Synopses & Reviews
By 1300 AD, the Sky Hand people had crushed and enslaved the Albaamaha people and built their high-walled capital, Split Sky City, to dominate towns up and down the Black Warrior River. But a violent wind is brewing that may topple the city's mighty walls. Great armies are on the march, and a cunning new leader, Smoke Shield, has risen. He will lead the Sky Hand people either to stunning triumph or to bloody doom. Old White, Trader, and the mystical Two Petals are journeying across the Choctaw lands straight into the chaos. Old White, the Seeker, must play a delicate game of espionage. For Trader the slightest indiscretion--let alone the temptation of forbidden love--could lead to disaster. Two Petals, the Contrary, faces the toughest choice of all : She must betray herself and her friends to Smoke Shield or live forever in the backward grip of madness. And Spirit Power has laid a far deadlier trap for them in the rainbow colors just beneath the rolling surface of the Black Warrior River. A novel of desperate political intrigue and spiritual power, People of the Thunder once again demonstrates the Gears' mastery of American prehistory. Explore the ancestral heritage of the Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek and Yuchi peoples as the majesty and genius of the vanished Mississippian mound builders' civilization comes to life.
Review
Praise for People of the Thunder:
“The Gears, husband-and-wife archaeologists turned best-selling authors, continue their superbly research and rendered North Americas Forgotten Past series. This novel is as good a place as any of its predecessors to jump in and begin enjoying the authors talents.”—Booklist
“Set in the 1300s largely in what is now Alabama and Mississippi, this complex novel tracks three wanderers quest to create peace in violent times. Blended with the carefully drawn suspense of court intrigues, colorful characters and sharp plot twists, this is a terrific tale.”—Publishers Weekly
Review
"A timely saga of environmental catastrophe. Drawing on their backgrounds in archaeology, the Gears vividly re-create Paleolithic America in this enchanting and instructive novel." --Publisher's Weekly on People of the Nightland "One of the best novels in the whole series. The Gears have consistently captured early Native American life with precision, detail, and narrative excitement, but in People of the Moon they reveal their skills to even sharper effect." --Booklist
Synopsis
The remarkable conclusion to the saga that began in People of the Weeping Eye.
Synopsis
The remarkable conclusion to the saga that began in People of the Weeping Eye.
Synopsis
By 1300 AD, the Sky Hand people had crushed and enslaved the Albaamaha people and built their high-walled capital, Split Sky City, to dominate towns up and down the Black Warrior River. But a violent wind is brewing that may topple the city's mighty walls. Great armies are on the march, and a cunning new leader, Smoke Shield, has risen. He will lead the Sky Hand people either to stunning triumph or to bloody doom. Old White, Trader, and the mystical Two Petals are journeying across the Choctaw lands straight into the chaos. Old White, the Seeker, must play a delicate game of espionage. For Trader the slightest indiscretion--let alone the temptation of forbidden love--could lead to disaster. Two Petals, the Contrary, faces the toughest choice of all : She must betray herself and her friends to Smoke Shield or live forever in the backward grip of madness. And Spirit Power has laid a far deadlier trap for them in the rainbow colors just beneath the rolling surface of the Black Warrior River. A novel of desperate political intrigue and spiritual power, People of the Thunder once again demonstrates the Gears' mastery of American prehistory. Explore the ancestral heritage of the Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek and Yuchi peoples as the majesty and genius of the vanished Mississippian mound builders' civilization comes to life.
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About the Author
Kathleen O'Neal Gear is a former state historian and archaeologist for Wyoming, Kansas, and Nebraska for the U.S. Department of the Interior. She has twice received the federal government's Special Achievement Award for ""outstanding management"" of our nation's cultural heritage. W. Michael Gear holds a master's degree in archaeology and has worked as a professional archaeologist since 1978. He is principal investigator for Wind River Archaeological Consultants. Together they have written the North Americas Forgotten Past series (People of the Longhouse, The Dawn Country, People of the Mist, People of the Wolf, among others); and the Anasazi Mysteries series. The Gears live in Thermopolis, WY.
Reading Group Guide
Questions for Discussion
1. As the story begins, the Deer Man spirit tells Two Petals, “Mystery, temptation, destruction. Such a curious combination Power weaves.” To what mysteries, temptations and destructive acts does Deer Man refer? What events has Power wrought in the early chapters of the novel? How might Power be defined?
2. Trader tells Rainbow City leader Born-of-Sun that, “I had to face my death. The moment I made that decision, I began to understand. Things like copper, status, and glory are distractions. I am only here to serve Power.” (p. 34) How does this insight, and the plan Trader makes with Born-of-Suns support, frame the subsequent events of the novel?
3. What is the unusual status of the Albaamaha amongst the other tribes of the region? How does Amber Bead learn the fates of his Albaamo tribesman, Red Awl, and of Smoke Shields emissary, Fast Legs?
4. To rescue whom does Old White trade with War Chief Great Cougar? In what other ways does the interplay of trade and Power serve to drive the novel?
5. Compare the relationship between Old White and Two Petals with that of Paunch and Whippoorwill. What type of sisterhood do Two Petals and Whippoorwill share? How might this relationship be seen as a spiritual foil to the alliance between Heron Wing and Morning Dew?
6. Why does Heron Wing invite Morning Dew to meet with Pale Cat, Night Star and Blood Skull? What does the group conclude about the wiles of Smoke Shield? Why do they worry that no one will believe them? Do the confusion and plotting between the tribes in People of the Thunder resemble the dynamics of current events? Why are trust—and peace—so hard to achieve between peoples?
7. What is the significance of Two Petalss sexual, nonromantic relationship with Trader? How is this preparation for meeting her “husband”? How does this affect her sense of self? What other images and events in the novel hint at the man to whom Two Petals will bind herself?
8. In Chapter 18, a Spirit Being tells Flying Hawk that, “You have done everything…All that will be you have wrought to obtain the high minkos chair…In the end, it is a struggle between brothers.” How have Flying Hawks greed and guilt impacted his assessment of, actions toward, and complicity in the bad acts of Smoke Shield?
9. How are snakes perceived by the tribes of People of the Thunder and why does this reveal the particular aptness of Traders true name? In what other ways are snakes and serpents a recurring motif in the novel? What is the relationship between snakes and thunder?
10. How is Split Sky City an emblem of both prosperity and decay? Which characters, objects and images represent these elements of the city? How does the return of Old White and Trader heighten this sense of duality?
11. Compare the reactions of Trader and Flying Hawk when they realize that those they believed to be dead remain among the living. How are Heron Wing and Green Snake reunited? Are they justified in breaking Chikosi ethics to be together?
12. How do Smoke Shields war schemes parallel his childhood deceits? What happens when Bullfrog Pipe informs Smoke Shield of his brothers return? Does his dishonorable reaction make Smoke Shield more open to the advances of Two Petals—more ready to rely upon her predictions? Why or why not?
13. How does Morning Dews broken promise to guard the White Arrow war medicine hidden in Heron Wings house foreshadow a more painful betrayal on the wouldbe battlefield near the end of the novel? Does this second action fully answer Morning Dews question: “What does it take to stop a war?” (Chapter 24).
14. What happens when Green Snake confronts Smoke Shield in the Council meeting? How does Old White stop Flying Hawk from dismissing Green Snake? To what use does Green Snake finally put his hidden copper? What does Trader find when he dives after Two Petals?
15. What is the relationship between Two Petalss early observation that, should she fail in her duty to Power, “We will all die, and end up in a charnel house…” (p. 12) and Old Whites closing admonishment to trader that, “Im the Seeker, and Im not ready to be a corpse” (p. 403)? Were Two Petals and Old White ever of the ordinary world? Can Trader be seen to bridge the spiritual and earthly worlds, and does this enable him to restore the balance of Power? If so, how?
16. At the start of People of the Weeping Eye, Native American Mary Wet Bear laments contemporary scholars lack of understanding of the vibrancy of her ancient peoples world. At the close of People of the Thunder, the authors detail the status of the historical sites which inform the novel. Is there a relationship between these commentaries? Might the notion, accepted by some characters in People of the Thunder, that Split Sky City will not last forever—that peoples, cultures, places come and go—be useful to our own, twenty-first-century worldview?
17. Beyond a vivid depiction of ancient ways of life, might this novel be understood as an exploration of the relationship between self and society? Loyalty and betrayal? Duty and sacrifice? Explain your answer.