours postage free. When I added the postage required by the Bookseller in ABE I was getting a used copy for nearly the same price and would have to wait a couple weeks for it to arrive.

I look forward to reading it!

[Bookpossum]

I was checking with good old Wikipedia to work out the geography in terms of where the tribes were located in the US (I found I had guessed reasonably well) and I thought you might enjoy this photograph. I believe that some of Curtis' photographs are considered to be less than authentic in terms of clothing etc, but I thought this was a beautiful image.

[Billi]

Originally Posted by Bookpossum

I was checking with good old Wikipedia to work out the geography in terms of where the tribes were located in the US.

Yes, this was the first thing I was doing too when I got my copy of the book (my local library has it, listed under "youth books").

[BelleZora]

Thanks for the beautiful photograph, Bookpossum. I was amused that it was listed under "youth books" in the Berlin public library. It seems unlikely that anyone read Fools Crow before categorizing it.

I also checked Wikipedia for Blackfoot history. The Piegan warrior Owl Child, the trader Malcolm Clarke, and the scout Joe Kipp were historical persons and the events concerning them in the book really happened.

The book also describes well the warrior culture, the importance of counting coup, the giving of a silly or derogatory name at a boy's first war party (White Man's Dog) and the giving of an honorable name when the young man had stolen his first horse or killed his first enemy (Fools Crow).

I appreciate the book more as I realize that it is an excellent depiction of historical events and more than just a good story.

Edit: I misunderstood how Fools Crow had first acquired the name White Man's Dog. Here is the quote ('she' refers to his mother):

She still couldn’t get used to the name Fools Crow, just as many years ago she couldn’t feel comfortable with the name White Man’s Dog. She had to smile when she thought how he had acquired that name. He was nine winters, and he had taken to following an old storyteller around— Victory Robe White Man. One day one of the men saw the storyteller alone and said, “Where is White Man’s dog?” and the name stuck.

[issybird]

Originally Posted by BelleZora

I appreciate the book more as I realize that it is an excellent depiction of historical events and more than just a good story.

Edit: I misunderstood how Fools Crow had first acquired the name White Man's Dog. Here is the quote ('she' refers to his mother):

That was a fun reveal. I, too, thought that White Man's Dog was meant to be derogatory, especially given how fearful and directionless he was at the beginning of the book.

Now that I'm done, I've been reading some of the background with interest, especially about the

Spoiler:

Marias Massacre.

[sun surfer]

I almost didn't vote for this book in this initial poll until I read more about it. Finding that the author not only wrote from a Native American perspective but also wrote in the style of Native American speech intrigued me, and I was not disappointed. I also enjoyed the historical information in the book and the imagining of what normal non-idealised day-to-day life might've been like for the Lone Eaters and others of the area just before the encroachment of the white man.

Including the fantastical elements was an interesting decision and I liked how that gave me not only a glimpse of their religion but helped me to better understand their view of the world.

Originally Posted by issybird

That was a fun reveal. I, too, thought that White Man's Dog was meant to be derogatory, especially given how fearful and directionless he was at the beginning of the book...

I enjoyed the playfulness of the text in this regard. Welch often left small questions like this unanswered for a long time, letting us wonder if they ever would be, only to be slyly revealed as asides later on.