A Cycle of the West
A Cycle of the West is a unique publication. It is an epic poem; a saga of early America; and an action-packed western. The story consists of five separate narratives, or “Songs”: The Song of Three Friends, The Song of Hugh Glass, The Song of Jed Smith, The Song of the Indian Wars, and The Song of the Messiah. Each one is a sweeping narrative told with poetic images as big as the great American west. The stories are just as bold, with narrative that pulls you through to the end. At first, I was daunted by the fact that I was reading a poem, but once I had read a few pages, I found myself engrossed in the story that emerges from the images. In The Song of Three Friends, we learn of three trappers in the early days of the century, mountain men who are bosom buddies until an Indian woman comes between two of them. The story is a tragic tale of love and friendship. The other tales are just as compelling, although some of the ideas are slightly dated, as their original publication dates range from 1915 to 1941. Even so, A Cycle of the West makes for very interesting reading.
