Customer Reviews

Dances with Wolves

5 star:		(32)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

It's a bit hard to believe that Kevin Costner turned such a simply written book into such a wonderfully sophisticated film. But that's exactly what happened.

Michael Blake's book reads as though it was written for a junior high and high school audience. That doesn't stop it from being a well-done tale of life on the prairie in 19th-century America, although why Costner made his Indians Sioux instead of Commanche as written by Blake is beyond me.

Aside from that difference, Costner obviously followed Blake's novel almost to the letter; I felt as if I was seeing the movie all over again. But Blake's writing style is something of a disappointment. After seeing the movie I was expecting a much more detailed story of John Dunbar's transformation into Dances With Wolves - something on the order of James Clavell's "Shogun". If you picked this book up looking for information on how Native Americans lived back in their glory days I suggest you look elsewhere. But if you're looking for a well done Western this is the book for you.

"Dances With Wolves",by Michael Blake, reveals an exciting story about the war for territory between the Native Americans and Settlers. If you enjoy stories about the West this book is an excellent choice. It depicts the frontier from the viewpoint of Native Amerians. Moreover the reader is invited to experience the constant pressure that was placed on the Native Americans by the Settlers. The main character, Lieutenant John Dunbar, who was originally sympathetic to the early Settlers, joins a Native American tribe. This shift is what makes this story so unusual and unique, because the antagonists in the book become the protagonists. In the beginning of the story the author depicts Indians as the antagonists, when the warriors from Pawnee tribe kill Timmons, Lieutenant Dunbar's escort. The reader gets an impression that all of the Native Americans are evil and cruel savages. However further into the book, Indians become the protagonists when the Comanche make peace with Dunbar, and they are described as victims of colonization.

The love story between Dunbar and "Stands With A Fist",a unique Comanche white woman, makes the book even more interesting. This book is a great example of American literature and I would recommend it to everyone.

Should be on your summer list. Even though the movie did a great job of picking up the breadth of this huge story, the book is better at getting all the details. Plus, it has plenty of heart, fast action, romance, adventure, to keep anyone interested.

The book, "Dances With Wolves," written by Michael Blake is a wonderful novel. This story is about the life of one person, Lieutenant John Dunbar. He is anxious to be a good U.S.Soldier. After the Civil War, he arrives at an abandoned army post, where he finds himself alone. The author, Michael Blake,depicts Dunbar as a strong human character,who despite his surrounding circumstances, has lived productively and organized his week-days. Later he becomes friends with an Indian tribe and soon he finds his love. My favorite part of the story is the development of the main character, because the reader is gradually introduced to a dynamic, handsome individual with a strong soul. When I read this book I learned about the life and traditions of Native Americans. I like books which make me smile, laugh and sometimes want to cry. I really would recommend this book for people, who are sixteen and older.

What a joy this book was to read. "Dances with Wolves" is such a wonderful story, and is so well told in this book, that I feel perfection can be applied to it. My only wish is that I had found and read the book, before I ever saw the movie. As is usually the case, Hollywood did not do justice to the story.

Michael Blake has brought to life a time in our history that so fragile, and so very beautiful. He showed us that people are just that, people. He gave the faults, and strengths, the loves and hates, the understandings and prejudices that belong to the human race to both the whites and well as the Indians in this book, and just plan showed that these people also lived.

I highly recommend this book to anyone. It should perhaps become required reading.

I requested Dances with Wolves because I wanted to see how the author originally developed the story line. The book was just like the movie with a few extra details. It explained some aspects of the movie that, while interesting, would not have added greatly to the enjoyment of the film. Overall I enjoyed reading the book and would recommend it to others that like western stories.

A friend recently gave me a copy of the "Dances With Wolves" movie (one of my favorites since seeing it years ago) and the book which I had never read. After a repeat viewing of the movie, I read the book.

The main reason I normally prefer the book versions of a story is that one gets to know the thoughts and feelings of the main characters that embellish each scene and are actually sometimes needed to understand the full scope.

This reason especially applies in the case of "Dances With Wolves," written by Michael Blake. The main character is alone with only his horse, the infrequent visits of a lone wolf and his brief journalized thoughts for company until his company includes a nearby camp of Indians. As the beautiful and memorable story transpires amidst a language barrier, one is privy to a richness of behind-the-scenes depth the movie version is limited in presenting.

There are a few variations between the movie and the book, including the ending (and I prefer the ending of the book), but if you liked the movie, you will love the book.

The book Dances with Wolves is a extremely well writen story about a veteran of the civil war who is trying to get on with his life. During the story Lietenant Dunbar is trying to get past all of the savage actions that he was forced to proceed with during the most terrible war America has ever seen. He is shipped out to an abandoned post on the frontier where he is supposed to be fighting the indians but instead he decides to make friends with them. He decides to be friends with them because he is tired of fighting. In the end he becomes one of the tribe and has a nice wife who was also adopted by the tribe. In the end all he wanted is to live freely and peacefully. This is one of the best written books that I have read in a lon time, it keeps the readers interest which can be a very hard task at times.

About time we got this book on eBook! I rewatched the movie on bluray and really wanted to reread the book. Thanks to the eBook I didn't have to bother even getting off my couch. I totally read the eBook with the movie playing on loop in the background.

I saw the movie only once and it was good, but this book was way better! I can't wait to read Holy road.