The White Man's Road

by Benjamin Capps, James Ward Lee (Afterword)

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Genres: Fiction

328 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1969

About the author

Benjamin Capps was an award-winning novelist and chronicler of western life. Among his works are The Trail to Ogallala, The White Man's Road, The Warren Wagontrain Raid, Sam Chance, and The Indians and The Great Chiefs (Time-Life Old West Series).

Capps was also the author of numerous published short stories, articles, essays, and book reviews. In 1991 he won the Western Writers of America Spur Award for one of his short stories, "Cimarron, The Killer." He wrote on many subjects and did not consider himself only a western writer, even though his greatest successes were western novels.

However, he was primarily interested in the past and its influence on us today. Much of his writing's appeal lies in his knowledge of the Old West's folklore. According to Capps, his writing's aim was to be authentic and "to probe the human nature and human motives" involved in his stories. His works were painstakingly researched for historical accuracy and generally explored lesser known facets of the American frontier. The Western Literature Association honored Capps with the Distinguished Achievement Award in October 1986.

Reviews

[Nathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an excellent book that shows the difficulties in treading a line between two separate worlds. The main character, Joe, is a half-white, half-Comanche young man who is coming of age, and coming to terms with the world he lives in. Although the specific years are not given, he is living on an Indian Reservation in the late 19th century and trying to figure out what it means to be an Indian, white man, and human being in general. There is no guidance anymore for the young men in his tribe, and they struggle to find meaning in their lives. We often hear of the travesties associated with the moving of Native American tribes to reservations, massacres, forced removal, and such. I would highly recommend this book to get a good glimpse into what it was like for those who avoided the massacres. Even if they were living in relative peace, owning land, farming, being sedentary, etc. were not things many Native Americans did before white settlers intruded upon their lands, therefore, living that kind of life was difficult, and something many could not adjust to. That way of life had no meaning for them.

I have to say, being married to someone who is part Native and part white made this book even more interesting!

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

03/14/2005 Noble Library Book Discussion: Let's Talk About It, Oklahoma
Theme: The Oklahoma Experience: Looking for Home Series
Guest Scholar: Trisha Yarbrough from East Central Univ. in Ada, OK

[Danielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read when participating in the reading and discussion program Let's Talk About It Oklahoma (LTAIO)The Oklahoma Experience: Looking for Home.