The Ghost Dance War: A Story of Hope, Fear, and the Road to the Massacre at Wounded Knee

by Ward McLendon

A narrative account of the Ghost Dance movement and the escalating tension that led to the massacre at Wounded Knee. Ward McLendon blends eyewitness accounts, historical records, and cultural context to reveal the human stories behind one of the most tragic chapters in American history.

A peaceful ceremony. A nation in fear. A tragedy born from misunderstanding.

In the winter of 1890, the Ghost Dance swept across the Plains. For the Lakota, it was a sacred prayer for renewal after decades of starvation, broken treaties, and the suppression of traditional life. To the United States government, it looked like the spark of an uprising.

The Ghost Dance War reveals how a spiritual movement rooted in hope was transformed into a national crisis—driven by fear, political pressure, and profound cultural ignorance.

Through vivid narrative history, the book

Wovoka’s vision in Nevada and the spread of his peaceful prophecy

The diverse ways tribes interpreted the Ghost Dance as grief, ceremony, and survival

The federal panic fueled by newspapers, agency reports, and policy failures

The killing of Sitting Bull, which turned fear into open crisis

Big Foot’s desperate flight toward Pine Ridge in the bitter winter

The encirclement of an unarmed Miniconjou band by the U.S. Army

The massacre at Wounded Knee, where misunderstanding became catastrophe

Drawing from firsthand testimonies, Indigenous oral histories, and modern scholarship, this book reframes the Ghost Dance not as a rebellion, but as a coherent religious revival emerging from profound historical trauma.

Clear, compelling, and meticulously researched, The Ghost Dance War offers a new understanding of one of America’s most tragic and misinterpreted events. It restores human complexity to the people who danced for hope—and reveals how fear can turn spiritual movements into flashpoints for violence.

Perfect for readers of Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee, Empire of the Summer Moon, and The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee, this is a definitive narrative history of the winter of 1890—and the lessons it still holds today.

252 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 23, 2025

Reviews

[Deepali Bakshi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading this book felt like standing at the edge of history and grief at the same time. The Ghost Dance is presented not as a threat, but as a spiritual expression rooted in loss, survival, and hope and that perspective shifts everything. The narrative shows how tragedy emerged slowly and painfully through systemic harm: broken promises, forced control, hunger, and the silencing of ceremony. Nothing here feels accidental, every part of the system contributed to what followed.

What I take away most from this book is its moral clarity: misunderstanding can be as dangerous as hostility, and when a culture is interpreted through fear rather than empathy, disaster becomes possible. This is a book that doesn’t just recount history, it asks us to reflect on how we see one another.

[Janda · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Ghost Dance War is beautifully done. The book offers a contemporary retelling of one of America's most tragic events: the massacre at Wounded Knee. After decades of silence and cover-up, the Lakota voices are finally heard loud and clear. I knew the name Wounded Knee but not the story. Wovoka, Sitting Bull, and the Lakota men, women, and children are portrayed with care and dimensionality, revealing a tragedy born from profound misunderstanding and fear. It is well written, clearly well researched, and by the time you read the last page, all you can do is shake your head with sadness and disbelief. There is no understanding of man's inhumanity to man. The result is a powerful, necessary narrative-one that deepens our understanding of Wounded Knee and the devastating consequences that follow when panic shapes policy. I will remember this book for a long time. Recommend.

[Julia · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is a quote near the back of the book that sums everything up neatly and I think still applies today. "What terrified the government was not violence; there was none. It was the scale, emotion, and unity of the movement."
This was a very interesting, educational, and sad read all at the same time. Don't get me wrong thoroughly enjoy it, the sadness is just from learning more about The Massacre of Wounded Knee and seeing what humans in general are capable of.
I would recommend this book to anyone looking to gain knowledge of this subject. There are appendices in the back of the book and references to sources.

[Megan Weiss · Rating 5 out of 5]

Phenomenal. A book about acknowledging one of the darkest moments in American history, and which describes how misinterpreting cultural norms that seem strange or dangerous by those in power can lead to tragedy when fear turns into hostility and distrust. When fear governs, the innocent suffer.