- Mass Market Paperback: 272 pages
- Publisher: HarperPaperbacks; Reprint edition (31 Mar 1990)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0061000027
- ISBN-13: 978-0061000027
- Product Dimensions: 17 x 10.4 x 2.3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 814,778 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Description
Book Description
'There has never been anything ordinary about Hillerman's crisply plotted, magically evocative tales...Mingling taut, deceptively simple prose with shrewd psychological insight and a scholar's understanding of Navajo culture and religion' Entertainment Weekly
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Product Description
When two young boys disappear, one of them leaving a pool of blood behind, Lieutenant Joe Leaphorn of the Navajo Tribal Police finds himself not only tracking a ruthless and brutal killer but caught up in the intricate mysteries of the Zuni religion as well. For the dead boy was to have played a key role in an important ritual of the Zuni people. An added complication in the investigation and search is the missing boys' interest in an archeological dig that seems to be on the brink of proving a controversial theory. And the FBI's blind certainty that it's all related to a small hippy commune's drug dealing doesn't exactly help either. Leaphorn patiently tracks the murderer into the desert to a terrifying confrontation...
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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SHULAWITSI, the Little Fire God, member of the Council of the God's and Deputy to the Sun, had taped his track shoes to his feet. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
SHULAWITSI, the Little Fire God, member of the Council of the God's and Deputy to the Sun, had taped his track shoes to his feet. Read the first page
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback
Set in 1970's Arizona amongst the reservations of several Native American tribes especially the Zuni, Navajo and Apache. Following the disappearance of a teenage Zuni boy who was preparing for a ceremonial rite of passage, suspicion falls on his supposed friend the 'crazy' George Bowlegs. As a body is discovered the full range of law enforcement falls on the area. This includes one of Mr Hillerman's recurring heroes Lt Joe Leaphorn of the Navajo Indian Tribal Police and extends right up to the FBI.
Did Bowlegs commit the crime? Can he be tracked down by Leaphorn? Why are the FBI bringing in drugs specialists? The crime element is thus part manhunt, part police procedural and part whodunnit.
The real stars of the book are the beautiful descriptions of the Arizona landscape and the author's intimacy with Native American culture. At first this is a little overwhelming and the short opening chapter required a couple of re-reads given the flurry of Native terms. There are some nice cultural counterpoints, especially the comparison of the secrecy of Zuni ceremonial details and the sanctity of the Catholic confession; both of which hinder the successful solution of the crime.
The crime element was , in truth, relatively mundane. There are only a couple of viable suspects and it really feels like this is the backdrop to the book rather than its driving force. The interest is in what it tells you about this way of life and for that you should be educated and entertained.
Did Bowlegs commit the crime? Can he be tracked down by Leaphorn? Why are the FBI bringing in drugs specialists? The crime element is thus part manhunt, part police procedural and part whodunnit.
The real stars of the book are the beautiful descriptions of the Arizona landscape and the author's intimacy with Native American culture. At first this is a little overwhelming and the short opening chapter required a couple of re-reads given the flurry of Native terms. There are some nice cultural counterpoints, especially the comparison of the secrecy of Zuni ceremonial details and the sanctity of the Catholic confession; both of which hinder the successful solution of the crime.
The crime element was , in truth, relatively mundane. There are only a couple of viable suspects and it really feels like this is the backdrop to the book rather than its driving force. The interest is in what it tells you about this way of life and for that you should be educated and entertained.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Twelve-year-old Ernesto Cata (Zuñi) is practicing to be the Fire God in a local ceremony. His best buddy George Bowlegs (Navaho) is a Zuñi wana-be.
Ernesto is missing and there is a pool of blood by his bike. The next day his buddy George runs off. It is up to Sgt. Joe Leaphorn to find the boys before anything happens to them (if it has not already.)
As with most of Hillerman’s novels everyone has different agendas and stories that overlap. There are alleged stolen artifacts form and archeological dig, and possibly a drug interest. They may or may not interact. We also get a good dose of Zuñi culture, and a feel that we are in the area.
Hillerman is nice enough to leave sufficient clues to let you figure out the mystery before Leaphorn and you then get to watch as he finally comes around to your way of thinking.
Another book by Hillerman “The Boy who Made Dragonfly” further describes the dance hall of the dead (Kothluwalawa.)
Author’s Note:
“In this book, the setting is genuine. The village of Zuñi and the landscape of the Zuñi reservation are depicted to the best of my ability. The characters are purely fictional. The view the reader receives of the Sha’lak’o religion is as it might be seen by a Navajo with an interest in ethnology. It does not pretend to be more than that.”
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback
Dance Hall of the Dead is the first Hillerman novel I have read. The plot succeeded in keeping me interested enough to finish the book, but it can only be categorized as a fair mystery novel. The driving force behind the plot is the protagonist's (Joe Leaphorn's) search for the missing Navajo boy and consequently the truth behind the murder mystery of a young Zuni boy. His search for the boy, however, only half-heartedly interested me, and the end of his search, as well as the story itself, was a big disappointment. The reader isn't allowed to partake in the pleasure of the murder culprit being captured, nor are we to ever know what becomes of Susanne or Ted Isaacs, the other two characters in the book greatly affected by the series of events.
One positive aspect of Hillerman's novels, however, is the way in which he incorporates facts about Native Americans in the Southwest. Part of the time reading Dance Hall of the Dead, I thought I was reading a history text. Although I didn't think that Dance Hall of the Dead was an extraordinary book, I was nevertheless intrigued by the information provided on the Navajo and Zuni tribes.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
The Fire God is missing
Twelve-year-old Ernesto Cata (Zu'i) is practicing to be the Fire God in a local ceremony. His best buddy George Bowlegs (Navaho) is a Zu'i wana-be. Read more
Published on 28 Nov 2005 by bernie
The Fire God is missing
Twelve-year-old Ernesto Cata (Zuñi) is practicing to be the Fire God in a local ceremony. His best buddy George Bowlegs (Navaho) is a Zuñi wana-be. Read more
Published on 2 Mar 2005 by bernie
If you can't sleep, read this book!
Dance Hall of the Dead started out kinda interesting, but it took to long to get to the climax of the story. Read more
Published on 3 Aug 1999
Great mystery
As far as mystery writers go, Tony Hillerman is one of the best I have read. Not only is the plot very interesting, but the information on the Indian culture and traditions makes... Read more
Published on 5 April 1999
One of the best
One of Hillerman's best -- and that's saying a lot. Second only to his "Listening Woman" as an evocative, powerful, suspensful view of a specific place and people.
Published on 16 Feb 1999
History Book?
I must say that Dance Hall of the Dead was not what i expected it to be. Instead i thought that i was reading a history book about the navahos and zuni's, the the whole mystery... Read more
Published on 18 Jan 1999
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