The design and UX isn't done, Rob and Abbie, okkurrrr! đ
brandiereadsbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: War, Slavery, Murder, Gun violence, Rape, Colonisation, Torture, Violence, Sexual violence, Kidnapping, and Injury/Injury detail
katebond's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
informative
sad
tense
fast-paced
4.5
exelone31's review against another edition
5.0
A solid 4.5 stars rounded up to 5. Lots and lots of historical information, and this is a great companion to Doug Swansonâs book on the history of the Texas Rangers.
It is ultimately a tragic end to a once great empire. An often airbrushed history that is tough to swallow.
It is ultimately a tragic end to a once great empire. An often airbrushed history that is tough to swallow.
sadiecatherine's review against another edition
2.0
Had a very white-centric view, for example using words like âprogressâ and â(de)populationâ always from the white perspective (for more on this, I recommend Googling the review by Peter dâErrico.) Despite the authorâs efforts to be objective, it felt very much written from a white gaze. Why doesnât the author include even a single interview or review from a living indigenous person or descendant? Their perspective is completely missing from the book. If the author had just hired an indigenous editor or sensitivity reader, this book could have been much improved. On the plus side, I did gain a much better understanding of the timeline of the events of that period.
novelesque_life's review against another edition
2.0
2 STARS
"A historical account of the forty-year battle between Comanche Indians and white settlers for control of the American West, centering on Quanah, the greatest Comanche chief of them all." (From Amazon)
The book started out really well and I was intrigued but about 100 pages in I started to nod off. I finished the book mostly by skimming past the boring dense information. I did find the Parker history quite interesting but I did not get a clear sense of Quhana ironically.
"A historical account of the forty-year battle between Comanche Indians and white settlers for control of the American West, centering on Quanah, the greatest Comanche chief of them all." (From Amazon)
The book started out really well and I was intrigued but about 100 pages in I started to nod off. I finished the book mostly by skimming past the boring dense information. I did find the Parker history quite interesting but I did not get a clear sense of Quhana ironically.
captaincocanutty's review against another edition
challenging
informative
slow-paced
2.5
This book is such a slog, I almost DNF'd it twice.Â
The first half of the book the author jumps around between the origins of the Commanches, their effect and interactions with Spanish and Mexican colonization in North America, the establishment of the Republic of Texas, the Civil War and after in an attempt to link themes and events together but it is repetitive and felt like an attempt to pad the word count. I felt like I was reading the same paragraph in different chapters. Quanah Parker doesn't even show up until over half way through the book, which is odd since the subtitle includes him specifically.
The author is a journalist, and it affects the sources and interpretation of historical events. He prefers written records to oral, which is a significant bias considering the tribe he is writing about has a strong oral tradition. The more overt bias of the times is pointed, but not the more subtle ones. For example, the Commanches take hostages, whereas Spaniards/Mexicans/Texans/Americans take prisoners.Â
It was interesting to read a non-academic and somewhat less biased source about Commanches and the history of the area, but some of the conclusions and analysis should be taken with a grain of salt (even some facts stated in the book are incorrect). The half of the book following Quanah Parker was better written and better paced, which I believe is due to the fact that there was a set series of events that didn't require sequencing by the author.
The first half of the book the author jumps around between the origins of the Commanches, their effect and interactions with Spanish and Mexican colonization in North America, the establishment of the Republic of Texas, the Civil War and after in an attempt to link themes and events together but it is repetitive and felt like an attempt to pad the word count. I felt like I was reading the same paragraph in different chapters. Quanah Parker doesn't even show up until over half way through the book, which is odd since the subtitle includes him specifically.
The author is a journalist, and it affects the sources and interpretation of historical events. He prefers written records to oral, which is a significant bias considering the tribe he is writing about has a strong oral tradition. The more overt bias of the times is pointed, but not the more subtle ones. For example, the Commanches take hostages, whereas Spaniards/Mexicans/Texans/Americans take prisoners.Â
It was interesting to read a non-academic and somewhat less biased source about Commanches and the history of the area, but some of the conclusions and analysis should be taken with a grain of salt (even some facts stated in the book are incorrect). The half of the book following Quanah Parker was better written and better paced, which I believe is due to the fact that there was a set series of events that didn't require sequencing by the author.