Candy Vyvey Moulton

Middle readers (tweens and teens) will be moved by the sad but inspirational life story of Chief Joseph, a Nez Perce leader who chose to fight gross injustice with words, not weapons. When the U.S. government illegally seized his people's land and tried to force hundreds of Nez Perce onto a tiny reservation, a handful of warriors rebelled, killing settlers and triggering the War of 1877. Instead of waging that war against a far superior force, Joseph and the other Nez Perce leaders chose to retreat—a 1,500 mile journey of misery, cold, and death, all the while pursued by five U.S. armies.

"Valentine Trant O'Connell McGillycuddy's life (1849-1939) encapsulated key events in American history that changed the lives of Native people forever ... Author Candy Moulton explores McGillycuddy's ... experiences on the northern plains as topographer, cartographer, physician, and Indian agent. Drawing on family papers, interviews, government documents, and a host of other sources, Moulton presents a colorful character -- a thin, blue-eyed, cultured physician who could outdrink trail-hardened soldiers ... She traces McGillycuddy's work mapping out the U.S.-Canadian border; treating the wounded from the battles of the Rosebud, the Little Bighorn, and Slim Buttes; tending to Crazy Horse during his final hours; and serving as agent to the Sioux at Pine Ridge, where he clashed with Chief Red Cloud over the government's assimilation policies"--Publisher's website.