Crazy Horse

St. George, Judith. Crazy Horse. New York : Putnam's, 1994.

Plot: The novel reviews the life story of an enigmatic character from one of the ugliest chapters in United States history. A warrior leader during the westward expansion, the Sioux man braved the repeated attacks of the U.S. army and other tribes to protect his people and their livelihoods. However, war did not provide the only threat. Disease, famine, terrible weather, and shattered alliances cost Crazy Horse his friends, his family, and, eventually, his life. A solid attempt to relay the heroic but tragic story of a Sioux hero.

Genre: History, Biography

Reading Level: Grades 4-8. Please keep in mind, this is the story of a fighter during several wars, so caution sensitive readers.

Similar Titles: So You Want to Be President?, Sitting Bull: Dakota Boy

Personal Thoughts: The title attempts to narrate the story an indescribable person and a surreal situation. St. George takes several pages from the introduction and epilogue to explain how many accounts of Crazy Horse's life conflict with each other. However, she does not explain how they differ in the actual text. The battles find ample description, but assumed motivations and guessed emotions surround information of the actual events. Additionally, she does not site her sources especially well, causing the reader to scramble for secondary sources. To her credit, she resists the temptation to make all Sioux members flawless and all White people villainous, noting compassionate generals and jealous chieftains. Overall, the book attempts to act as a resource about a highly controversial figure during a highly controversial time. By describing the conflict in more detail and less emotion, St. George could improve readers' overall understanding of the people and situations in Crazy Horse's life.