Good history. That is why I am giving it three stars. The war with the Comanches lasted four decades, in effect holding up the development of the new American nation. I picked it up after Having finished " Bury my heart at wounded knee " (amazing novel) and similarly was expecting a more honest , transparent view of the Indian American wars . Empire of the Summer Moon: Quanah Parker and the Rise and Fall of the Comanches, the Most Powerful Indian Tribe in American History by S.C. Gwynne is full of great research and racism. Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read. Directed by Derek Cianfrance. We’d love your help. It should be called, "How the Horrible Redman was Subdued by Mighty Whiteman". This book is very misleading by the title and blurb. All the sources complied by Gwynne come from white settlers. Just a moment while we sign you in to your Goodreads account. This is a book that I think every American should read. The writing is readable even compelling at times. A great combination of history and biography in the play of Manifest Destiny in the American conquest of the Great Plains. While a professor of history might understand how to read nuance into old sources, an amateur too often takes the word of a writer from the past at his or her word. I was surprised and very disappointed by this book. His sources for the nature of the Comanches, and of Native Americans in general consist almost entirely of the accounts and opinions of 18th and 19th century European's, of whom most were directly involved in the seizing of Native lands and the extermination of Native peoples. Start by marking “Empire of the Summer Moon: Quanah Parker and the Rise and Fall of the Comanches, the Most Powerful Indian Tribe in American History” as Want to Read: Error rating book. While a professor of history might understand how to read nuance into old sources, an ama. Gwynne’s exhilarating account delivers a sweeping narrative that encompasses Spanish colonialism, the Civil War, the destruction of the buffalo herds, and the arrival of the railroads—a historical feast for anyone interested in how the United States came into being. I can't decide whether this book is the best nonfiction I have read all year, or whether it is the best in the past few years. He was a corrupt man in other ways, too many things to bring up here. The book was published in multiple languages including English, consists of 384 pages and is available in Hardcover format. It entailed wind-driven snow so dense and temperatures so cold that anyone lost in them on the shelterless plains was as good as dead.”, Pulitzer Prize Nominee for General Nonfiction (2010), National Book Critics Circle Award Nominee for General Nonfiction (2010), Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for History and Biography (2010). ― S.C. Gwynne, Empire of the Summer Moon: Quanah Parker and the Rise and Fall of the Comanches, the Most Powerful Indian Tribe in American History. The content is nice as well, a mix of describing Comanche. Big Bend Natural History Association Empire of the Summer Moon [9781416591061] - S. C. Gwynne’s Empire of the Summer Moon spans two astonishing stories. I usually love the premise, start the book, and find the flow lacking. There is a famous painting of an exchange between Delaware indians and settlers and the children of the settlers refuse to return to their former Lives! S. C. Gwynne’s book on the Comanche’s, Empire of the Summer Moon, is just such a book. Ironically Comanches were the proximate cause of Texas developing into the home of its most implacable foes, as Spain desperately recruited Anglo Americans to stand as a buffer between New Spain and the Indian Nation that was its most dangerous foe. This Page is automatically generated based on what Facebook users are interested in, and not affiliated with or endorsed by anyone associated with the topic. I agree with you Rena. The settlers. His version of human history, summed up in two pages is just bizarre.The language, and long discredited concepts that Gwynne prattles along with are apalling. Worse, because Empire of the Summer Moon is really only about war, the bias becomes even more dramatically conspicuous. It should be called, "How the Horrible Redman was Subdued by Mighty Whiteman". As a native Texan who grew up in the former Comancheria, and whose family (both white and native) has deep roots there, I've always been fascinated by the blood-feud between Texans and Comanches. The Empire of The Summer Moon like comment share Author Theme The theme of this book is the conflicts between white men and indians in the late 1800's and the life of Cynthia Ann Parker and her son, Quanah. Moreover In 199th century Texas women were legal property of their husband. I love books that upend the conventional wisdom of American history, and Gwynne does it here with his look at the history of the Comanches. . Refresh and try again. The wording becomes overly dense, the author too far up their own ass, content in their mastery of the content to care if they are a compelling author. The books and articles referenced in the end are, as fa. People from the east or west coasts of America may think they have seen a blizzard. If you're interested in American history, very well worth your time. Gwynne highlights the violence toward settlers without explaining that these same settlers were stealing native lands with no restraint much less remorse. The content is nice as well, a mix of describing Comanche life along with life on the frontier as well as the general history of the times. . And oh yes, the Native Americans were "premoral, pre-Christian, low-barbarian versions" of Europeans. I read a handful of non-fiction books each year. Towards the end of S.C Gwynne’s mesmerizing "Empire of the Summer Moon," Quanah Parker explains to a friend named Miller how “the white man had pushed the Indian off the land.” He may be accurate in describing the facts, but I’m going to get my facts from someone else. I almost stopped several time but I wanted to finish so I could review it. This book would have surely been a best seller in 1910, when the stereotypes and ignorance that Mr. Gwynne puts forth were yet to be discredited, but for it to have been published in 2010, and to have received many positive reviews and very little critisism is both disturbing and astounding. The second entails one of the most remarkable narratives ever to come out of the Old West: the epic saga of Empire of the Summer Moon spans two astonishing stories. Empire of the Summer Moon is a brutally honest and graphic re-telling of the history of the greatest Native American tribe in the history of America - the Comanches. Yet I would wager that almost nobody knows anything about those peoples other than what watching Wagon Train has showed them. Empire of the Summer Moon by S. C. Gwynne. Free download or read online Empire of the Summer Moon: Quanah Parker and the Rise and Fall of the Comanches, the Most Powerful Indian Tribe in American History pdf (ePUB) book. Like “In one sense, the Parkers are the beginning and end of the Comanches in U.S. history.” As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. This book has only a tiny, tiny mention about Quanah. Against this backdrop Gwynne presents the compelling drama of Cynthia Ann Parker, a lovely nine-year-old girl with cornflower-blue eyes who was kidnapped by Comanches from the far Texas frontier in 1836. It's quite obvious you haven't read the book, and that you seek to creat trouble where there's none to be stirred. The (fascinating) history that exists in this book is buried so far beneath the author's prejudice that his account is wholly untrustworthy. No_Favorite. The settlers, especially the Parkers are-depicted as wreckless and fool-hearty. More famous still was her son Quanah, a warrior who was never defeated and whose guerrilla wars in the Texas Panhandle made him a legend. The books and articles referenced in the end are, as far as I can tell, predominantly written by non-Natives. “For Mackenzie on the southern plains, Comanches were the obvious target: No tribe in the history of the Spanish, French, Mexican, Texan, and American occupations of this land had ever caused so much havoc and death. They were also driv, So far I am extremely disappointed in this book . Average Readers (@250 words/min) take 9 hours 24 minutes to read Empire of the Summer Moon: Quanah Parker and the Rise and Fall of the Comanches, the Most Powerful Indian Tribe in American History . S government. In short, worth reading especially if you like frontier history. Twists, turns, red herrings, the usual suspects: These books have it all...and more. Good history. #23 March Challenge Book Empire of the Summer Moon: Quanah Parker and the Rise and Fall of the Comanches, the Most Powerful Indian Tribe in American History, January ~ Empire of the Summer Moon: Quanah Parker and the Rise and Fall of the Comanches, the Most Powerful Indian Tribe in American History by S.C Gwynne, March 2014 - Empire of the Summer Moon discussion, 36 of the Most Anticipated Mysteries and Thrillers of 2021. I quit reading this book after the fourth chapter. Gwynne states that he constructed the book using "a large number of firsthand accounts from the era." 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