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Red and White
During the years after the Civil War, Lonely Cricket, a Native American boy, strives to learn his people’s ways and traditions and to grow to manhood. This is a difficult task for any youngster, but Lonely Cricket is coming of age in a world that is changing. One in which Euro-Americans are determined to change Indians into reflections of the White world. Caught between the tales and traditions of his tribe and the ever-encroaching world of the White Man, Lonely Cricket must figure out how to live, whom to love, and most difficult of all who he really is. As Lonely Cricket battles to find himself, the twists and turns of his story reveal more about his background than he ever expected to know.
418 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 30, 2019
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
July 21, 2021
There are not many books that genuinely contain a surprise that does not make you throw up your hands in despair and make you say to yourself, boy, does that ruin that story! Kenneth Weene’s novel, Red and Black, actually surprised me, and the surprise made the story make more sense than it had before I came upon the events that contained the surprise. That’s usually the mark of a good storyteller.
In Red and Black, the hero is a Ho Chunk boy by the name of Plenty Horses. The story takes place after many of the Ho Chunk were removed from their ancestral homes in Wisconsin and the Great Lakes to Nebraska near the sand hills not far from the Missouri River. Plenty Horses is living a successful life with his parents and young sister where his father, Lame Bear, has managed to form a farming partnership with a white immigrant man and his family, when he is yanked from his traditional lifestyle and sent to Haskell, the first of the boarding schools. There he faces the white man’s efforts to eliminate all vestiges of who he is as a Ho Chunk, threatening the very essence of who he believes he is as a young man and human being.
Weenes, who has a PhD in psychology, has filled the book with Ho Chunk legends he has gleaned from a number of published sources that I have also studied. These legends are designed to illuminate core truths about the universe that should apply to all people at all times.
What makes the story, however, is the revelation of Plenty Horse’s identity that is different from what the reader has been told from the early pages of the book onward. This revelation not only upsets Plenty Horse’s world, which has already been devastated by the devastating experience of the boarding school, but also leads to a conclusion that gathers up all of the stories and action in the book and shatters them into a deeply troubling climax worthy of a Shakespearean tragedy.
In Red and Black, the hero is a Ho Chunk boy by the name of Plenty Horses. The story takes place after many of the Ho Chunk were removed from their ancestral homes in Wisconsin and the Great Lakes to Nebraska near the sand hills not far from the Missouri River. Plenty Horses is living a successful life with his parents and young sister where his father, Lame Bear, has managed to form a farming partnership with a white immigrant man and his family, when he is yanked from his traditional lifestyle and sent to Haskell, the first of the boarding schools. There he faces the white man’s efforts to eliminate all vestiges of who he is as a Ho Chunk, threatening the very essence of who he believes he is as a young man and human being.
Weenes, who has a PhD in psychology, has filled the book with Ho Chunk legends he has gleaned from a number of published sources that I have also studied. These legends are designed to illuminate core truths about the universe that should apply to all people at all times.
What makes the story, however, is the revelation of Plenty Horse’s identity that is different from what the reader has been told from the early pages of the book onward. This revelation not only upsets Plenty Horse’s world, which has already been devastated by the devastating experience of the boarding school, but also leads to a conclusion that gathers up all of the stories and action in the book and shatters them into a deeply troubling climax worthy of a Shakespearean tragedy.
June 11, 2024
My first thought was to call this book “Charming” but it’s so much more than that. It makes you think about a way of life very different to most people’s. You feel the plight of the tribes—and it’s told in heartbreaking detail as the white man takes another piece of land and another virgin.
There is so much lore in this book and the stories within the story are captivating. We learn how the old tales are passed through the generations because most of the people still don’t write. We learn about their way of life, their skills and their crafts. And mostly we learn about the characters.
This isn’t brain-chewing gum that you read and forget. It does take a bit of effort on the reader’s part to connect with the characters and invest in the stunningly beautiful prose. However, that’s a positive. It makes you take in every word, rather than letting your brain do the reading while you reach for another snack. This isn’t that novel. It’s well worth investing in, and you’ll get so much more out of it than you put in.
It's a very real exploration of identity, tradition, and change. The narrative is rich, and deep character development immerses readers in a very different world. My favourite character is Happy Turtle who learns about the cruelty of life outside the protection of her people. She see cruelty early, and wants to turn to her beloved brother. She misses him, but Lonely Cricket has gone into the world to find himself. She doesn’t know if she will ever see him again. But this is only the beginning as we follow Lonely Cricket’s path.
Through vivid storytelling and a brilliant depiction of the era, we read about love, resilience and change. This isn’t just writing, it’s a beautifully crafted novel. It’s powerful and moving. Highly recommend for readers who want more than they’re used to.
There is so much lore in this book and the stories within the story are captivating. We learn how the old tales are passed through the generations because most of the people still don’t write. We learn about their way of life, their skills and their crafts. And mostly we learn about the characters.
This isn’t brain-chewing gum that you read and forget. It does take a bit of effort on the reader’s part to connect with the characters and invest in the stunningly beautiful prose. However, that’s a positive. It makes you take in every word, rather than letting your brain do the reading while you reach for another snack. This isn’t that novel. It’s well worth investing in, and you’ll get so much more out of it than you put in.
It's a very real exploration of identity, tradition, and change. The narrative is rich, and deep character development immerses readers in a very different world. My favourite character is Happy Turtle who learns about the cruelty of life outside the protection of her people. She see cruelty early, and wants to turn to her beloved brother. She misses him, but Lonely Cricket has gone into the world to find himself. She doesn’t know if she will ever see him again. But this is only the beginning as we follow Lonely Cricket’s path.
Through vivid storytelling and a brilliant depiction of the era, we read about love, resilience and change. This isn’t just writing, it’s a beautifully crafted novel. It’s powerful and moving. Highly recommend for readers who want more than they’re used to.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews