Helpful Score: 1
Two young Native Americans from the Lakota Oglala Sioux Nation of South Dakota grew up together. Cousins, Rick Overlooking Horse and You Choose Watson, take different life paths. Rick chooses a quiet traditional existence while You Choose takes a violent route that eventually takes him to prison. Rick becomes respected by others while You Choose is feared, even when he is elected tribal chairman due to support by unhappy tribal members. And, his rule is marked by graft, corruption, violence and a blazing anger which leads to prison.
Meanwhile, Rick and Grandmother Mina who raised both Rick and You Choose become âparentsâ of twin boys whose mother died on the reservation border. Rick teaches about their ancestry with mesmerizing tales of how their world came to be. We have a place, he says, because of those who came before us and those who are coming behind. All things are connected. All lives are connected. The story moves on as the boys grow, sometimes seeming disconnected as much as their lives must have been.
This story demonstrates the rootless existence young Native Americans may feel, alienated because of injustice, poverty, myth, and tradition. Some embrace their past while others choose to challenge it. The author skillfully paints the lives of those depicted in this book enlivening it at times with humor such shown by this example in the names of two gangs: CIA (Colonized Indian Asses) and FBI (Full-Blood Indians).
Meanwhile, Rick and Grandmother Mina who raised both Rick and You Choose become âparentsâ of twin boys whose mother died on the reservation border. Rick teaches about their ancestry with mesmerizing tales of how their world came to be. We have a place, he says, because of those who came before us and those who are coming behind. All things are connected. All lives are connected. The story moves on as the boys grow, sometimes seeming disconnected as much as their lives must have been.
This story demonstrates the rootless existence young Native Americans may feel, alienated because of injustice, poverty, myth, and tradition. Some embrace their past while others choose to challenge it. The author skillfully paints the lives of those depicted in this book enlivening it at times with humor such shown by this example in the names of two gangs: CIA (Colonized Indian Asses) and FBI (Full-Blood Indians).
