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qjbrown96's review
2.0
Crazy Horse might have been a bad ass but I think a web page summary would cover enough to get the knowledge I desired vs 300 pages of boredom.
ccmhats's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
5.0
suebrownreads's review
4.0
The writing is very good, and I loved the reader too. I would give it 5 stars, but I had some issues with the arrangement of some of the material, and the repeating of some information. It just seemed like it needed a bit more editing. Although I had read Mari Sandov's work (which is very good, and very comprehensive) this is much more reader friendly, and lovely that is is written by a Native American Lakota, and told from that point of view. I do highly recommend it!
unladylike's review
5.0
This is the kind of Lakota history/biography I was needing. Furthermore, it is an absolute pleasure to listen to the author reading it aloud (with occasional background audio cues).
megan_dayton's review
4.0
As yet Light Hair was not fully aware that their path would be his, only that as he grew older he felt more inclined to seek his father's approval and was becoming more and more curious about him. It was a subtle change that the women allowed, albeit a little sadly, because the carefree boy was beginning to leave their world. He was taking the first hesitant steps onto the path he would follow for the rest of his life. His mother and all the grandmothers had done their part by teaching him the strength he would need to travel that path. Since before anyone could remember it had been said, "A boy will learn the way of the warrior from his fathers and grandfathers after he learns courage from his mothers and grandmothers."
A wound on the outside can be watched to see that it heals well, as everyone knew. Woulds on the inside could not be seen but for the pain in the eyes.
There were many realities in life that could not be avoided, the old women reminded one another, and two most of all: heartbreak falls into every life as surely as snow falls in winter, and life moves in a circle.
The whites don't understand war. They don't understand that the power of an enemy is a way to strengthen our fighting men. They are killers. A killer does not respect something or someone he knows he can kill, or must kill. Therefore he does not measure victory by the strength of his medicine. He measures his victories by how many he has killed.
The strength of a tree, the old ones say, comes not from growing thicker in the good years when there is water, but from staying alive in the bad, dry times.
"To wear the shirts you must be men above all others," said an old man chosen to speak. "You must help others before you think of yourselves. Help the widows and those who have little to wear and to eat and have no one to help them or speak for them. Do not look down on others or see those who look down on you, and do not let anger guide your mind or your heart. Be generous, be wise, and show fortitude so that the people can follow what you do and then what you say. Above all, have courage and be the first to charge the enemy, for it is better to lie a warrior naked in death than to be wrapped up well with a h heart of water inside."
Honest self-awareness should be an ingrained characteristic in a leader.
On that December day, Crazy Horse was not aspiring to rise to leadership heights; he was simply doing his best to perform the critically important task given to him by his elders. But because he performed his task so well, from that day on the responsibility of leadership was his, whether he sought it out or not. The lesson we can ll take from this episode in Crazy Horse's life is that leadership is as much based on performance -- actions -- as it is on anything else, perhaps more. If a leader can demonstrate that something can be done, others will likely attempt to do it. Furthermore, the opportunities for leadership can come at any time, sometimes from directions and out of circumstances least expected.
Those who were jealous of him were quick to influence the old men leaders to strip him of the position of Shirt Wearer. Crazy Horse willingly gave up the shirt, but the status he had achieved circumvented the loss of influence. Many people though not totally overlooking his mistake, still regarded him as a strong leader and remained loyal to him. It was a lesson not lose on him. Never again did he put his own desires above the needs of the people. That was yet another example for others to follow.
True leadership is rarely the consequence of election, appointment, dictatorship, or inheritance. Good leadership overall is much too critical to be left to elected politicians, monarchs, managers, administrators, supervisors, and directors. Having authority does not make anyone a leader. True leadership is exercised when someone performs a necessary or critical task and accomplishes an objective, thereby setting an example. Leadership by example, then, is the truest and most effective kind. We are more likely to follow someone who has done it before he or she asks or tells us to do it. Most of us will never face the daunting task of leading men and women into combat, but we will likely have the opportunity to set an example. We may not carry titles such as president, governor, mayor, general, or even chief, but we can be leaders simply by demonstrating that effort can be made, tasks can be accomplished. Furthermore, setting an example means that one has the benefit of firsthand experience. Personally, I would rather follow someone who has been through the swamp than someone who has only a map as a guide.
Leaders are in every walk of life, waiting for the opportunity to unlock the intangible characteristics that will set them apart, if but for a moment. But having had that moment, one will always know that one can be a leader when the need or the occasions warrants. Once a leader, always a leader, because we can only be true to what we are and have done.
"When a rattlesnake crawls into your lodge, you crush it," advised an old man. "You crush it because it knows the way to your lodge."
Perhaps it was his place to harangue the whites on behalf of the people, but he had never been one to speak long or loudly. Not long ago, that was a good thing for a man of the people, but now it was a weakness in the face of the whites who seemed to think only in large numbers and loud noises.
One must also be willing to shed skepticism, put aside the arrogance of the present, and forget the ethnocentric bias that too many times obscure the truth. And then the truth will come, likely in bits and pieces, but it will come.
A wound on the outside can be watched to see that it heals well, as everyone knew. Woulds on the inside could not be seen but for the pain in the eyes.
There were many realities in life that could not be avoided, the old women reminded one another, and two most of all: heartbreak falls into every life as surely as snow falls in winter, and life moves in a circle.
The whites don't understand war. They don't understand that the power of an enemy is a way to strengthen our fighting men. They are killers. A killer does not respect something or someone he knows he can kill, or must kill. Therefore he does not measure victory by the strength of his medicine. He measures his victories by how many he has killed.
The strength of a tree, the old ones say, comes not from growing thicker in the good years when there is water, but from staying alive in the bad, dry times.
"To wear the shirts you must be men above all others," said an old man chosen to speak. "You must help others before you think of yourselves. Help the widows and those who have little to wear and to eat and have no one to help them or speak for them. Do not look down on others or see those who look down on you, and do not let anger guide your mind or your heart. Be generous, be wise, and show fortitude so that the people can follow what you do and then what you say. Above all, have courage and be the first to charge the enemy, for it is better to lie a warrior naked in death than to be wrapped up well with a h heart of water inside."
Honest self-awareness should be an ingrained characteristic in a leader.
On that December day, Crazy Horse was not aspiring to rise to leadership heights; he was simply doing his best to perform the critically important task given to him by his elders. But because he performed his task so well, from that day on the responsibility of leadership was his, whether he sought it out or not. The lesson we can ll take from this episode in Crazy Horse's life is that leadership is as much based on performance -- actions -- as it is on anything else, perhaps more. If a leader can demonstrate that something can be done, others will likely attempt to do it. Furthermore, the opportunities for leadership can come at any time, sometimes from directions and out of circumstances least expected.
Those who were jealous of him were quick to influence the old men leaders to strip him of the position of Shirt Wearer. Crazy Horse willingly gave up the shirt, but the status he had achieved circumvented the loss of influence. Many people though not totally overlooking his mistake, still regarded him as a strong leader and remained loyal to him. It was a lesson not lose on him. Never again did he put his own desires above the needs of the people. That was yet another example for others to follow.
True leadership is rarely the consequence of election, appointment, dictatorship, or inheritance. Good leadership overall is much too critical to be left to elected politicians, monarchs, managers, administrators, supervisors, and directors. Having authority does not make anyone a leader. True leadership is exercised when someone performs a necessary or critical task and accomplishes an objective, thereby setting an example. Leadership by example, then, is the truest and most effective kind. We are more likely to follow someone who has done it before he or she asks or tells us to do it. Most of us will never face the daunting task of leading men and women into combat, but we will likely have the opportunity to set an example. We may not carry titles such as president, governor, mayor, general, or even chief, but we can be leaders simply by demonstrating that effort can be made, tasks can be accomplished. Furthermore, setting an example means that one has the benefit of firsthand experience. Personally, I would rather follow someone who has been through the swamp than someone who has only a map as a guide.
Leaders are in every walk of life, waiting for the opportunity to unlock the intangible characteristics that will set them apart, if but for a moment. But having had that moment, one will always know that one can be a leader when the need or the occasions warrants. Once a leader, always a leader, because we can only be true to what we are and have done.
"When a rattlesnake crawls into your lodge, you crush it," advised an old man. "You crush it because it knows the way to your lodge."
Perhaps it was his place to harangue the whites on behalf of the people, but he had never been one to speak long or loudly. Not long ago, that was a good thing for a man of the people, but now it was a weakness in the face of the whites who seemed to think only in large numbers and loud noises.
One must also be willing to shed skepticism, put aside the arrogance of the present, and forget the ethnocentric bias that too many times obscure the truth. And then the truth will come, likely in bits and pieces, but it will come.
kierscrivener's review
3.0
I think this is a really informative biography that looks at the different elements of what made Crazy Horse the man. I enjoyed Marshall's thoughts throughout and how he contextualizes the history of his people.
I appreciate the shared look at the flawed Crazy Horse and the example of him.
"He was a man like every other, he was man like no other."
It is truly inspiring if dry in some areas.
"I will always see him as a man but there are the mist that surrounds him."
I appreciate the shared look at the flawed Crazy Horse and the example of him.
"He was a man like every other, he was man like no other."
It is truly inspiring if dry in some areas.
"I will always see him as a man but there are the mist that surrounds him."