Scalp Dance

One of the few good things about the 1960s was that, as one set of politically correct attitudes replaced another, there was a brief moment when both were rejected and you got something approximating the truth. In movies like Ulzana's Raid and Duel at Diablo, you got a sense that neither "red man" or "white man" was blameless, that both sides suffered and that what the Indian Wars were about was a clash of civilizations. This made for an honest assessment of the period, an assessment soon lost as the "whites as monsters" ideology replaced the "Indians as monsters" view. There are very few books, however, which have been able to capture that objectivity. This is the best of them. You get a sense of the irreconcilable views of the two sides. In colorful, exciting but scrupulously accurate prose, the entire period is laid out for the reader. Interestingly, because the author does not tilt his narrative to one side or the other, you get a richer appreciation for the tragedy of that period. If you read only one book on the Indian Wars, read this one.

If you want to understand the dynamics of the plains indian wars, you MUST read this book. Scalp Dance gives you an up close and personal look at the atrocities and danger that frontier people lived with daily. One of my favorite subjects is the Indian Wars (both in the east and west), but anymore it is virtually impossible -- and I mean IMPOSSIBLE -- to find books that aren't extremely PC and insultingly one-sided. This book is the antidote. Before you cast aspersions on the people involved in these conflicts, read this book, and ask yourself, "What would I do in the same situation?"

I have read many books about Indian wars on the plains. None has the same effect, the same riveting quality, that Scalp Dance has. Rather than an author's version of what happened, this author simply guides us through a chronological trail of bloodshed - narrating where need be, but letting the actual written accounts of those who took part tell the real story. Army men, their wives, settlers, and others tell their tales as they experienced them first hand. I have to say that these first-hand accounts paint a picture more violent, brutal and ruthless than any other book I've read. This is not a watered down version of what happened, or someone's interpretation. This is real. Indian wars have been glorified so much after all these years. It's good, though disturbing, to be reminded that the participants were not always the noble beings we've been imagining. It's hard to picture a culture so vicious in these modern days. Scalp Dance tells it like it was using the accounts of those that survived.

The account of the events is vivid and memorable. The emphasis is on the words of those people who experienced life on the Great Plains at the time, both military and private citizens, men and women. The Indians did not write memoirs ordinarily, but their attitude comes through in their recorded encounters with the whites. Also, these days we know much more about how they were treated. Why contemporary whites felt as they did about the Indians is a strong point of this book.Another fine point of this book is that the author has avoided skewing the story with political correctness. The history is neither "noble savage" nor "the only Indian is a bad Indian." It is a clash of cultures seen by walking in the shoes of contemporaries.In addition, there is a very informative view of General George Custer and Mrs. Custer, one enhancing our knowledge of his military ability and their humanity. Custer's relationship to the Indians is especially revealing,

This book is equal time. The author gives us a view of history few have courage to even mention these days. The battle for supremacy between the American Indian and the white settlers was bitter clash of cultures. This book declares the facts. Yes, both sides committed terrible inhumane atrocities, but some people made a genuine effort to understand and help the natives they considered savages in spite of the terrible killing. If you are looking for an alternative to the watered down history books you read in school about the Indian wars, this is it. The book contains actual narrative from soldiers and civilians that lived through the battles and encountered the horrible realities of torture, desecration of the dead, rape and kidnapping. And they are surprising lenient toward their enemies. If you're looking for another dry, boring account of the America west, this book is not for you. But if you're looking for something with a twist, read Scalp Dance.