Customer Reviews

The Captured: A True Story of Abduction by Indians on the Texas Frontier

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3 star:		(1)
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I was pleasantly surprised at how good this book is. Author Zesch has turned out what should become a minor classic of Texas and Western history.

"Captured" is about the experiences of nine White children captured by Comanches and Apaches from 1865 to 1871. The children lived among the Indians for up to 12 years. Several of them were members of the large German-speaking community which settled in the Texas Hill Country west of San Antonio.

As the author wryly notes the only career path for Comanche men was "warrior" and the author details many of the brutal battles between Comanche and Texan. There are massacres and atrocities and gore galore here, but also a bit of humor and humanity. White children captives were often treated kindly and adopted into the tribe. Despite being eyewitnesses to the murder of their families, several of the male captives profiled by Zesch came to prefer the wild and free life of a Comanche warrior to that of a Texas sodbuster. Most notably, Herman Lehmann was one of the last few Comanche holdouts to surrender to the Whites in 1878 and he was a willing and enthusiastic participant in many battles against White soldiers and raids on White communities. Zesch also details the inability of the freed captives to readjust to life as Whites. Most became alienated drifters and a few later rejoined the defeated Comanches on reservations in Oklahoma. Many also lived to ripe old ages.

There are many volumes of stories about Whites being taken captive by and living among the Indians. This is the best I have read. The author delves into reasons why so many White captives came to prefer living among Indians rather than returning to their own culture.

Smallchief

This book tells the story of some ordinary children who had extraordinary experiences, and the immediacy and directness of the author's writing makes their long-ago world come alive. The premise of the book, searching for the facts to flesh out the story of a long-forgotten relative, grows into something larger and more emotionally-ridden than simple history. This book is fascinating and you won't want to put it down once you start - not the usual thing for a non-fiction account. I was left with a lot to think about at the end of the book, about the way society handled things 100 years ago, the effects of their exeriences on these children... and I also wondered how I or anyone I know would have reacted in these circumstances, circumstances which still come up at some place in the world today every day.

I usually like to "put in my two cents" with an Amazon review when there aren't any other reviews or when I disagree strongly with the other reviews. Why just "echo" what other people are saying, I figure? But, this book is so well-written and fascinatin' that I gotta write somethin'. This is one of those few books that you'll remember and think about for a long time to come.

I "read" this book using "Books on Tape" audio CD. (You can get this book on ONE Mp3 CD---very convenient to listen while you're in your car or waiting in line someplace)

I liked the book so much I just ordered my own hardcopy! Also, I ordered some of the "source books" mentioned in the narrative. Maybe I'll review those when I read 'em. As a result of reading this book, maybe sometime in the future I'll travel to "the hill country" of Texas and Fort Sill, Oklahoma to take a look see myself at where some of the events took place. This book is a "DaVinci Code" for people who love history and who appreciate a good story! Enjoy! Email:boland7214@aol.

picked up my first copy of this book in Fredericksburg, TX where I happened to be eating some BBQ and looked across the street to see an old settlers outpost fort. I wandered around to check it out and the volunteer guide there showed me the book and said it was an amazing story about a little known niche of our history - children kidnapped by the Indians to re-populate their own tribes thorugh a process of "the strongest will survive and be good warriors" they rode the kids hard and if they cried or shoed signs of weakness, they killed them on the spot, figuring they wouldnt be worth the effort to train and raise. if the kids were able to endure the introduction phase, then they began living life like kings, training to shoot arrows, ride horses, fight, and hunt all day. leaving the domestic chores to the women. nearly all of them eventually were returned or sold back to the white settlers but some refused to go and a number of them ran away and rejoined their indian families.

it reads like an adventure book and proves that real life is better than fiction. the Author does a great job o story telling and is very diligent to accurately reflect true historical data as pulled from historical interviews, military records and newspaper articles.

Author Scott Zesch started out researching information on an ancestor, Adolph Korn. What he ended up with is a fascinating book on the lives of other families of Texas settlers who had children abducted and also their frontier lifestyles. Also included are the stories of not just his ancestor Adolph Korn, but other children who were Indian abductees as well. Incredibly well researched (especially for an Aggie.) He leaves no stone unturned. The stories these abductees had of their lives with the different tribes are absolutely fascinating. Not having read much before about Indian abductions, especially intriquing was how difficult re-assimilation back to their native white culture was for these former child abductees. Even if they had only spent a few months with the Indians. A great factual look back at what life on frontier was like. Highly recommended.

The author manages to work some humor into this wonderful account of Indian captives on the Texas Frontier. Indians were noted for their generosity and this sometimes worked against them, even when they could have used the income. Zesch relates the story of one captive who wrote his life story many years later, but ended up giving away copies to almost everyone instead of making some money, which he sorely needed. There's a lot of sadness in this book, too. Many of the captives lived the remainder of their lives never quite living fully in either the white man or the Indian's world.

In his effort to understand the life of an ancestor taken captive by the Indians, the author undertakes an extraordinary search into the stories of other captives. The result is a gripping account, weaving all their lives together with extensive documentation and remarkable understanding of the people involved. Perhaps the most important--and certainly the most surprising--ingrediant is the refusal of most of the captives to turn their backs on the ways of their "captors."

I am still reading this book, but had to pause long enough to write a review. This book is so incredible!! You cannot understand by Hollywood how the Indians really were. I am from Texas and have had a relative from long ago also captured by the Indians. This book is so good. I highly recommend it. I gotta get back to reading. Just wanted to stop long enough to say how good this book is. Wish I could find more like it.

Computers, flash drives, and Internet download capability permit today's authors amazing ease and accuracy in their writing. Still, it requires a writer to do months and sometimes years of research then sit before a keyboard and peck out twenty-six little letters of an alphabet into words, sentences, paragraphs, chapters and volumes that warrant a reader to occasion his or her valuable past time. Scott Zesch has done a remarkable job here with America's past. Anyone who reads The Captured cannot help but become connected to the captives in this book. Scott not only tells a riveting story, he does it with style in what might be called that ambiguous category known as creative non-fiction---truth which evolves as an expression that explores all possibilities, a release of imagination in a world that argues what realities really were.
This is a must read for every Western Historian, Writer, and serious reader, especially Texans. Highly recommended. Wayne Bethard, pharmacist, medical historian, author of Lotions, Potions, and Deadly Elixirs-Frontier Medicine in America.

This is a story that is unusual but not unique. Many children have been taken by Indians however Zesch concentrates on nine, one an uncle. He begins this incredible tale with German immigrants in Texas who have taken the risk to settle down in Comanche territory, followed by the unforeseen kidnapping of their children. We follow these children as they try to survive with their captors all the way through to their eventual deaths. In no way does the author romanticize, but he does fill the holes with wonderful prose. The details are taken from the abductees, Indians, military, traders, and families. There are end notes and a sizeable bibliography.

When introduced as a child assimilation takes a remarkably short time. This appalling disregard for human life (people treated as if they were cattle) by the Comanche and other tribes was an accepted part of their society. Although many captives were treated miserably some were treated very affectionately. One exemplary attribute of the Indian family was more parental devotion and instruction......Of course they had more time for this. For the captured boys the only career choice was warrior which included going out on raids and practicing what was earlier done to themselves. Years later after their recovery and return to their white families readjustment was a slow progression. There was a struggle whether it would be better for them to be back with their adoptive parents even though it would mean a return to their criminal ways. Ironically as they grew in age after reintroduction into Texas they felt more imprisoned there than when they were truly captive. They would later be exploited in film, magazines, newspapers, fairs and more.

Wish you well
Scott