Undying West: A Chronicle of Montana's Camas Prairie

by Carlene Cross

The author combines the stories of her youth with historical fact to create rich and diverse narratives, telling the story of the people who have shaped the land. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1555914322
• ISBN13: 9781555914325
• Release Date: September 1999
• Publisher: Chicago Review Press - Fulcrum
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Great reading and reasonable solutions

After my daughter gave me this book, I plowed through the first few pages and decided this was going to be a hard book to plow through. However, it quickly evolved into a facinating picture of the country, the people. Especially interesting was the Indian story, both past and present she was so skillful in portraying. Her presentation of environmental concerns and solutions should be read by everyone. Long and short of my experience with this book, was I loved it.

Outstanding history of the Flathead Indian Reservation

Carlene Cross is an extremely gracefull writer. The way she juxtaposed her "coming of age" with a short course in Reservation history was most interesting. As a long time resident of the Flathead Indian Reservation and a local history buff, The Unique West brought many new facts to my attention and the excellent bibliography made it quite convenient to investigate them further.The Historical Society of the Flathead Indian Reservation and the Montana Heritage Project are seriously considering using Carlene's book as the primary resource for for developing a local history course for use in Reservation high schools.We want to encourage our kids', both Indian and white, interest in their heritage and this is the most engaging expostion of local history we have found.If you want an interesting introduction to the history of the Flathead Reservation, including what it was like to grow up here in the last 30 years, there is no better book than this.

What a surprise!

This unpretentious work comes loaded with surprises as the author evokes the fascinating Camas Prairie of her childhood. This poetic book is as Montana as bear grass and marmots. What is it about the Big Sky country that produces so many fine authors -- Richard Ford, Ivan Doig, Jim Harrison, Thomas McGuane, and now, Carlene Cross? I also appreciated the pictures and line sketches. For anyone with a feel for the great open spaces of the west, this book has it all.

A First Rate History

The wonder of this book is its scope no less than its urgency and great heart. Carlene Cross, an impeccable scholar, has preserved small gems of regional detail from Montana's Camas Prairie-- its botany, geology and yarns-- and woven them seamlessly into the larger story of the West.

Beautifully written historical narrative

Cross manages to give the reader a sensual yet realistic view of Montana and it's history. Part childhood memories and mature examination of the history of this complex area she expertly pulls together the different cultures and finds common ground that each distinct group needs to embrace to protect the beauty and uniqueness of Montana.