Bücher veröffentlicht von Sunstone Press

Arsène, the young son of the governor of French Louisiana, disappears in a blizzard on a trading trip in Comanche territory in 1789. For seven years, Jean-Pierre, the boy's tutor and guardian at the time of his disappearance, searches for him on trading trips into comanchería. At last he finds him, only to discover that he has become a Comanche warrior now known as Amabate (The One Without A Head). Amabate returns to Fort St. Jean Baptiste de Natchitoches, Louisiana Territory, for a reunion with his father, but cannot be convinced to stay. "I am Comanche!" he exclaims. Over the years, Amabate makes unannounced visits to his father's home, sometimes with Comanche friends and relations, always painted and dressed as a warrior. Meanwhile, Amabate has joined a small band of "wolves," braves who pledge never to back away from a battle as they roam the plains and ranges west into the mountains of New Mexico. Later he takes three wives and eventually he becomes White-Bear, a respected Comanche chieftain. As an elderly man, Jean-Pierre tells the story of Arsène and his two worlds in a colorful combination of French, Comanche, Spanish, and English. He reflects on the verities of human relationships, his love for Arsène and for Arsène's father, for the Comanche girl who was for a time Jean-Pierre's wife, for his French wife, and for his Comanche "brothers." Set in an authentic historical framework, the narrative explores the mores of two distinct cultures between the 1780s and the 1820s. We learn about the commerce of their days: stolen and traded ponies, war parties, battles with the Osage, love trysts, acts of bravery and revenge, prescient leaders, and prophetic dreams. The French Comanche is grounded in the dramatic sweep of history. The traders' lives are affected by the French and Indian Wars, the American and French revolutions, Napoleon Bonaparte's annexation of La Louisiane, and the Louisiana Purchase by the United States. The Comanches, ranging outside of "civilization," are vulnerable to weather, illness, trade, enemy raids, and, as White-Bear foretells toward the end, the influx of American settlers.

One of the oldest Native American settlements in the United States is the Taos Pueblo in New Mexico. After the Mexican War ended in 1848 there was increased interest in the Taos Indians who were now part of the new Territory under American rule. Anthropologists and historians came to the area to study and when possible to record what they heard and saw. The Taos Indians were, however, often reluctant to share information with strangers. They wanted to be able to maintain their traditional way of life. Some people that they knew and trusted were welcome to hear the stories of their history and culture. Blanche Grant, who made her home in Taos, was one of those friends they knew that would tell the true stories. She also reminded them that the written word would be a source of information for their descendants. While the language and expressions that were used by Grant might not fall well upon the ears of the present reader, her account is an important historical document and an accurate telling things as they were when she wrote this book in 1925.

Bird Conjuring: Good omen, like a sudden appearance of birds, or just an inordinate urge to ascend.The ancients knew words to be magic vehicles that when spoken or, better yet, sung with intention and intensity, could amend or alter trends and events. The power of the word. Seeking origins and consonances led to shaman songs and incantations, charms and spells where words are tools of transformation and healing. There are resonances too with gnomic verses and riddles, aphorisms and adages. The black soil of the primordial. Drawn by an insistent urge toward utterance, David Cloutier's poems emerge, unspooling meaning within meaning, image on image, one with its sonic architecture. The aural qualities of words become an arena, or better, playground. He says, "Poems are like dust, evidence of some decades' walking." Chronologically arranged (mostly), Bird Conjuring has five sections: Another Time, Tracks of the Dead, Other Lights, Pinnacles and Others, and Nightscripts, each with a focus or concern. There are several long poem sequences, opening horizons. Whatever else, this poetry tracks an inner direction along another axis of meaning. Bird Conjuring evokes, invokes and lays a humble claim to the legacy of orphic utterance: poem-making (poesis, to make).

Adam Young, a builder and general contractor from Albuquerque, is addicted to opioids and alcohol. His marriage to Maria falls apart one day when he is the only one present to the SIDS death of their daughter, Ava. Although ruled a "e;crib death"e; by the medical examiner, Maria believes Adam was impaired and could have done more to save Ava. Will their marriage end? One Saturday, when Maria is away with her friend, Adam takes his seven-year-old son Lucas on an errand and runs his truck off the road, nearly killing them both. He is cited for DUI and goes with Lucas to the ER. They meet Dr. John Warnock, who treats Lucas's broken arm and talks with Adam about his DUI, his opiate addiction to prescription pain pills, and his alcoholism. Adam later goes to Dr. Warnock's office, and there, in the waiting room, he meets Lola Jenkins, a drug representative who is also a professional escort, cocaine addict, and part of a blackmailing ring. She lures Adam, and other doctors, into sexual escapades that are photographed for extortion by a gang also involved in child trafficking. While in detox, at the urging of Dr. Warnock, his friend Ryan takes advantage of Maria's grief and sleeps over at her house a couple of nights-until Maria regains her senses. When moving out of Ryan's apartment, where he was staying, Adam finds a pair of Maria's blue panties in Ryan's laundry, abruptly ending their friendship. Were her panties a trophy? There is hope for Adam's recovery, but the battle is not over. Pitfalls and twists keep his addiction on the edge of his search for a new life. Includes Readers Guide.