The Last Comanche Chief: The Life and Times of Quanah Parker

In 1875, Quanah Parker surrendered his people to the U.S. Army at Fort Sill, Okla.; thereafter, he would lead them on the ``white man's road.'' Son of a Comanche chief and a white woman, he had led war parties through north Texas for 12 years. Neeley, a freelance writer, traces his life from youth to warrior chief to respected cattleman. He describes the last wars between the Comanches and settlers, the peyote ritual and pressures on Native Americans to conform to white society. Parker was a realist; when he saw that opening the reservation to settlement was inevitable, he yielded. Neeley gives a detailed account for the legal battles that culminated in the Oklahoma land rush. This is a fine portrait of the legendary chief and an illuminating glimpse into the history of the American West. (July)