From School Library Journal
Grade 7 Up-In the 1860s, the American army was attempting to place the Navajo people on a reservation more than 300 miles from their homeland, where many of them died, or were killed outright. The Ute fought them, or helped the white soldiers. It is during this turbulent period that this story begins. When Tobachischin's parents are killed by soldiers and Utes in Canyon del Muerto, AZ, the wounded boy makes his way up the steep walls to his grandfather's hogan. This elder, knowledgeable in the ways of healing and spirits, helps the boy recover physically, then begin a spiritual and literal journey to safety. As the story progresses, reality merges more and more with the mystical aspects of life. In the beginning, signs are read from animals, and wounds are healed with cures from nature and chants. By the climax, battle is being fought against the wind, the rain, phantom horses in the air, and a creature capable of changing into various human and animal shapes. The characters accept the power of magic as a part of everyday life, and so they easily take readers with them as the tale grows in complexity and depth. Youngsters willing to suspend disbelief and follow this journey will become caught up in a culture and a tale that whirls them through an unexpected landscape. A unique and intriguing historical novel.
Darcy Schild, Schwegler Elementary School, Lawrence, KS Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Review
". . . real magic comes from grace. . . if a people are one with the land, they will endure with the land forever! This is Gerald Hausman's finest book." —David Kherdian, Newbery Honor award-winning author of
The Road from Home"With
The Coyote Bead, Gerald Hausman once again displays the sensitivity and sympathetic understanding toward Native people that has long marked his work. This novel offers an intriguing look into a tragic and—unjustly—little-known episode in American history; younger readers of all races should enjoy it." —William Sanders, author of
Journey to Fusang"More than a poignant tale, more than a story laced with native magic,
The Coyote Bead is steeped in the richness of Navajo legends which prove determination and perseverance can bring ultimate triumph to all those who have the courage to believe in themselves." —Mary Summer Rain, author of
The Singing Web"Gerald Hausman brings a poet’s keen vision to this narrative of a Native American tragedy, one that reverberates with so much that was to come in our own time. Hausman knows the Navajo people, the land, and the healing wisdom of their culture as well as any living American writer." —Aram Saroyan, author of
Day and Night: Bolinas Poems"Once again Gerald Hausman has delivered a powerful book for a new generation of readers who deserve to know the whole truth of the past. The tragic yet poignant story of a band of resolute Navajo people as told in
The Coyote Bead is as timeless and provocative as the account of the Joads in
The Grapes of Wrath. This is an important story of human struggle, resiliency, and hope." —Michael Wallis, author of
The Real Wild West
