Custer's Last Battle

Gr 4-8–In this stunning new edition of Goble’s Red Hawk’s Account of Custer’s Last Battle (Univ. of Nebraska, 1969), the author has modified the text to reflect the changing opinions of the battle and the benefit of new research. Punctuated by italicized explanations, Red Hawk’s account of his encounter with General Custer and his white soldiers draws readers in and keeps a hold on them throughout the entire battle. Joe Medicine Crow’s compelling foreword gives a strong Indian perspective and lends accuracy to the many versions of the events of that day. New digitized illustrations, done in the ledger-book style that Goble has beautifully mastered, add brilliant color and detail to the compelling and riveting tale. While a work of fiction, Red Hawk’s narrative is based on the compilation of many witnesses to the battle and is told in an honest and direct voice. A refreshing update that retains its original passion and bravery.

Custer’s Last Battle is a gorgeously illustrated, fictionalized yet well-researched account of the Battle of the Little Bighorn told from the point of view of a fifteen-year-old Ogala Sioux warrior. Though brief, each of the forty-four pages is enlivened by beautifully rendered, full-color ledger-book art, with drawings presented in a relatively bloodless manner suitable for the youthful audience at which it is aimed.… First published more than forty years ago, this new version by Wisdom Tales includes not only revised and updated text but also a brighter, more brilliant remastering of the illustrations.… Although aimed at a young market, and described by the publisher as suitable for children as young as six, Custer’s Last Battle is a must for collectors or interested readers of books.

[It is] beautifully illustrated and written with verve and authenticity.... The pictures are among the best I've seen in any children's history, and the realities conveyed to the young readers are the closest to the final layer of truth that one can hope for.

From the picture map on the title page to the lists of sources and suggested readings, an unusual volume that is at once handsome, stirring, and historically anchored (and thus worth the trouble of being unusual).

Goble writes with respect and authenticity.