Empire of the Summer Moon: Quanah Parker and the Rise and Fall of the Comanches, the Most Powerful Indian Tribe in American History

S.C. Gwynne writes history with an intensity that rivals the searing summer sun of the Great Plains in his riveting nonfiction work, Empire of the Summer Moon: Quanah Parker and the Rise and Fall of the Comanches, the Most Powerful Indian Tribe in American History.

Within the pages of Empire of the Summer Moon you’ll find not only vivid descriptions of the Comanche nation, “the most powerful Indian tribe in American history,” but also compelling portraits of pioneer woman Cynthia Ann Parker and her son, Quanah, “last and greatest chief of the Comanches.” The combination is powerful and heart-rending.

The sweeping narrative puts readers smack in the midst of the forty-year battle between the Comanches and white settlers for control of the American West. You can almost hear the whinnying horses. Smell the smoke. Shiver in the grip of an icy “blue norther.” Or drop from exhaustion after riding countless miles on horseback.

Drawn from “a large number of firsthand accounts from the era” and many other sources, the narrative is meticulously researched and painstakingly thorough. The book includes 20+ pages of Notes and an extensive Bibliography. The writing style is crisp and deliberate.

If you're looking for a quick, light read or something frothy and filmy of the coffee table variety, keep looking. Because The Empire of the Summer Moon isn't it.This book has substance. Lots of it. It's not exactly a page-turner. Some readers may find the going a little slow. But patient readers will be rewarded with an exceptional read.

Empire of the Summer Moon is one of the most fascinating and prodigious accounts of the period I’ve ever read. It is also one of the most balanced. Indeed, Empire of the Summer Moon may be destined to become the gold standard in historical non-fiction. Two thumbs up!