Cheyenne Autumn (Paperback)

~ (Author) "NOW IT WAS THE NIGHT, BUT THERE WERE NO FRIENDLY clouds to run before the face of the climbing moon..." (more)
Key Phrases: horse catchers, moccasin soles, walking soldiers, Little Wolf, Dull Knife, Red Cloud (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Not only in American history but in all history it is hard to find stories as moving, noble and dramatic as this one. The highest praise one could give any book about it would be to say that it was worthy of its subject. Cheyenne Autumn deserves that accolade."—Saturday Review of Literature

(Saturday Review of Literature )

"Actually, Mari Sandoz does more than just tell the story. With her customary skill, she manages to recreate a man, a scene, an event, a page from history, so that through her prose this great story of the struggle of a small band of homesick, mistreated, half-starved Indians against the military might of a major nation takes on the stature of an American epic."—Chicago Sunday Tribune

(Chicago Sunday Tribune )

"Because of my bias in favor of all accounts and stories of the Old West, I hesitate to state categorically that this is a great book, but I have a deep suspicion that it is."—New York Times

(New York Times ) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Description

In the autumn of 1878 a band of Cheyenne Indians set out from Indian Territory, where they had been sent by the U.S. government, to return to their homeland in the Yellowstone country. This saga of their heart-breaking fifteen-hundred-mile flight is by the author of Crazy Horse: The Strange Man of the Oglalas and Old Jules, also available as Bison Books.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 290 pages
• Publisher: Bison Books; First Edition Thus edition (February 1, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0803292120
• ISBN-13: 978-0803292123
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.3 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #514,018 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What a fabuous, transporting read!, May 23, 1999

By A Customer

Sandoz captures both the big pictures and subtle nuances of the atmosphere in which these unbelieveable, but unfortunately real, events take place. She thoroughly reconstructs the characters and so completely immerses herself and the reader in events that reading Cheyenne Autumn is better than any movie or play could ever be -- you see and hear and feel as though you are part of the journey, rooting the Cheyenne on and on, and (even if you know going in know how things turn out) hoping against hope that the US government and the military will just leave the poor people alone. However sad the story is at its base (and it is tragic), the dignity and resourcefulness and love among the Cheyenne is overwhelming. Truly, they were the "civilized" people, and Sandoz conveys this without every stepping a foot on a soapbox. It's a must read for anyone who has an interest in Native American history or culture. It's also a must read for anyone who doesn't have such interests, because their ignorance will be washed away completely.

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another powerfully moving story, October 10, 1998

By A Customer

I have tried to analyze how it is that Sandoz manages to take a story, the mere facts of which I have read many times, and make it so powerfully moving that you find it haunting you long after the book is finished. Besides her expert ability to write in the language of her subjects, she develops all characters to their fullest. We follow them through their every day lives, through their hopes and fears, and most of all through their relationships to each other, until we feel we have become a part of it all. When lives end, usually tragically, we not only feel the loss ourselves, but we grieve for the pain of those left behind. When I read Sandoz's biography of Crazy Horse, I felt each loss he felt, from the death of his brother, to the agony of the decision to bring his followers into the agency. In this book, when the Cheyenne died in their last stand, I felt as their survivors must have felt, both grieved at the loss, but proud that they had died fighting in the tradition of their people, Also, once again as with Crazy Horse, I felt, as no simple telling of the facts could get across, what a great mistake it was not to let these cultures survive, and how foolish and arrogant the whites were to spend lives, money and ammunition to keep a few hundred impoverished people from returning to their homeland.

27 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Heartbreaking, yet uplifting., February 4, 2001

By	ROBERT KINGSLEY (Fort Collins, Colorado USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Mari Sandoz, one of the greatest American writers, amazed me once again in Cheyenne Autumn. A heartbreaking story of injustice and cruelty, Sandoz brings out the heart of the people through vivid imagery and insights that will make you feel you are on the trail with the Cheyenne.

Sandoz sees through the heart, and in this remarkable book takes the reader back in time. The book does not simply recount a tragic story, but rather reveals a people's life and their struggle to regain it. I highly recommend this book to anyone concerned with the human condition.