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Bandera County Courier is published weekly by Gail S. Joiner, 1210 Hackberry St., Bandera, TX 78003. Subscription price $26 per year in Bandera County, TX; $36 per year for other Texas counties; $40 per year out of Texas. POSTMASTER: send address changes to Bandera County Courier, P.O. Box 1704, Bandera, TX 78003. Periodicals Postage pending in Bandera, Texas.

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Book reviews and book articles archived in the book section of the on-line Courier:

Current library articles
Texas Ranger author to sign book	Published March 20, 2008
Book review: Surviving the Dust Bowl	Published Jan. 3, 2008
Medina’s Hill Country historian & Grande Dame	Published Aug. 30, 2007
Potter parties set in Boerne	Published July 19, 2007
Kelton book signing in Blanco	Published June 28, 2007
On Agate Hill By Lee Smith	Published March 8, 2007
Bandera back in books again	Published Feb. 1, 2007
The Painted Drum By Louise Erdrich	Published Feb. 1, 2007
Little Texas	Published Dec. 7, 2006
The Redemption of Glory By Beth Hargrove	Published Dec. 7, 2006
Bungy signs books	Published Oct. 19, 2006
Comrades Brothers, Fathers, Heroes, Sons, Pals by Stephen E. Ambrose	Published Sept. 28, 2006
Not Your Ordinary Book Club	Published Aug. 31, 2006
'Better Understand Your Writing Personality' set Sept. 7	Published Aug. 31, 2006
An Inconvenient Truth by Al Gore	Published Aug. 31, 2006
PublishAmerica Presents The Redemption of Glory by local author Beth Hargrove	Published Aug. 10, 2006
The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy Fowler	Published Aug. 10, 2006
The Tao of Willie by Willie Nelson with Turk Pipkin	Published July 27, 2006
The Easy Way to Stop Drinking by Allen Carr	Published March 30, 2006
Peace Like a River by Leif Enger	Published Feb. 23, 2006
Are Men Necessary? When Sexes Collide	Published Jan. 19, 2006
The Birth of Venus by Sarah Dunant	Published Nov. 3, 2005
The Brontes Book Review	Published Nov. 3, 2005
With or Without Violence Mysteries available at your local libraries	Published Sept. 29, 2005
A Triumphant Struggle for Human Dignity	Published Aug. 4, 2005

Book review: Surviving the Dust Bowl Reviewed by Perry Lane, Medina River Reading Club Special to the Courier Published Jan. 3, 2008 Timothy Egan's "The Worst Hard Time," winner of the 2006 National Book Award for nonfiction    One of the most engrossing nonfiction books that I have ever read, "The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl," is a historical account of the Dust Bowl told through the eyes of some people who survived.     "The Worst Hard Time" recounts a largely forgotten period of American history. Author Timothy Egan, recipient of the Pulitzer Prize for his part in a series on race in America, brings these people and their devastating experiences to life and reminds the reader why it is important that this event be remembered. Egan also won the 2006 National Book Award for nonfiction for "The Worst Hard Time."     The tragic chapter in American history known as the Dust Bowl began well before the actual dust storms that gave it its name. With the removal from the Great Plains of the American Indians and the promise by the United States government of free land to settlers who came to farm grasslands that were not ecologically suited to raising crops, the stage was set for the disaster that would follow.     Economic factors such as the rise in the price of wheat before and during World War I encouraged more "sod busting" and greater crop production. Then, when grain prices fell after the stock market crash of 1929, farmers put even more land into cultivation to make up the difference.     When covered with native grasses, the prairies could withstand not only a low rate of rainfall, about 20 inches annually, but also the periodic droughts that were an inevitable part of the history of the region.     However, the combination of the destruction of the native grasses that held the soil in place and one of the longest droughts the area had ever experienced created dust storms that lasted for days. These storms suffocated anything in their path, and on at least one occasion reached all the way to the east coast.     This ecological disaster, which blew away millions of tons of topsoil from the midsection of the country, continued for almost 10 years.     Egan's talent lies not only in involving the reader with the facts of the events that occurred but in drawing the reader into the lives of some of the people who lived through this time. The hardships they endured and the losses they suffered are almost unimaginable.     Some stayed because they had nowhere else to go, but others stayed because of their optimistic nature; they simply could not believe that the next year would not be better.     This history of the depression in a particular part of the country reads more like a novel than a history book. It is a "page turner" that the reader will not want to put down. The lessons of the Dust Bowl are worth remembering today.

Medina’s Hill Country historian & Grande Dame by David Arny BCC Staff Writer Published Aug. 30, 2007 Dot Hatfield looks over her most recent book, "Medina... Outdoor Paradise." Photo by Clare Barnett Hatfield’s "Medina... Deep in the Heart of Texas," with a color cover, was published in 2003. One of Hatfield's earlier books, published in 2000, was, "Medina ... Along the River," with a black and white cover. Thelma Gallant, Hatfield's schoolteacher who first praised her as a writer, takes time out at the Medina EMS Ice Cream Social. Photo by Clare Barnett    Longtime Medina resident Dot Ferguson Hatfield has always had a gift for writing, and like all good writers, she sticks to writing about what she knows. She knows Medina like few others do and for many years, Hatfield has been recording that town’s history – one personal account at a time – with a love for both her craft and her subject matter.     Hatfield is a descendant of settlers who came to Texas in 1825. Her relatives fought in the American Revolution and for Texas independence at the decisive Battle of San Jacinto. However, the moments in history which impress her most aren’t so much the grandeur of heroic battles, daring conquests or grand sagas of derring-do, but rather the stories of ordinary folks living quiet, dignified lives under sometimes extraordinary circumstances.     Hatfield recalls a schoolteacher from her childhood in Medina, Thelma Gallant, who asked her class to write an essay on the topic of “family.” When the young girl received an A+ for her efforts, in addition to lavish praise from her beloved teacher, the seeds were sown for a lifelong passion for writing.     Her future mentors were among the best writers of Western novels one could think of.     She met Louis L’Amour during an earlier writer’s workshop at the University of Oklahoma and credits him with teaching her to “get the concept of,” and to outline beforehand, the overall objective of her stories. She describes the legendary author as being a “sweet, helpful man.”     Byron Dalrymple and Ace Reid were also among early influences on Hatfield.     Elmer Kelton, another icon of the genre and author of “The Time It Never Rained” and “The Man Who Rode Midnight,” was perhaps Hatfield’s most influential instructor. It was Kelton who stressed to her, at yet another writers’ symposium, the importance of “rendering the texture and culture of where you are,” in addition to “listening to the voices” – as opposed to simply hearing the words – of those whom she interviewed.     Today, it may seem like an easy task to “listen to the voices” of people – especially if one is from a big city where everyone’s favorite topic seems to be themselves – but among the rugged, self-sufficient and God-fearing folks of the Hill Country, Hatfield found it challenging at times to get the people she was most interested in to “open up” and relate their personal experiences to her.     “I think some writers make the mistake of asking questions that are too specific,” said Hatfield of her approach to interviewing. “The secret is to start off with questions that they’re comfortable with.”     It is truly difficult to imagine anyone being uncomfortable around Dot Hatfield. Though presently recovering from a life-threatening illness, in addition to recently losing her husband of 58 years, WO Hatfield, she immediately puts people at ease with her warm disposition and disarmingly lovely smile.     The list of the individuals she has interviewed reads like a “Who’s Who” of Medina families. Surnames such as Adams, Collins, Hubble, LeStourgeon, Keese, Moore, Sutton and – of course – Hatfield frequently grace the pages of her published works. But less familiar names are recorded there as well.     Stories about folks like judge and poet Nathan Braley, wrangler Charlie Walker and early settler George Washington Elam can be found there, too. It seems as if anyone who ever spent more than a few years trying to “make a go of it” in Medina, Texas, is noteworthy enough for Hatfield to include in her narratives.     Her writings portray a town which, at one time, had a movie theatre, hotel, sawmill and lumber yard, pool hall, butcher shop, cotton gin, its own weekly newspaper, skating rink, ice cream parlor, drug store, tomato canning factory and regular bus service connecting it with Kerrville and the world beyond.     To those who know and love Medina as the laid-back little community it is today, such an image of the town must come as something of a surprise. More than anyone else, Dot Hatfield can be credited with keeping those and other memories of her cherished hometown alive through her lovingly-rendered remembrances of things past.     Hatfield’s softbound compilations of essays are available in Medina at The Peachtree Restaurant, Adam’s Cider Mill, Frontier Outfitters and the Medina Studio and Gallery. In Bandera, they can be purchased at the Bandera County Courier offices, 1210 Hackberry St. The individual volumes will soon be published as an anthology of her collected works.

Potter parties set in Boerne by Judith Pannebaker BCC Staff Writer Published July 19, 2007 The last of Harry?    Alas, all good things must come to an end, and a cultural phenomenon concludes this weekend.     JK Rowling’s seventh and last installation in the Harry Potter series, “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,” will debut at 12:01 am Saturday, July 21. Working together, the staff at Read All About It in Boerne and personnel with the Boerne Public Library have an evening full of fun planned for aficionados of wizards, Muggles, Cornish pixies and everything in-between.     From 8 am until 11:45 pm, Friday, July 20, the library, located off Boerne’s Main Plaza at 210 North Main Street, will be transformed into the Harry Potter Locke Inn.     Special guest Richard Black, a “graduate” of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, will perform wondrous feats of magic. Special Hogwart’s-inspired fare includes butterbeer, magic wands and Hagrid’s rock cakes. Great prizes await the winner of the Harry Potter Trivia Contest. In addition, everyone will enjoy a special showing of the flick, “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.”     Witching hour – aka “parental pick-up time” – is 11:45 pm. However, as an alternative, participants can proceed to Read All About It Bookstore, 305 South Main Street, to purchase the final Potter book. The bookstore opens its doors at 11:30 pm to begin the official countdown to midnight. After which, everyone will learn how the saga ends. Or, maybe not …     According to information on ABC Online, Rowling recently issued a statement through her publisher in response to a “Save Harry” campaign. Essentially, she commented, “Never say never."     "I think that Harry's story comes to quite a clear end, sadly," Rowling said. “But I've always said that I wouldn't say, ‘Never.’ I can't say I'll never write another book about that world … What do I know in 10 years time ...? But I think it's unlikely."     Previously, Rowling had hinted that two characters would die in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, leading many readers to speculate one of those unfortunates might be Harry himself. To join in the speculation – and the Harry Potter happenings – call Miss Constance at the Boerne Public Library, 830-249-3053, or Read All About It Bookstore, 830-249-7323 or email readit@gvtc.com.

Kelton book signing in Blanco Published June 28, 2007    Popular western author Elmer Kelton will be at the Old Blanco County Courthouse in Blanco from 1:30 pm until 3 pm, Saturday, June 30, signing copies of his latest book, Sandhills Boy – The Winding Trail of a Texas Writer. The event is free to the public.     Kelton’s writing awards include the Western Heritage Award from the National Cowboy Hall of Fame and the Distinguished Achievement Award from the Western Literature Association. He is also a seven time winner of the Golden Spur Award, given annually for distinguished writing about the American West. It is one of the oldest and most prestigious designations in American literature.     Kelton has written over 80 books using historical Texas themes, such as a devastating drought in West Texas and a novel about Black infantry soldiers brought to Texas by the US Army to subdue the Comanche Indians. His 1978 book, The Good Old Boys, was made into a film by actor-director – and Texas native – Tommy Lee Jones.     Along with Kelton, Richard Holland, contributor and editor of The Texas Book: Profiles, History and Reminiscences of the University, University of Texas Press, will also be at the Old Blanco County Courthouse. The first special collections librarian at Texas State University in San Marcos, Holland helped acquire the work of many other Texas authors, including the original manuscript of Lonesome Dove, donated by Larry McMurtry. Holland now serves as senior lecturer in the Liberal Arts Honors program at University of Texas where he teaches classes on Texas Culture, American Music, and the 1960s.     For more information on the book signing, contact event sponsor Maggie Lambeth at 830-833-5252 or online at www.texanbooks.com.

On Agate Hill By Lee Smith Reviewed by Jean Hallford Jones Published March 8, 2007    Lee Smith's novels take an unflinching look at the Deep South. Her well-researched books are written in varying voices with style and humor. They are poetic and poignant, literary rather than romantic. "On Agate Hill" is one of her most enthralling works -- in spite of its flaws, mostly minor but with one major flaw, in my opinion.     The frame of the story is written by Tuscany Miller, a college dropout who has found a box containing old diaries, documents, and a collection of "stuff" in a house purchased by her father. Tuscany wants to submit the collection to her former professor as her thesis. This device does not contribute much to the story and is actually a distraction. Moreover, the reader has to suspend disbelief as to how all these diaries were collected. This was a minor flaw, easily forgivable.     The central diary is written by the compelling Molly Petree during the period following the Civil War. Molly is an orphan, who spends as much time as possible in a hidden cubbyhole in her uncle's house at Agate Hill, where she writes in her diary and watches the household. At age 13, she keenly observes that "The things that people really want are the most like to kill them, it seems to me, such as war and babies." Molly is "a spitfire and a burden", as she describes herself. She and her friend Mary White love thunderstorms and lightning and collecting stuff for their "box of phenomena". She determines to be true to herself in spite of society's expectations.     Molly is rescued from desperate poverty by a mysterious benefactor from her father and mother's past, Simon Black. He sees to her education at a private girls' school, where the headmistress hates her on sight. Some of the most interesting passages in the novel come from the diary of Mariah Snow, the bitter and often-pregnant headmistress. Some of the entries in Snow's diary state simply, "Gave birth." Molly is resourceful in spite of the deranged headmistress, and she makes many friends among her wealthy schoolmates.     When Molly leaves the school, she becomes a teacher in a small one-room school in the Appalachians. It is here that she meets her "demon lover," the roguishly charming, banjo-strumming Jacky Jarvis. Their passion remains strong over the years although Molly's babies die, leaving a rock garden in the cemetery.     A darkly violent event takes place in which Molly is accused of murder and has to stand trial. Molly reveals what happened in one short, ambiguous passage at the end of the book. At least she reveals part of it; the rest is maddeningly left out. When it comes to the whodunit part, the reader wants to know who done it and why he done it. This was a real letdown after I had spent a whole day of my life and consumed half a box of Girl Scout cookies while reading the book. I'm still wondering why such a fine writer would drop the ball at this crucial point.     I often read other book reviews in order to get diverse opinions, and I have observed that some reviewers do not actually read the whole book. They read enough to comment intelligently on the characters, theme, and style but not the whole picture. All but one of the reviews I read for "On Agate Hill" just expressed appreciation for Smith's fine writing. Kudos go to Heller McAlpin in The Christian Science Monitor, who referred to Smith's "ambiguity on several … urgent questions, including the fate of Molly's one true childhood friend and the sequence of events that lands Molly in jail for a time." McAlpin read the whole book.     Reader, you are own. It is for you to decide whether it is worth your time to enjoy hours of excellent reading only to wonder what really happened on the night a murder took place.     You can find this book in the New Section at the Kronkosky Library.

Bandera back in books again by Stephanie Day BCC Staff Published Feb. 1, 2007    Joan Upton Hall's "Ghostly Tales from America's Jails" has just been released and one story, "The Ghost Who Likes Me," features Bandera's historic 1881 jail, now used as an office by the Bandera County River Authority and Groundwater District.     The Bandera County Courier supplied both a photograph and the story for the publication. Bandera's story shares the limelight with other fascinating stories: "A Terrible Secret" (from 1760), "Host to Ghosts" (from 1799), "Man on a Rope" (1835), "An Army of Ghosts" and "Halloween Anytime You Want It" (both from 1875), "Whispers Within the Walls" (1894) and more current stories from 1909-1956.     Hall states in the book that because of the misery and violent events that took place in U.S. jails, some prisoners are destined to keep existing in misery and some guards never get to retire. "Few old jails still house lawbreakers today because they don't meet modern standards for incarceration." However, as Hall found, ghosts are welcome.     "Ghostly Tales" was published by Atriad Press in Dallas. Hall's other books include "Grand Old Texas Theaters that Won't Quit" and "Excalibur Regained."     Bandera's chapter is based on the incidents that both occurred and did not occur on Halloween night when former Bandera Review staff writers Stephanie Logue (Day) and Judith Pannebaker spent the night in the jail to meet resident ghost "Harvey."     Ghostly Tales from America's Jails can be purchased at any book store and online at Amazon and Barnes and Noble.Joan Upton Hall's "Ghostly Tales from America's Jails" has just been released and one story, "The Ghost Who Likes Me," features Bandera's historic 1881 jail, now used as an office by the Bandera County River Authority and Groundwater District.     The Bandera County Courier supplied both a photograph and the story for the publication. Bandera's story shares the limelight with other fascinating stories: "A Terrible Secret" (from 1760), "Host to Ghosts" (from 1799), "Man on a Rope" (1835), "An Army of Ghosts" and "Halloween Anytime You Want It" (both from 1875), "Whispers Within the Walls" (1894) and more current stories from 1909-1956.     Hall states in the book that because of the misery and violent events that took place in U.S. jails, some prisoners are destined to keep existing in misery and some guards never get to retire. "Few old jails still house lawbreakers today because they don't meet modern standards for incarceration." However, as Hall found, ghosts are welcome.     "Ghostly Tales" was published by Atriad Press in Dallas. Hall's other books include "Grand Old Texas Theaters that Won't Quit" and "Excalibur Regained."     Bandera's chapter is based on the incidents that both occurred and did not occur on Halloween night when former Bandera Review staff writers Stephanie Logue (Day) and Judith Pannebaker spent the night in the jail to meet resident ghost "Harvey."     Ghostly Tales from America's Jails can be purchased at any book store and online at Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

The Painted Drum By Louise Erdrich Reviewed by Jean Hallford Jones Published Feb. 1, 2007    Set in present-day New Hampshire, "The Painted Drum" weaves together three stories, blending the past into the present. The main character, Faye Travers, who sells antiques and handles real estate sales, lives with her half-Ojibwe mother and struggles with a fractious relationship with Krahe, the sculptor who lives next door.     When Faye catalogs the estate of a recently deceased neighbor, she discovers valuable Native American artifacts collected by a former Indian Agent. The greatest find is a mystical painted drum that sounds a message on its own. Faye inexplicably feels compelled to steal the drum and return it to the Ojibwe reservation in North Dakota where it originated.     On the reservation Bernard Shaawano reaches back into his past to narrate the second story. His grandfather meticulously made the drum while mourning the tragic death of his daughter. His daughter's helping spirit seems to dwell in the drum. I found this part of the book the most interesting although it was a little difficult to follow at times. Erdrich includes the origin of the mysterious Fleur Pillager who has appeared in several earlier novels.     In the present, there is Ira and her three children, who hang onto a precarious existence where there is no guarantee of food or firewood. The unfortunate Ira has made many wrong turns in her life, which result in her children being lost in a snowstorm. The magic of the drum sounds from a distance to play a role in Ira's story.     Erdrich, as always, writes poetically of the bone-deep pain of impoverished characters hanging on the edge of life. But she writes also of the ragged strength to endure and the salvation of family ties. This is not one of her best books, in my opinion, but anything she writes is well worth reading.     This book is available at the Kronkosky Library in downtown Bandera. It has recently been moved from the New section to the regular shelves.

Little Texas an Hallford Jones Published Dec. 7, 2006    What would it be like for a rowdy group of good ol' Texas boys and gals to be living in the Middle East back in the 1980s? Well, we all know that Texans don't leave home; they just take Texas with them. Life isn't all that different from home.     In Jean Hallford Jones' book, "Little Texas," the Texas Star Oil Company has discovered oil in a small, unnamed country in the Middle East. The oil hands live in the Shahara Apartment Complex, also known as Little Texas. There are strong-hearted women also living in the complex: Holly, who supervises a team of English teachers at the Military Language Institute, Melissa, who is a USAID nurse whose mission is to establish birth-control clinics, Agnes, a middle-aged teacher, and Dottie, the buxom blonde secretary and Sweetheart of Texas Star.     At the heart of the story, Holly builds a close friendship with Major Jamal, her colleague at the language institute. Jamal flirts with danger as he engages in secret meetings with Hanan. Their liaisons are monitored by a shadowy stalker.     Melissa meets an Arab doctor who has been educated in the United States. While she thinks that Shams al Deen might be a good partner in her life's work, he is sure that Melissa is as unattainable as every blonde he was ever attracted to. In fact, there is a tentative promise that Shams will marry his distant cousin, Hanan.     Holly reluctantly teams up with an obnoxious photographer who wants an invitation to an Arab wedding. They form a rocky relationship, and Holly's life takes a more interesting turn than she had expected.     While the Texans are having barbecues and dancing the Cotton-eyed Joe in their community center, there is violence in the making. Someone will be publicly gunned down with an AK-47 in the market place, and the killer will immediately target another victim.     The theme of "Little Texas" is based on an old Arab proverb, "There are no permanent friends and no permanent enemies." It is tragi-comic in tone, as all Texas stories tend to be. The poignant climax could have been written after 9/11, but the book was first published in 1996.     Ms. Jones is a frequent contributor of book reviews to the Bandera Courier. Before retiring to Bandera in 2005, she taught ESL to the Arab military for the Department of Defense. Ms. Jones has lived in two Arab countries and is familiar with their way of life, their sense of humor, and the cadence of their speech. She has been selling "Little Texas" at book fairs around the state. Since she has a few copies left, she is offering them for sale at a price far below today's market.

The Redemption of Glory By Beth Hargrove Reviewed by Jean Hallford Jones Published Dec. 7, 2006    Local writer, Beth Hargrove, has written a delightful novel that should have wide appeal here in the Hill Country. "The Redemption of Glory" touches on many themes that are part of our value system -- the need to correct the mistakes and mend the wounds of our past. Hargrove has a way with words and a good ear for the Texas dialect.     The year is 1955, and the place is the central Texas town of Granite Falls. Katherine, who died on earth, becomes a new being named Glory. In order to pass into the next world, she must tidy up some lives that are in disarray on earth.     Glory has to nudge Graham McKenzie, the minister of a small country church, out of his comfortable little niche and into confronting the uncomfortable mistakes of his past. There is also Ruth Webster, who is part of Graham's past, and who still feels the pain of betrayal. These two lives are Glory's to fix if she can. It isn't easy. There are secrets and public shame to be dealt with, and Glory isn't sure how to unravel the various threads of their past.     To complicate matters, Glory finds that other lives get mixed into the plot in unforeseen ways. There is a stranger on a bridge and a young woman who believes that a man who seems too good to be true is out of her league. A flood doesn't make matters any easier. So many challenges for Glory to meet. She must act as "custodian of the needy, watchful over the woebegone, ever the manipulator where and when it was mandated."     As Glory slowly manages to get the lives of others back on track, she finds that she has gained for herself the growth she has fostered in the lives of those who needed her.

Bungy signs books Published Oct. 19, 2006    Former Bandera resident Bungy Hedley (Hartshorn) signed her book, "View From the Top of the Mast," at the Kronkosky Library Tuesday, Oct. 10.     Armed with visual aids, Bungy recounted part of her adventurous life before signing books for the many old and new friends who attended the talk and book signing.     Order the book from Bungy Hedley, Box 101, Ledbetter, 78946 or email her at bungy@cvtv.net.

Comrades Brothers, Fathers, Heroes, Sons, Pals by Stephen E. Ambrose Reviewed by Jean Hallford Jones Published Sept. 28, 2006    Stephen Ambrose has taken the slender thread of male bonding and traced it through the milestones of his own life as well as the lives of historical figures. As he acknowledges, friendships can be "difficult for Anglo-Saxon males of a middle-class background to define or practice." He was in his 50s when he finally became uninhibited enough to hug another man. Since he didn’t turn into a "girly man", he decided to keep up the practice; he hugged his brothers, his sons, and finally his father.     Ambrose discusses his relationship with his stern father. There were three sons in the Ambrose household, sons whose performance at assigned chores never met with the approval of their father. At a celebration in honor of the senior Ambrose, however, the Ambrose boys finally heard their father express publicly his pride in the accomplishments of his sons. It was a golden moment, one that deeply affected all the Ambrose boys.     A lot of the friendships that are discussed are of military men because it is in combat that men are forced into a more emotional openness in their raw struggle for survival. One of the most touching chapters was the one about the men of Easy Company in World War II, where Yale and Harvard graduates faced death alongside farm boys and coal miners. They formed friendships that have lasted over the years by keeping in contact with each other and holding regular reunions. Then there is the great friendship between a U.S. major and a German colonel who fought against each other but became close friends after the war.     Ambrose writes about the closeness of Dwight and Milton Eisenhower and the testy friendship between Gen. Eisenhower and Gen. George Patton. He writes about the Custer brothers, who grew up together and died together, the partnership of Lewis and Clark, the lifelong friendship between Crazy Horse and He Dog.     In contrast to the special friendships, is the story of the man who had no close friends, Richard Nixon. Nixon avoided close relationships to the point of having subordinates transferred after they had been working for him long enough to know him well. It was his view that the man at the top was always friendless. In that he was the opposite of Eisenhower, Johnson, Kennedy, and Reagan.     Most of this is recycled material from Ambrose’s biographies of Eisenhower, Lewis and Clark, Nixon, Easy Company in "Band of Brothers", and his dual biography of Crazy Horse and Custer. He has strung the stories together with his personal relationships with his father and brothers. It doesn’t matter if you have read the biographies already, the subject of male bonding is one that deserves to be read again.     "Comrades" isn’t a new book; it was published in 1999. But it is one of Ambrose’s last books. A lifelong smoker, Stephen Ambrose died of lung cancer in 2002 at the age of 66. You can find the book in the biography section of the Kronkosky Library.

Not Your Ordinary Book Club Submitted by Mary Elizabeth Goldman Published Aug. 31, 2006    The next meeting of the newly-formed Medina River Reading Club will be Tuesday, Sept. 19, at 11 a.m. at the Medina Community Library.     September’s selected reading is Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides, and by contrast to The Book Thief, last month’s selected book, Middlesex is anything and everything but a “comfortable” book. I’ve been asked to explain what this book is about and that’s a challenging thing to do.     First, Middlesex is not about any one thing, it’s not a simple read. The epic novel spans more than eight tumultuous decades, the narrative is witty and fast, which means the reader must pay attention, and the story is about many things, admittedly, few of which I have ever had much interest in or knowledge of. Hence, the challenge.     But just as The Medina River Reading Club strives to reach beyond the safe boundaries Middlesex is not safe read. Consider this a warning: it is far removed from ordinary. Take hermaphrodites for instance, and the 1967 Detroit riots from the eyes of a 10-year-old girl, the near collapse of the auto industry in America, the war between Greece and Turkey, the rise of the Nation of Islam, a rare genetic mutation, and the birth of the Black Panthers. It’s all there and then some. This brilliantly written book doesn’t “stay between the lines” and it rattled the core of my Texas sensibilities. When I finished the book I sorted it through and decided who better than a Texan, by birth or choice, could appreciate such a “maverick” of a tale?     Indeed, Middlesex is a chronicle of whirlwind proportions about a brother and sister who fleeing for their lives must pose as a French couple, escape the burning Greek village of Smyrna and sail to America with few belongings, virtually no resources, and no new language skills. The year is 1920 and this struggle of one immigrant family is rich in Greek culture, history, family ties, science, incest, and mythology. And, oh yes, it’s the bittersweet story of a girl child who, through no fault of her own, grows into a man.     So crank up the music from Fiddler on the Roof, pour the warm ouzo, and experience the gusto from the green waters of the Aegean Isles, but don’t get comfortable: this Pulitzer Prize Award winning book will assault your senses on many levels and it will definitely keep you riveted. I guarantee it: this is the book you’re going to love to hate or, better yet, hate to love.     The Medina River Reading Club meets the third Tuesday of each month at 11 a.m. at the Medina Community Library. It provides a venue for lively open discussion on all literary genres and is open to everyone. For more information call Karen Schenck at 796-8338 or the MCL at 589-2825.

'Better Understand Your Writing Personality' set Sept. 7 Published Aug. 31, 2006    Author Janet Penley will present "Better Understand Your Writing Personality," at the Thursday, Sept. 7, meeting of the San Antonio Writers Guild. She is the author (with Diane Eble) of "MotherStyles-Using Personality Type to Discover Your Parenting Strengths."     The guild meets at the Bethany Congregational Church is at the corner of Pilgrim and Panda just inside Loop 410 in San Antonio. Take the Vance Jackson exit just east of IH-10 and head south.     Her program will cover:     Are you an Extrovert or an Introvert?     Do you focus on the details or the generalities?     Do you thrive on structure or flow?     Using the Myers-Briggs system of personality type as a framework, Janet Penley will help you identify your personality type and make the most of your natural writing style. She'll affirm your strengths and provide customized tips for how best to approach first drafts and rewrites.     The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator is widely used for leadership development, team-building, and career counseling. Penley brings 18 years of experience with corporations, community organizations, and families.     "MotherStyles-Using Personality Type to Discover Your Parenting Strengths" (Da Capo, 2006) is a book to help break the myth of the perfect mother and enrich family relationships.     She recently moved from Chicago to San Antonio with her husband.     Visit: www.motherstyles.com.     Visit: www.sawritersguild.org for more information about the guild.

An Inconvenient Truth by Al Gore Reviewed by Jean Hallford Jones Published Aug. 31, 2006 The film was released May 24, 2006.    Al Gore delivers a lecture that is well illustrated with photos that ought to scare us all. The photos speak eloquently for themselves of the damage that is being done to our planet. That’s the bad news.     The good news is that it’s not too late. We can do something about it if we have the collective will to do it.     Gore starts with images that “illustrate the basic science of global warming,” something that few of us fully understand. A graph that shows the rise of carbon dioxide in the air looks like a steep staircase climbing out of sight. And photos of Mount Kilimanjaro, taken in 1970 and 2000, show that little is left of the snow and ice that once covered the peak. But it is the Arctic where the most alarming temperature changes are taking place. Will we someday be singing “Where Have All The Glaciers Gone”? The dwindling rain forest also has a great impact on our environment. It all adds up.     How does global warning affect us?     Twenty of our hottest years have occurred in the last 21 years, with 2005 being the hottest. In 2003 there were 35.000 people in Europe killed by the heat. Closer to home, Texas is experiencing a mighty inconvenient drought while other places are inundated with floods. Then there are the storms that are growing both in numbers and intensity. The year 2004 was a record year for tornadoes in the United States, as well as the worst hurricane in our history. We’ll be remembering Katrina for years to come.     The main culprit is carbon emissions. And what country tops the charts in carbon emissions? It is the United States. The chart makes this embarrassingly clear. Americans can’t afford to dilly dally around too long before we wake up and smell the planet burning.     Global warming can be brought down to the levels of 1970 if the right steps are taken. The technology already exists, and it is affordable. Currently, there are 132 countries which have pledged to take action. The United States and Australia are the only two advanced countries still in denial. However, some cities in the U.S., including seven cities in Texas, have decided on their own to implement the policies outlined in the Kyoto Treaty.     Gore lists 10 common misconceptions about global warning. The most persistent misconception is that global warming either doesn’t exist or isn’t as bad as we think. These misconceptions do not come from the scientific community. There is a consensus among scientists on the dangers of global warming.     Gore has tried to sound apolitical in his treatise, but the American public is wary of politicians. We know that he might want to press this issue in another bid for the presidency. But that doesn’t mean he’s wrong.     Most of us would rather ignore the talk about global warning and hope it will go away, but if you want to find out more information, you can click on www.climatecrisis.net. This book is available at the Kronkowsky Library, and it has been made into a movie, which got good reviews from many critics. It should be available soon on DVD. Sometimes it is inconvenient that we don’t have a movie theater in Bandera.     This is what movie critic Roger Ebert had to say about the movie: "In 39 years, I have never written these words in a movie review, but here they are: you owe it to yourself to see this film. If you do not, and you have grandchildren, you should explain to them why you decided not to."

PublishAmerica Presents The Redemption of Glory by local author Beth Hargrove Contributed Published Aug. 10, 2006    Frederick, Md. August 2, 2006 -- PublishAmerica is proud to present The Redemption of Glory by Bandera author Beth Hargrove. In The Redemption of Glory, Graham McKenzie has finally reached a comfortable place in his life as a minister in a small country church, but Glory, a plucky little spirit whose passage into the next world depends upon "fixing him" forces him to face his past, which includes a lost love that he thinks is long dead and buried. For Ruth Webster, this means revisiting decisions she made long ago which led her down a path that Glory now wants to turn in a new direction. As Glory strives to mend the lives of two people who have gone down the wrong road, more lives than theirs are caught in her web. A young widower and his daughter are affected in ways Glory neither anticipates nor welcomes. But her main mission is to bring Graham and Ruth together and this opens doors to secrets which threaten Graham's safe, peaceful world and test his courage and commitments.     Beth Hargrove is a native Texan. She was born in Houston but grew up in a number of small towns across South Texas. Her heart is in the beautiful hill country of central Texas, which inspires her writing, and also where she now lives, beside the Medina River.     PublishAmerica is the home of 20,000 talented authors. PublishAmerica is a traditional publishing company whose primary goal is to encourage and promote the works of new, previously undiscovered writers. Like more mainstream publishers, PublishAmerica pays its authors advances and royalties, makes its books available in both the United States and Europe through all bookstores, and never charges any fees for its services. PublishAmerica offers a distinctly personal, supportive alternative to vanity presses and less accessible publishers.

The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy Fowler Reviewed by Jean Hallford Jones Published Aug. 10, 2006    The Jane Austen book club consists of six members - five women and one man - who discuss one of Austen’s six novels at each monthly meeting. In the meantime, they learn more about themselves and each other as they endure the commonplace dramas of ordinary life. Fowler uses flashbacks effectively to illuminate her characters.     Each member of the book club has his own private Austen, we are told at the outset. Bernadette sees Austen as a comic genius while Jocelyn sees an Austen who writes about love and courtship. Prudie sees an author "whose books changed every time you read them.” Sylvia sees a practical Austen, and her daughter Allegra likes Austen’s way of turning things "completely over, going from pole to pole.” Grigg, the only man, is reading the books for the first time, so he has to find his own version of Austen.     It isn’t Austen’s novels that are most important, however. You don’t even have to be familiar with the books. Fowler, like Austen, dissects social encounters with a wicked sense of humor and a smart choice of words. The plot line is a bit thin, but the delicious use of language made the book hard for me to put down. If you want danger and mayhem, this one isn’t it.     Perhaps you’ve already discovered Fowlers’ exquisite writing, but this was a first for me. It won’t be the last. I’m ready to track down everything she has written. This is the only novel of hers available at the Kronkosky Library. Perhaps others are available at nearby libraries.

The Tao of Willie by Willie Nelson with Turk Pipkin Reviewed by Jean Hallford Jones Published July 27, 2006    We all love to hear Willie sing, and at last he has gotten enough wisdom for us to pay attention to what he says. That probably wouldn’t have been true a few decades ago. But 50 years in the music and movie business, first-name-only recognition, and millions of fans around the world give him the right to offer his guidelines to happiness. Plus a few of his favorite jokes.     Willie starts with a simple explanation of the tao, pronounced dow by those who are in the know. It means “the Way,” and it is a philosophy, not a religion. It’s about doing what is right and being true to your best self. It sounds like what we now call being “in the flow” when your life is going right because you are doing the right things. You probably don’t want to follow all of Willie’s advice. He’s telling us what works for him, not what works for everybody.     Willie tells about his growing-up days in Abbot, Texas -- the influences of his family and church, the lessons he learned, and the music he heard. He says, “Who we were in our childhoods isn’t all that different from who we are now.”     Mainly, he just believes in the Golden Rule and meditation. He renews his spirit through meditation. “It’s simple,” he says. “Sit. Listen. Breathe. Dream. Renew.”     He’s healthier today than he was 30 years ago. He says that tells him that he must have been pretty messed up when he was younger. He jogs or plays golf every day; he boxes a little, and he has taken some lessons in martial arts. The main thing is to keep moving. His antidote to worry is to remember, “We are not in control.” That helps him to let go of his worries and not to blame others when things go wrong.     When in doubt, Willie says he tries to remind himself that “the path to God is paved with love.” It’s hard to go wrong when you base your life on love for others. Willie is right out there when it comes to sticking up for the farmers and the environment. Texas could have done a lot worse when it produced Willie Nelson–flaws and all. He is a living icon, and his music will still be played a hundred years from now.     You can find “The Tao Of Willie” in the “NEW” section of the Kronkowsky Library.

Peace Like a River by Leif Enger Reviewed by Jean Hallford Jones Published Feb. 23, 2006    Enger’s rich prose references Dickens, Twain, and Stevenson by name, as well as by style. In an interview he stated that the Land family’s quest was influenced by "The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters," a novel by Robert Taylor. I caught echoes of Scout and Jem and Atticus Finch from "To Kill a Mockingbird". Whatever the sources that unconsciously enter the story-telling stream, Enger has made wise choices in his literary heroes. His words are a feast to read even if you wonder where on earth a few words originated. Can they be found in any dictionary, or did the author make them up for the pleasure of the sound? And you might wonder, as I did, why Enger chose the name Swede for a young girl while all the males in the family have Biblical names. It reminded me of a character in one of Amy Tan’s books who said her brothers were, "Matthew, Mark, Luke, and Charlie."     Enger says that he began writing not long after he finished college while he was a news reporter for Minnesota Public Radio. He and his brother Lin collaborated on five crime novels under the pen name L. L. Enger. Their main character is a baseball player named Gun Pederson, who retired to live in the woods. Titles include: "Swing," "The Sinners’ League" and "Sacrifice." They are not available at the Kronkosky Library, but you can order them. I’ve put them on my reading list. Well, I’ll try one to see if I like it.     I received "Peace Like a River" as a gift from my son, but I checked our library to see if it is available. It is. I highly recommend it. It is the best book I’ve read this past year. A movie is in the works, but why wait?

The Easy Way to Stop Drinking by Allen Carr Reviewed by Jean Hallford Jones Published March 30, 2006    Allen Carr has come up with another shortcut to achieving one of life’s big challenges, following his "Easy Way To Stop Smoking" and "Easy Way to Be Successful", and similar titles. He runs expensive workshops to teach his techniques. Carr promises that the cure will be immediate, permanent, without symptoms of withdrawal, no deprivation, and no need for willpower. He uses numerous analogies to support his theory and to dismiss all other theories. An analogy is not scientific proof, however, and I found his overuse of analogies tedious as well as overkill.     Carr enumerates the alcoholic’s excuses for drinking: it removes inhibitions, it steadies your nerves, it gives you courage, it makes you sociable, etc. Then he shoots down all of these excuses. In fact, most of the book is spent on the excuses and his rebuttals. He debunks other methods to stop drinking, including that of AA. His main argument with AA is that it regards members as recovering alcoholics, rather than recovered.     Carr insists that the reader read all the way to the end: no fair skipping to the final chapter to learn the easy way to stop drinking. Do not expect anything of a scientific nature explaining why people get addicted to alcohol and have difficulty quitting the bottle. Carr’s method reminds me of Professor Harold Hill’s method for selling band instruments in The Music Man.     Now, I don’t have a problem with alcohol, the occasional glass of wine with a meal accounting for my total intake. However, it seems to me that an alcoholic who wants to read a book on how to quit is pretty much out of excuses and looking for a way out. I fail to see the need to wade through Carr’s pontifications, but it must be working for some people. He is selling a lot of books and one-day workshops.     Carr makes a good point when he states that alcoholics trying to quit will experience "a slight empty feeling", but that feeling is not a need for alcohol. No one actually "needs" alcohol; alcoholics just think they need it. If they can come to this "moment of revelation", they are free from alcohol. They need to find something else they enjoy doing. That moment is pretty much "the easy way to stop drinking".     This reminded me of the well-established "deficiency in the reward system" due to a flaw in the D2R2 gene that affects the amount of dopamine in the brain chemistry. Individuals with this flaw do not experience enjoyment as deeply as those with the healthy gene. They tend to have a feeling of emptiness, which leaves them vulnerable to seeking addictive substances. Psychiatrists and neurologists understand the chemistry of addiction, and that is whom I would turn to if I had a problem. The reason I know about the dopamine connection is that the problem runs in my family, and I have learned all I could on the subject. I was lucky enough to get the good gene.     All of us probably know the heartbreak of having a loved one who is caught in some sort of addictive trap. It can’t hurt to read this book, and you might find something of use.     This book is available in the Kronkosky Library in the section for new books.

Are Men Necessary? When Sexes Collide by Maureen Dowd Reviewed by Jean Hallford Jones Published Jan. 19, 2006    The answer is "yes", of course, to the question in the title, but with a wink. Much of what Dowd writes about comes from the men in her circle.     Maureen Dowd, the opinionated op-ed columnist for The New York Times is always interesting, whether or not you agree with her. Having been on the political scene since 1974, Dowd is no novice. She won a Pulitzer Prize for her insightful coverage of Bill Clinton's dangerous liaisons which led to his impeachment trial. Before that, she covered the Reagan White House, and she has written a book on the current Bush White House.     What I like about Dowd is her incisive intelligence, sharp wit, and willingness to take on issues with Democrats, Republicans, feminists, and plastic surgeons. She does so with breezy self-confidence based on years of studying the political playing field.     She has a dim view of this Botox generation with women all trying to look like homogenized Barbie Dolls instead of making the most of their own particular looks. And she berates the double standard that flourishes in the publishing world. "When you read women's magazines," she says, "they're all about trying to please men. When you read laddie books, they're all about trying to please men, too." Dowd quotes various "fluffernut opinions of male experts" that are now outdated. Now how can you resist an opinion with a vocabulary word like that?     Dowd points out a trend toward powerful men marrying women and surrounding themselves with, women who are in the support services rather than women who are equal. For example, Laura Bush totally supports her husband, as did Nancy Reagan. And the women who serve in the Bush administration are strong, single women, who are able to devote their time and talent to serving the needs of the president. They are not Alpha women who promote their own agenda, but cupbearers for the gods. Condi Rice is President Bush's right-hand man, ever at his side.     Chapter four deals with scientific research on the differences in the Y and X chromosomes. Men's ambitious Y chromosome "has been shedding genes willy nilly for millions of years and is now a fraction the size of its partner, the X chromosome. This degeneration of the Y chromosome should serve notice to macho males bent on waging wars that they had better start a new agenda. Some of this information is probably news to both genders.     Dowd's book is still pretty much hot off the press since it was published in 2005. It has already been checked out a few times from the Kronkosky Library, so I assume that there are some astute readers in Bandera who are up to the biting wit of a woman at the peak of her performance.

The Birth of Venus by Sarah Dunant Reviewed for The Bandera County Courier by Jean Hallford Jones Published Nov. 3, 2005    Sarah Dunant, a writer known for literary suspense novels rather than "chic lit", has written an absorbing story set in Florence, Italy in the time of great art and great upheaval. Her central character, the budding Alessandra Checchi, is a gifted, highly intelligent young woman who is destined for a staid marriage to an older man. It is not what she wants.     Alessandra longs to paint, but she has no teacher to take her beyond what she has already learned from books. She sketches with pen and ink but is unable to make the colors for a real painting. When her father brings a young artist into the household to paint a religious scene for their family chapel, Alessandra is both drawn to the artist and consumed with a desire to learn his secrets of bringing life and color to the canvas.     She is a modern woman trapped in the 15th century. Her path in life is ordained, and it will take courage and cunning to grab a little of her own from this fate. In contrast to Alessandra's struggle against her circumstances is her servant , the dauntless Erila, who faces life with realistic acceptance and clever evasion of her restrictions.     The city of Florence, almost a character in itself, is not allowed to luxuriate peacefully in its renaissance. There is a serial killer as well as plague in the streets and a French invasion in the offing. The fundamentalist monk Savonarola is breathing hellfire down the necks of the complacent aristocrats. The inevitable clashes occur with many surprising plot twists that keep the reader turning pages. The end will come as a surprise to most readers.     There are parts of the novel that are not for the faint-hearted. Durant's description of a cancer early on in the book is stomach-turning. There are other scenes where she does not sugar-coat the ugly gore. And the dark eroticism, though brief, is disturbing to some readers. Still, the novel is well worth reading. The portrayal of the historical Medici family and the larger-than-life Savonarola are so well researched that the reader is drawn into this world, so different from our modern world yet peopled with familiar flawed inhabitants.     Dunant, who splits her time between London and Florence, knows the city and its history well. She is no novice writer, having previously written eight novels and done extensive work in television and radio. The woman can write. It is a pleasure to read the polished sentences, the paragraphs, the pages, the novel, but she does lapse into a modern colloquialism occasionally that is at odds with 15th century language. At present, she is adapting two of her novels, "Mapping the Edge" and "Transgressions" as screenplays.     "The Birth of Venus"was recommended by Judy Pierce, a volunteer at the Medina Library. You might not know about Bandera's buddy system with Medina. Bandera citizens can get a library card (a nice miniaturized version to fit on your key chain) from the Medina branch and return the book to the Bandera library, and vice versa. It's a convenient arrangement for book lovers.

The Brontes Book Review Published Nov. 3, 2005    The Kronkosky Library of Bandera County has received The Brontes by Juliet Barker. It was placed in the library in memory of Ettie "Jene" Morgenstern, mother of Bandera's busiest volunteer, Linda James. "Books for the library are a wondeerful way to honor our loved ones," James commented. "They don't wither or fade like flowers. They bring pleasure to everyone who comes into contact with them just as my mother did."     The Brontes is the ultimate biography of that famous writing family. Anyone who has read Wuthering Heights or Jane Eyre or seen the award-winning movies these books inspired will be enthralled with this true story of life, struggle and death. It is as spellbinding as the novels its protagonists wrote.     The description of the lonely, windswept moors of central England is haunting and formidable. Reading The Brontes one can understand how Emily could conjure up a hero as dark and brooding as Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights. According to Barker, Emily was rather a taciturn recluse herself.     The struggle of the Bronte sisters to help their father, Patrick, eke out a living is heart-warming. He was the vicar at a small church in Haworth. They worked as governesses, much like Jane Eyre, to add to the family's income. They sacrificed their personal lives to sponsor the only surviving Bronte son, Branwell. They believed him to be a talented painter, poet and writer. The hope for Barnwell's success was tragically ended when he drank himself to death.     This book is as fascinating as the books the Bronte sisters wrote. It's well written, dramatic, informative and a good read.

With or Without Violence Mysteries available at your local libraries by Jean Hallford Jones Published Sept. 29, 2005    Everybody loves a mystery, but not everyone loves the same kind of story. There are extreme differences in the mysteries by Alexander McCall Smith and Walter Mosley. It is possible to read only the one that suits your taste or to enjoy both if you are an eclectic reader.     Mary Butler from the Lakehills Library recommends the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series by Smith if you are looking for a non-violent detective story. The books, which have taken on a cult following and are being developed into a television series, are available in Bandera's Kronkosky Library and other nearby libraries.     The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, located in Botswana, is owned and operated by Mma Precious Ramotswe, a "large, well built lady," who solves her cases with intuition and common sense, and with the help of her trusty secretary. Her challenges are to locate missing husbands, orphans and errant suitors, and to restore harmony in the village. The pace is leisurely and gentle, following Mma Ramotswe's meandering thought processes. The characters are polite in a quaint and formal way. Mma Ramotswe always addresses her fiancé by his full name, Mr. J. L. B. Matekoni, who is "a good man with a profound feeling for machinery." Smith does a good job of writing in a woman's voice. The emotions of the competent career women who people his stories resonate with humane values that sound feminine and true.     The Easy Rawlins mystery stories by Walter Mosley, on the other hand, always simmer on the edge of violence. Easy is a black man who returns to Los Angeles after fighting in WWII only to face a different kind of war at home. He hides his education and intelligence behind a facade of street talk when it suits his purpose.     The characters of Easy and his best friend from childhood, Raymond "Mouse" Alexander, are introduced in Gone Fishin.' It is not Mosley's best book, but the spiky relationship between the two friends is compelling reading. Mouse is a trigger- happy psychopath, but he is loyal to Easy, who nurtures a healthy fear of what Mouse is capable of doing. Easy also searches for missing persons, but his searches take him down dark alleys and even darker places in the soul. He makes hard compromises with the black as well as the white culture and with his own integrity.     Mosley's work seems to get better with each new novel. His newest book is "A Cinnamon Kiss," published this year. It is not difficult to spot the Easy Rawlins stories from Mosley's other works. After the first book in the series, there is always a color in the title. An example is Devil in a Blue Dress, which was made into a movie starring Denzel Washington. Don Cheadle was nominated for his best-supporting role as Mouse. It is recommended that the books be read in order if possible, since each book takes up where the last one ended. (Check the publishing dates.)     The books can be found at local libraries. Check with Julia at the Kronkosky Library for more information.

A Triumphant Struggle for Human Dignity THE HEARTSONG OF CHARGING ELK By Jean Hallford Jones Published Aug. 4, 2005 BY JAMES WELCH Doubleday $24.95 hardback, now released in paperback This book is now available at the Kronkosky Library. If you have a favorite book that you would like to have reviewed, please contact me at bccourier@sbcglobal.net    IN A LIFETIME OF READING, I know of no character in fiction who haunts the mind more than that of Charging Elk. He is a 23-year-old Oglala Sioux --not a reservation Indian, but an untamed hostile-- a star in Buffalo Bill's Wild West show in turn-of-the-century France.     When Charging Elk injures himself in one of his daring feats, he winds up ill, abandoned, and in jail -- a victim of the French bureaucracy in Marseille. He prepares to depart this painful life by singing his death song, but his heart is revived by the smell of roast chicken. Each time his desperate circumstances drive him toward despair, his strong heart reaches for any thin thread of hope.     Charging Elk has a vivid inner life, filled with poignant memories of his boyhood on the plains, interwoven with his often humorous explanations of the confusion around him. But he maintains his identity as an Indian while struggling to regain his dignity as a human being.     In graceful language, James Welch evokes the smells, the sounds and sights of Marseille: the smell of the sea and the fish market. the clopping of hooves on cobblestones, the fog, the rain, the cold or heat as the seasons change. But it is the profound loneliness of Charging Elk's struggle that moves us. His needs are universal: justice, work, acceptance, familiar food, a pleasing appearance, a smile from a pretty girl. One of the most telling scenes in the book is when Charging Elk presses his nose against the side of a horse in order to inhale the scent of home. The beauty of great writing is in the small details.     The novel has minor flaws in a few lapses from the diction of the narrative. For example, Welch chooses the coarsest English word for penis instead of the standard or the Lakota word. I guess this is the flaw woven into the Indian blanket because only the Great Spirit is perfect.     Says of Charging Elk, " -- I have read it three times already and plan to carry it around like a -- zealous evangelist, forcing the book into the hands of strangers." So now I'm telling you about it and feeling the urge to read it again. And again.