Hanta Yo by Ruth Beebe Hill

Ruth Beebe Hill wrote one book in her lifetime, Hanta Yo. It was published by Doubleday in 1979 amid some pretty savvy marketing that soon became a huge controversy.

Hill and her Lakotah mentor Chunksa Yuta promoted the book as having taken her 30 years to write. Hill claimed to have researched extensively by both library research and actually visiting Reservations during those 3 decades. She claimed to have interviewed over 1,000 Native Americans. Chunksa Yuta claimed to have taught her the ancient language of the Dakotah to help her write her book and to get her in touch with the Native American “soul”.  The author claimed to have written the book in English, then translated it into the ancient language, and then translated it back into English. Controversy arose from the Native American community over her claims and her depictment of the Sioux Indian tribes of the Black Hills.  It was felt that Hill and Yuta fell short in their accuraccy and used the book to promote themselves and their own agenda while real Native Americans were starving and overlooked by the American public.

I just recently read this book. It is, in my humble opinion, a great story. The book covers the time frame from 1750 to 1834 and tells the story of a small tribe of Teton Sioux over three generations. Hill did a nice job of storytelling showing what one would imagine the daily life might consist of for a small band people. The characters face danger from enemy tribes, hunting, and the elements of nature. As with any culture there is betrayal and disappointment along with love and the joy of a newborn child. As the story unfolds in it’s over 800 pages you realize that a huge part of the story is about this band of people wanting to resist the white man’s sudden and unwelcome emergence into their land. As a story about human nature, it is superbly written.

I didn’t realize the controversy over this book when I first picked it up to read. As a true bibliophile, I just wanted to read a good work of fiction. One of my favorite genres of fiction is the historical novel. I don’t usually put a lot of emphasis on whether the story I’m reading is historically accurate or that the people in the story are being portrayed correctly. To me, historical fiction means that the author has taken an era in history and used their imagination to come up with a storyline that hopefully readers will enjoy. In that frame of mind, I think Ruth Beebe Hill did a fantastic job. I hated to come to the last page of the book. She kept my interest and fascinated me with her detail.

As for the marketing that was done when this book was published, well that is a different matter. I believe the Native American community should have been upset about the tactics used by the author and her mentor to promote their own agenda. There is nothing wrong with promoting a book, all authors need and should do that. It just appears that Hill and Yuta created another form of fiction to capitalize on it. I read one report that said that Yuta agreed to help the author for free room and board and cigarette money. The declaration that the author wrote the book and translated it into the ancient language of the Dakotah seems so unnecessary and bizarre in todays standards. How would you write a language that had no alphabet and was never written by the very people who spoke it? What a shame to create such a sham!

My recommendation would be that if you want to read a good piece of fiction about the late 1700’s and early 1800’s that takes place in the Black Hills and has a good story line this would be a book you would enjoy. Don’t take for fact the depiction of the spiritualty of the tribe or the concept of the Sioux being a culture with no restraints or an almost indivdualistic society. That portion of the book is truly fictional as this wonderful culture is very community and family oriented.

Cimarron by Edna Ferber Best Seller in 1930

A novel by the historical fiction author, Edna Ferber. Published in 1929 it achieved the number 1 best seller status in 1930. The novel has lost favor with many as it is looked at as being racist although it does depict historical events that occurred in our country.

Cimarron gets its name from the Cimarron Territory. The Cimarron Territory was an unrecognized name for the Oklahoma Panhandle or No Man’s Land, an unsettled area of the West and Midwest, especially lands once inhabited by Native American tribes such as the Cherokee and Sioux. In 1886 the government declared such lands open to settlement. Oklahoma at the time of the novel’s opening is one such “Cimarron Territory” though, in actuality, the historical setting of the novel is somewhere in the Cherokee Outlet, also known as the Cherokee Strip and probably the city of Woodward, Oklahoma.

The novel is set in the Oklahoma of the latter nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. It follows the lives of Yancy and Sabra Cravat, beginning with Yancey’s tale of his participation in the Oklahoma Land Race 1893 land rush. They emigrate from Wichita, Kansas to the fictional town of Osage, Oklahoma with their son, Cim, and (unknowingly) a black boy named Isaiah. The Cravats here print their newspaper, the Oklahoma Wigwam and build their fortune amongst Indian disputes, outlaws, and the discovery of oil in Oklahoma. Upon its publication, Cimarron was a sensation in America and came to epitomize an era in American history. This novel became Ferber’s third successful novel and paved the way for many more historical epics penned by the author.

From Wikipedia Article

Babbitt a novel by Sinclair Lewis 1922

Babbitt is a novel written by Sinclair Lewis and first published in 1922 where it became No. 10 on the best seller list that year and rose to No. 4 in 1923.

A satire of American culture it focuses on conformity and the emptiness of the society as a whole.  George F. Babbit is the main character who is successful, yet unhappy.

In 1924 the book was made into a silent film by Warner Brothers and then in 1934 it was again done by Warner Brothers as a ‘talkie’.

Spirit of the Border by Zane Grey 1906

Spirit of the Border is an historical novel written by Zane Grey and published in 1906. Based on events that occurred in the Ohio River Valley in the 18th century the book is the second in a trilogy by the author.

Lew Wetzel, historical figure, dedicated his life to destroying the Native Americans who lived in the valley and to protect the white settlements in the region.  The story deals with the Moravian missionaries who tried to Christianize the Indians. Two brothers lives take separate paths upon their arrival on the border.

The first book in the trilogy was Betty Zane which was Grey’s first published work. The third book in the trilogy was The Last Trail which focused on an ancestor of Grey, Jonathan Zane.

A 1954 edition of this book can be found at The Paper Trail

The Robe – Book by Lloyd C Douglas 1942

The Robe is a 1942 historical novel about the Crucifixion written by Lloyd C. Douglas. The book was one of the best-selling titles of the 1940s.

It entered the New York Times Best Seller list in October 1942, and four weeks later rose to No. 1. It held the position for nearly a year.

The Robe remained on the list for another two years, returning several other times over the next several years including when the movie version was released in 1953.

The book explores the aftermath of the crucifixion of Jesus through the experiences of the Roman tribune who commanded the unit in charge of the crucifixion. The man goes on a journey, following the path Jesus took and meets many people whose lives Jesus had affected. Through this journey, both the tribune and the reader are challenged to explore their faith and question various norms they have embraced all their life.

Resource: Wikipedia