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Children of the Dust
"ABSORBING...[A] FAST-MOVING PIECE OF FICTION."
--South Bend Tribune
On the day before his wedding, Gypsy Smith, a mixed-blood black-Cherokee gunfighter and lawman, is brutally attacked by the Ku Klux Klan, mutilated, and left for dead. Now he's out for blood.
Schoolteacher John Maxwell believes that Indians must disavow their heritage and conform to the ways of the white man in order to survive. Then his daughter, Rachel, falls in love with Corby, a Cheyenne boy--forcing Maxwell to confront his convictions in the shadow of their doomed passion.
Set during the Oklahoma land rush of the 1880s-- "the damnedest race in history"--CHILDREN OF THE DUST tells the interlocking stories of dispossessed Indians and newly freed blacks as never before. Bold, grand, and timelessly entertaining, this is a novel about an American past that we rarely explore and dare not forget.
"Gypsy Smith is the archetypal Clint Eastwood hero, except that his heritage is black and Cherokee....[Carlile] leads us down the unfamiliar back roads of his territory."
--The New York Times Book Review
"An authentic and historically accurate depiction of what was perhaps the most tumultuous and colorful period and place in the history of the Western frontier."
--Black Media News
From the Paperback edition.
--South Bend Tribune
On the day before his wedding, Gypsy Smith, a mixed-blood black-Cherokee gunfighter and lawman, is brutally attacked by the Ku Klux Klan, mutilated, and left for dead. Now he's out for blood.
Schoolteacher John Maxwell believes that Indians must disavow their heritage and conform to the ways of the white man in order to survive. Then his daughter, Rachel, falls in love with Corby, a Cheyenne boy--forcing Maxwell to confront his convictions in the shadow of their doomed passion.
Set during the Oklahoma land rush of the 1880s-- "the damnedest race in history"--CHILDREN OF THE DUST tells the interlocking stories of dispossessed Indians and newly freed blacks as never before. Bold, grand, and timelessly entertaining, this is a novel about an American past that we rarely explore and dare not forget.
"Gypsy Smith is the archetypal Clint Eastwood hero, except that his heritage is black and Cherokee....[Carlile] leads us down the unfamiliar back roads of his territory."
--The New York Times Book Review
"An authentic and historically accurate depiction of what was perhaps the most tumultuous and colorful period and place in the history of the Western frontier."
--Black Media News
From the Paperback edition.
428 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1995
4 people are currently reading
134 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
November 13, 2017
When seeing reviews for Oklahoma set books, I tend to think of Carlile, that Children ... is a story to re-read.
While searching the world wide web, for reviews to borrow, the Poitier piece caught my attention. While I rarely view videos ... it would be interesting to see reviews from folks who were both watchers of the film and readers of the book.
https://www.deseretnews.com/article/4...
While searching the world wide web, for reviews to borrow, the Poitier piece caught my attention. While I rarely view videos ... it would be interesting to see reviews from folks who were both watchers of the film and readers of the book.
https://www.deseretnews.com/article/4...
November 13, 2009
I did not want this book to end! I could not wait to read another of Carlile's books after reading Honkytonk Man & though I consider Honkytonk Man to be one of my favorite books I believe this may be even better!
I found it to be very well written with interesting & intriguing characters. I did not want to put this book down & could not wait to get to the next page to see what happened next. Taking place in Oklahoma during the Land Rush it was very interesting to read a little of the history behind that along with the intriguing storyline. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in history or just likes a good western type story!
I definitely look forward to reading more of Clancy Carlile's books!
I found it to be very well written with interesting & intriguing characters. I did not want to put this book down & could not wait to get to the next page to see what happened next. Taking place in Oklahoma during the Land Rush it was very interesting to read a little of the history behind that along with the intriguing storyline. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in history or just likes a good western type story!
I definitely look forward to reading more of Clancy Carlile's books!
June 12, 2022
I love the mini series, so I thought it would be good to read the book. They followed the book near word for word - amazing! It was good picturing the characters, especially Sidney Poitier.
I had to find a paperback copy and the font is so small. Another book that needs to be digitised.
It was interesting to learn how white man gave the Indians land, and then took it back bit by bit and tried to stop them basically being Indian. The white supremacy stuff is scary. Also how power is kept by keeping people illiterate.
I had to find a paperback copy and the font is so small. Another book that needs to be digitised.
It was interesting to learn how white man gave the Indians land, and then took it back bit by bit and tried to stop them basically being Indian. The white supremacy stuff is scary. Also how power is kept by keeping people illiterate.
June 26, 2007
I was pretty young when i read this book and it was during the whole mid-eighties cold war fear of a Russian nuclear attack. I was sort of always obsessed with the fear of nuclear war and i remember the cover had these mushroom clouds on it and whatnot. it really drew me in.
Well, i'm 32 now and I've gotta say, that book STILL stays with me. It has a lot to do with when i read it i know, but man, whenever i think about what it would REALLY be like to have to deal with that sort of situation, i think of that book.
It starts off with a young girl getting sent home from school because of the attack and how she stays indoors with her mom and brother and sister (her dad never makes it home). It spans three generations (of the same family) and shows the social aftermath of the war.
Well, i'm 32 now and I've gotta say, that book STILL stays with me. It has a lot to do with when i read it i know, but man, whenever i think about what it would REALLY be like to have to deal with that sort of situation, i think of that book.
It starts off with a young girl getting sent home from school because of the attack and how she stays indoors with her mom and brother and sister (her dad never makes it home). It spans three generations (of the same family) and shows the social aftermath of the war.
September 18, 2015
First, I read a reader's digest condensed version.
This poignant book helped me better see how a society of racism and slavery puts everyone in terrible positions.
This book is set in the times of slavery, long before Martin Luther King Jr., but it reaffirms how he is my hero for nonviolence in a struggle that had been going on for so long, so violently.
I enjoyed this read because it humanizes so many of the roles of that time and makes me proud that we're so improved now (although far from perfect still).
This poignant book helped me better see how a society of racism and slavery puts everyone in terrible positions.
This book is set in the times of slavery, long before Martin Luther King Jr., but it reaffirms how he is my hero for nonviolence in a struggle that had been going on for so long, so violently.
I enjoyed this read because it humanizes so many of the roles of that time and makes me proud that we're so improved now (although far from perfect still).
April 19, 2011
I never thought that I would like this book, but it read like I was watching a movie. Time flew and the characters came to life. This book is well worth taking the time to find and read, even if it is a revisionist western.
March 16, 2008
This is an interesting study for life, society, and the various groups that make it up in the past and how it relates to now as you think about it.
May 10, 2010
One of my very favorite books! A great suspense/Western read! I don't re-read a lot of books but I've read this one a few times!
May 15, 2013
Words cannot describe how good this book was!! Loved the book and the movie
March 18, 2014
This book was sad. All of the story lines were sad. Very sad. An interesting and poignant look at history after the Civil War as America pushed West.
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August 19, 2008F Car
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews