Black Hills

A Novel

De: Dan Simmons

Narrado por: Erik Davies, Michael McConnohie

When Paha Sapa, a young Sioux warrior, "counts coup" on General George Armstrong Custer as Custer lies dying on the battlefield at the Little Bighorn, the legendary general's ghost enters him - and his voice will speak to him for the rest of his event-filled life.

Seamlessly weaving together the stories of Paha Sapa, Custer, and the American West, Dan Simmons depicts a tumultuous time in the history of both Native and white Americans. Haunted by Custer's ghost, and also by his ability to see into the memories and futures of legendary men like Sioux war-chief Crazy Horse, Paha Sapa's long life is driven by a dramatic vision he experienced as a boy in his people's sacred Black Hills. In August of 1936, a dynamite worker on the massive Mount Rushmore project, Paha Sapa plans to silence his ghost forever and reclaim his people's legacy-on the very day FDR comes to Mount Rushmore to dedicate the face.

A Great Tale from a truly talented writer

I do not know why I downloaded Black Hills. But I am truly glad that I took the time to check out the book. It's a totally emcompassing work of historical fiction. The author has taken great pains to study the culture of the Lacota Sioux -- in particular, Paha Sapa -- who we meet when he is a child of 11. Paha Sapa, whose name means Black Hills in Lacota, takes a minor part in "The Rubbing Out of Long Hair." He becomes haunted with the ghost of General Custer and carries that hostile spirit in his mind until he grows old.
Paha Sapa's journey follows the history of the Sioux nation. His entire tribe is murdered by the U.S. Army. He has to learn to live in the world of the people he calls "waichu". These are the white men, who the indians refer to as "fat takers".
As the plot develops, we learn much about Sioux language and culture. Paha Sapa joins Buffolo Bill's Wild West Show. He becomes a demolition expert and works on the monument at Mount Rushmore. Of course, he becomes a husband and father. My only regret is that Mr Simmons left out many details in the courtship of Paha Sapa and his wife, Rain.
If you love a great story, you will not be disappointed it Black Hills.

Worth a listen, not among my favorite Simmons book

I generally enjoy Dan Simmons books, with "Carrion Comfort" being among one of my all time favorites.

This book is one of Simmons' recent trend for historical fiction, such as "Everest" or "the Terror." For myself, I am not as much of a fan of his historical books (I almost gave up on Simmons after reading "The Crook Factory") but I did find Black Hills enjoyable and worth the listen, It still suffers from some of the flaws of some of the other Simmons historical fiction, such as his tendency to bring in famous historical figures into the books as if to say, "see how well I researched this topic." I also found the ending to be a little too 'deus ex machina.'

Worth a listen.

Lots of History & Detail

Good Story, Excellent narrator. Libby character 1st showing is annoying. Gets better. Killer Historically !

Good Story

I like Dan Simmons' historical fiction stories, like Drood and The Terror, and this one did not disappoint, or at least not much. It did feel like it was dragging at times, but I felt the same about Drood and The Terror. I thought the performance was good, and if the pronunciation of the Sioux words was incorrect, I'll never know, but it sounded authentic to me.

Great story wrapped around fascinating history.

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes. I have, because it's an especially interesting story.

Who was your favorite character and why?

The main character, Black Hills, or Paha Sapa. He is a common man, with uncommon powers, that he himself doesn't entirely understand. Faced with a life full of joy and hellacious hardships, he has a faith that he follows to the end.

My Favorite Book…

…of all time. The narration is flawless and Mr’s Davies and McConnahie speak the Lakota language so beautifully. This is my third reading and I rarely read a book more than once. It is also my first Dan Simmons book. I am completely amazed and entertained. Listen and it will move your heart and simulate your soul.

Wow!

I totally fell in love with this story. I am from the Black Hills and was completely impressed by significant history that I didn’t even think about or was aware of. The physical descriptions took me to many places that I visit often or have seen. I’ve studied the 7th cav and the battlefield. I have guided officers in training across and by those monuments. I think my next trip there will be much different for me. I went to high school with Bear Butte outside our doors and looked at the mountain daily. I loved this book!

Mega-treat for locals

Definitely one of my favorite Simmons books. About a native named Paha Sapa that absorbs peoples' life stories by touch and somehow gets the ghost of General Custer tapped in his mind with him.

An amazing journey

This was a truly wonderful story about the Lakota indians of the Black Hills. It's told in flash-forwards and flash-backs of an 11 year old indian boy named Paha Sapa. It left me with a sadness for the losses of the "natural free human beings" who lived near the Black Hills, known by them as "the Six Grandfathers". It is one of the best books that I've read in a while.

Timeline gimmick annoying

Any additional comments?

When I listened to this author's Hyperion trilogy, I got the 2nd and 3rd books out of sequence (It's sometimes hard to figure out which book comes next in Audible's offerings), which was annoying but my fault.

This story is like that. The timeline is mangled. This gimmick that the author uses is distracting at best, and adds nothing to the story. At least with Hyperion, the story was about timeline perturbation. On the positive side, you could listen to the chapters at random and as long as you listened to all, the experience would be the same as going from beginning to end.