An Indian Elder's Journey through a Land of Ghosts and Shadows

Read Neither Wolf Nor Dog first and follow with this. Both move wonderfully. Great storylines that draw you right in .... you will laugh, cry, hurt and most of all learn and hopefully grow. I finished this in a couple of days and handed it on to my husband who is almost finished. Makes me sad to finish, but both you can pick up and reread.

Over this last Christmas vacation, I found Nerburn's book, Neither Dog nor Wolf in a used bookstore. My friend recommended the companion book, A Wolf at Twilight and I was just as moved as I was from the first book.
I found myself squirming in my chair as I read page after page of the abuse our First People suffered at the hands of the Catholic Church in the name of Christianity. At first I was uncomfortable, but as my friend and I discussed the book together, I have become angry at the hierarchy of the Church, the US Government and our educational system. I am a teacher in a local juvenile hall, and I know that the young men I deal with on a daily basis do not have this information in the curriculum they read to graduate from high school.
I think that Kent Nerburn has started me on a journey of which I will walk for a long time. I intend to pass his books on to others and speak up about what he has written to everyone I meet. My life has been changed through his work...

This second book about an old Indian named Dan went deeper than the first. I wasn't expecting the depth of this book or the truths that came out in it. It opened my eyes and my heart. I cried more than once. The ending was perfect. This book will forever be on my bookshelf so I can read it again and again.

"The Wolf at Twilight", by Kent Nerburn

The Bad. The Lakota protagonists, "Dan", et al, are profuse exhibitors of the racial bigotry, hatred, self-serving hypocrisy, and contradiction that has long been typical of the latterday indigenous Americans and their descendants. The first 222 pages (out of 346) are largely a revisitation to the tired old Great White Guilt Trip. In fact, it seems at times that the author's goal was to rewrite "Uncle Tom's Cabin" starring indigenous people rather than Africans. I think that to be a huge disservice to indigenous cultures. There are so many positive things within those cultures that such an overwhelming display of negative seems inexcusable, to me.

The Good. The story-line is quite engaging and Nerburn does a masterful job with it. His understanding of indigenous cultures and spirituality, and his ability to convey them are obviously very solid. Best of all (in my opinion) is his very abundant skill with Imagery. That alone almost makes the book worth reading. The craftsmanship of Nerburn's Imagery is, in fact, so good that a serious student of writing would do well to study it.

The Amusing. "Dan" airs his complaints about how he and other Indian children were treated and taught at the Catholic "boarding schools" he attended. But he apparently believed it was only the "Indian kids" who were treated that way and he, of course, feels appropriately sorry and indignant over that racial persecution. I had to chuckle because this white boy attended a parochial elementary school 50 years after Dan" did and the treatment wasn't a whole lot different than what he went through. It was still primarily all guilt, coercion, and punishment.

An indepth view of this writer's experience with an old Native American Sioux who opens his life so we can understand his experience. This writer is no Carlos Castenada who 'magicked up' Don Juan. This is authentic voice and it reaches straight into your heart.

In reading the Wolf at Twilight I was completely taken aback by the accuracy in which Kent Nerburn lovingly depicted life on "the rez" and all that that entails. The interaction between Indian and non Indian, the everyday struggles, and the spirituality came alive. I could not put it down. I was transported back in time to a time in my own life that I spent there. Pine Ridge, Wounded Knee and it's people are very dear to me. Part of my heart is still there and I felt every emotion entwined throughout the words. Never, In my opinion, has the emotional struggle between being from the white world and trying to get in touch with the heart of the Indian people been so honestly conveyed in the written word. He tells it exactly as it is. It is eloquently written to take the reader on a journey to a world most people never get to see. An experience which obviously changed Kent Nerburn's life forever and it shows in this book. Each and every character simply came alive off the pages as images in front of my eyes. They became as old friends that I couldn't wait to see again. The Native teachings he has incorporated into this book, if taken into your heart and mind, will change your life. So breathe it in. The Wolf at Twilight is not a book it's an experience, a journey that I recommend everyone should take. Blessings to Kent Nerburn for putting pen to page so honestly, lovingly, and accurately. May the Creator richly bless him.

I just finished The Wolf at Twilight. I read Neither Wolf Nor Dog last year. My hope for this trilogy is that it will be recognized as the American Masterpiece that it is. The story of the Native people after the attempted destruction of the culture had been told as well as anybody will ever tell it. It's beautiful and achingly tragic, yet through it all the reader sees a people who continue on the path that their creator laid before them. When you compare these books to the greats like The Great Gatsby, the books easily pass the test.

This book is a continuation of the fantastic story of Neither Wolf Nor Dog. Nerburn does a masterful job of presenting the wisdom of a Native American elder and the attrocities endured from the white man. Buy it and read it. It will change you.

My sister bought Wolf at Twilight through a book club. I borrowed it and read it, then could hardly wait to read Neither Wolf nor Dog! This book stands alone, but I would suggest, if possible, that you read Neither Wolf nor Dog first. The Wolf at Twilight takes the reader onto a Lakota Indian Reservation to see Dan, a Lakota Indian elder, who used an unusual way to contact the author. The request Dan made of the author was a difficult one - to find his little sister, Yellow Bird. This request took Mr. Nerburn on an interesting journey, one that keeps the reader's full attention!
Mr. Nerburn has a heart for the Indians and treats Dan with the respect due an elder. He has written about things we all need to know and in such a way that permits us to see things somewhat through the eyes of this Indian elder named Dan.
My heart breaks for the pain I feel for all Native American Indians for the way they were treated, the loss of their homelands, the loss of so many of their people, the loss of their way of life, and for the promises and treaties made, then broken, by the U.S. Government.
Kudos to Mr. Nerburn for this soul touching book! I absolutely love it!!!

I didn't know about the "boarding schools" offered/required of the American Indians, but Kent Nerburn certainly brought the whole time period to light and I wasn't happy with what we did and continue to do to these Natives in our/their country. What marvelous, simlple logic the Native Americans lived by. It brings us to shame.

This was an educating read.

Kent Nerburn continues the saga of Dan the Lakota elder we met in his first book "Neither Wolf nor Dog". Nerburn earned the trust of Dan in telling his story. It is easy to see why. The author pulls no punches. He is honest and straight forward even when it might put him in a less than favorable light.

We are given a rare look into the Native American experience at the hands of the white man, past and present. Neither are pretty and reflect more than poorly on this nation and it's treatment of Native people. This is not history book stuff. This is real human experience of a person who lived through and experienced events you won't necessarily find in books.

The Wolf at Twilight has Dan searching for closure on the fate of his sister Yellow Bird. Both children were caught in the heinous experience of the Indian boarding school. Children were taken from their families, as good as imprisoned in these schools in the attempt to "make them white" and disconnect them from their native roots. It is in one of these schools that Dan lost his sister. He's entrusted the author to help him on his quest to find out what happened to her some eighty years later. It's a heart breaking, powerful journey.

We meet amazing characters along the way. Nerburn does an excellent job of making them human, not caricatures. He has a unique ability to capture the essence that makes the person an individual.

I learned much in the reading of this book. As a nation we made a conscious effort to right the wrongs of slavery for example, but it seems done little for the Native people. I have wondered about this. Dan gave me an answer, but you'll have to read the book to find it out.

Neither Wolf nor Dog or the Wolf at Twilight are easy books to read if you have any sense of justice. They will break your heart, but in doing so will open a path to greater understanding and with that respect for Native people. I'm grateful to have found these books and for the experience of learning about native life and culture from an Elder.