Sur les pas de Geronimo

by Corine Sombrun, Harlyn Geronimo

Combattant légendaire, Geronimo (1829-1909) fut l'un des derniers chefs indiens à déposer les armes après avoir tenu en échec près de la moitié de l'armée des Etats-Unis. Malgré les promesses qui lui ont été faites, il ne reverra jamais sa terre natale : les restes du vieux guerrier chiricahua seront ensevelis dans le cimetière militaire de Fort Sill, en Oklahoma. Aujourd'hui, Harlyn Geronimo, son arrière-petit-fils, engagé dans la défense des droits de son peuple, continue de se battre pour honorer la mémoire de son aïeul et pour que soit réalisé son ultime souhait. Né de la rencontre entre une Française, Corine Sombrun, et Harlyn Geronimo, ce livre présente le portrait croisé du héros indien et de son descendant. Au fil d'un voyage vers la Gila River, mêlant le récit intime et l'histoire d'un peuple, les auteurs évoquent la " mémoire apache " mais aussi les défis auxquels cette communauté doit faire face de nos jours.

384 pages, Pocket Book

First published May 1, 2008

Reviews

[Debra Fetterly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a uniquely fascinating book. Corine Sombrum, a French journalist who spent years studying with a Mongolian shaman, responded to a vision of the Apache Chief Geronimo, sought out his great-grandson, Harlan Geronimo, and the two tell a compelling story of the links between the Mongolian culture and Apache people. I think this would be a great book for American high school students to read, or anyone eager to know more about how the Apache people were hunted and removed from their land. Harlan Geronimo refrains from bitterness in telling his story, but is passionate about one day having his great-grandfather's burial place moved from Fort Sill, OK, where he was imprisoned, to Arizona, his birthplace and ancestral lands. It's so interesting that it isn't an American journalist that sought out the Chief's great-grandson, but perhaps she really was chosen for this project because of her strong ties to the Mongolian people, distant ancestors of the Apache, as she believes. I couldn't put this book down.

[WJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding!

I am very grateful to the writers for sharing this history of Geronimo, their meeting, and the eventual meeting between both Apaches and Mongols. I pray that Geronimo's remains are returned very soon to his people for proper burial. It would be the right thing to do...

[Laurent Reinhardt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating narrative in which Geronimo's great-grandson Harlyn and French author Corine Sombrun take a journey through the Apache leader's tragic life, which included constant pursuit by the US Army, participation in the Wild West Show and captivity at Forts Pickens (FL) and Sill (OK). A key aspect overlaying their travels in Geronimo's southern New Mexico homeland is metaphysical. Harlyn Geronimo is an Apache medicine man and Sombrun has spent extended periods in Mongolia, where she became a shaman. Her comments on that experience, which included trances in which she chanelled a wolf, are intriguing to say the least. What she found out could be of value to our understanding of consciousness and its various states. Her TED Talk on this is recommended for those who want to know more. It was also interesting to learn of the great deal of common ground between Mongolian and Native American traditions. The book ends with a plea by Ramsey Clark for the return of Geronimo's remains, some of which may have been stolen from Fort Sill around 1918 by a group of Yale Skull and Bones members that included Prescott Bush, to his birthplace at the headwaters of the Gila River. It seems unlikely that can or will be done for various reasons, but it's good that Harlyn Geronimo has been able to tell his ancestor's story in such a compelling way.

[ManonMtgn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Histoire passionnante alternant entre le présent et le passé. Je le relirai à coup sûr rien que pour m'imprégner à nouveau de cette culture qui me fascine

[Marlene · Rating 3 out of 5]

intéressant de voir les similitudes entre les traditions mongoles et apaches, cependant les descriptions trop détaillées comme le fait l'auteur dans ses autres romans de scènes basiques (les deux fillettes à l'arrière de la voiture, la pause à la station essence), alourdissent un peu l'histoire. La postface était assez surprenante aussi avec le retour de Harlyn sur ses multiples voyages en Europe pour la promotion du livre, avec des voyages en limousine...
Je serais bien restée sur une description plus détaillée des rituels, des traditions et croyances etc.
Cependant on apprend beaucoup de nouvelles choses, et l'alternance avec la narration de la vie de Geronimo et le voyage de Corinne à Ruidoso est intéressante.

[Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the story and look into Shamanism, but was a little annoyed that the Apache tribe was repeatedly referred to as peaceful people when, it is stated that the tribe repeatedly ran raids to different areas to steal horses, supplies, etc. I am not stating that the Native American population was treated nicely or well by the United States government, but to paint these people as peaceful is not correct, either.

[Cheyenne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Une interessante biographie de Geronimo le grand chef Apache. Mais un peu decousue à mon gout. A lire toutefois, pour apprehender le dur destin des natives americans.