An American Betrayal:Cherokee Patriots and the Trail of Tears

An American Betrayal: Cherokee Patriots and the Trail of Tears, by Daniel Blake Smith.
Hardcover: 336 pages
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.;(November 8, 2011)
ISBN-10: 0805089551

 

“The story of the Cherokee Nation is a study in suffering, displacement, and the determination of a people to carry on despite brutal government policies that culminated in the ‘Trail of Tears,' President Andrew Jackson's 1834 policy of ‘removal' that saw nearly 4,000 of the 16,000 Cherokees die on their forced migration from North Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, and Alabama to the Oklahoma Territory. Smith opens his thoughtful, concise and detailed study of this brutal chapter in the age of Jackson with a stirring account of the assassination of three Cherokee leaders--Elias Boudinot, Major Ridge, and his son, John Ridge--by Cherokee political rivals…The personalities, political realities, and murderous resentments that stemmed from that treaty make for engrossing reading and a vivid evocation of how the Cherokees' options dwindled until no promising choices for this strong and cohesive people remained.” ―PW
“Is a patriot's duty to demand the absolute rights of his or her people to the end? Or is it more heroic to negotiate the best possible terms when faced with an inevitable defeat? This troubling question hangs heavy over Daniel Blake Smith's intriguing An American Betrayal, a detailed history of the Trail of Tears, the brutal forced relocation of the Cherokee people from their ancestral homeland in the southeast to the western territory that is now Oklahoma.” ―Shelf Awareness
“A vivid new history of the 19th-century Cherokee removal and the Trail of Tears. . . . The difference between Smith's account and other similar histories is the emphasis on infighting within the Cherokee leadership, who faced a difficult choice: Should they fight the forced removal by facing massive armies assembled by the American government, or negotiate the best possible terms while relocating peaceably? Neither answer was obviously correct, giving the narrative a tension that Smith develops skillfully. Cherokee leaders such as John Ross, Elias Boudinot, John Ridge and Major Ridge come alive on the page. Numerous little-known Caucasians also emerge as brave defenders of Cherokee humanitarian and land rights. . . . Well-written, well-researched.” ―Kirkus

Yet another book about Native Americans and their treatment by the Europeans that felt the land and all in should be theirs, and that the Natives should be extinguished or pushed aside.

Isn't it strange how so many of us, today, say things like, "why do I have to dial 1 for English! This is America!"... think about it.  How many, that came to America learned the NATIVE LANGUAGE?.. not many.

I don't have a great memory for what I learned in school about how the Native Americans were treated.. or why.  I am making up for it now.  But no matter what I learn, I constantly tell myself, "this is history, and we can't change history." But, I also think... I thought we all were supposed to LEARN from history and not repeat it, and make it better.  Smh. That's another thing I've learned.. very few have learned from it.. and many things never seem to change.

Amazon had good reviews of what the book is about, so I will just leave everyone with a small piece from the book....

"May 17th, 1836, the Senate approved the treaty of New Echota by 1 vote more than the 2/3rds majority required.  A week later, Jackson signed it into law. Under the terms of the Treaty of New Echota, the Cherokee Nation , by May 1838, had to give up it's lands in Alabama, Georga, North Carolina and Tennessee and leave for present-day Oklahoma. The Cherokee's had 2 yrs. to leave."

All because the Europeans wanted what the Cherokee Indians had.  Their land. During the actual Trail of Tears thousands of Cherokee died.

Britt-Marie Was Here

Britt-Marie Was Here by Fredrik Backman.
Publisher: Sceptre (1805)
ASIN: B01N1ETC6C


The New York Times bestselling author of A Man Called Ove and My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry “returns with this heartwarming story about a woman rediscovering herself after a personal crisis…fans of Backman will find another winner in these pages” (Publishers Weekly).
Britt-Marie can’t stand mess. A disorganized cutlery drawer ranks high on her list of unforgivable sins. She is not one to judge others—no matter how ill-mannered, unkempt, or morally suspect they might be. It’s just that sometimes people interpret her helpful suggestions as criticisms, which is certainly not her intention.
But hidden inside the socially awkward, fussy busybody is a woman who has more imagination, bigger dreams, and a warmer heart that anyone around her realizes.
When Britt-Marie walks out on her cheating husband and has to fend for herself in the miserable backwater town of Borg—of which the kindest thing one can say is that it has a road going through it—she finds work as the caretaker of a soon-to-be demolished recreation center. The fastidious Britt-Marie soon finds herself being drawn into the daily doings of her fellow citizens, an odd assortment of miscreants, drunkards, layabouts. Most alarming of all, she’s given the impossible task of leading the supremely untalented children’s soccer team to victory. In this small town of misfits, can Britt-Marie find a place where she truly belongs?
Funny and moving, sweet and inspiring, Britt-Marie Was Here celebrates the importance of community and connection in a world that can feel isolating.

This is a follow-up to My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry.  It follows one of the characters in that book named, Britt-Marie.
Once again this is not my normal reading material, but I found I enjoyed both of the books very much, and kept wanting to pick it up .  To anyone who read the first book (and it actually isn't a "series") and enjoyed it.. you will wind up liking this book on Britt-Marie.
I will say, for my own particular taste, and although I liked the ending, there are more things I would have liked seen happen for the ending. But everyone will have their own feelings about that.
Read these books, even if they aren't what you generally read.  They are fast reading and very much will hit your heart.

The Betrayal of Trust

The Betrayal of Trust by Susan Hill.

Paperback: 368 pages
Publisher: The Overlook Press;(October 30, 2012)
ISBN-10: 1468300652



Amazon:

The Betrayal of Trust. The English town of Lafferton is ravaged by flash floods. A shallow grave is exposed; the remains of missing teenager Harriet Lowther have been uncovered. Harriet was the daughter of a prominent local businessman, and her death twenty years before had led to her mother’s suicide.
Cold cases are always tough, and in this mystery in the enduringly popular series, Chief Superintendent Simon Serrailler must confront his most grisly, dangerous, and complex case yet. Susan Hill’s understanding of the human heart, her brilliance when evoking characters, and her tremendous powers of storytelling come into full force in The Betrayal of Trust.

 

Pretty good read.  Nice (very nice) short (very short), chapters!  Short chapters always make me read "just a little more" because I know I can end when a new chapter begins instead of in the middle of a chapter.

Susan Hill, is of course, most noted for The Woman in Black. (A Daniel Radcliff movie)

I have found out that The Betrayal of Trust is  just one of a number of books she has written using Chief Superintendent Simon Serrailler.  I may read another if I can come across one that is in the Thrift Shops. (Too many books here that are unread!).

This is a Cold Crime Mystery.  Very well written.  She introduces other people who seem to have no connection at all, and it seems she is telling more than one story.. but of course, she is not.

A storm uproots a tree.. along with some old bones.  (this is where you hear creepy music).. Upon  working the scene they come across more bones to a second person. Hmmm. Two dead bodies... not good.  It winds up being a 16 year old "missing person".  And it builds from there.... you will have to read it if you want to know the whole mystery!