"Along the edge of the clearing, an array of spectators, mostly old men and children, hissed and hollered in good-natured ridicule as the young braves knocked one another off balance on the slick ice. The old men huddled under blankets, while the children and village dogs - large spotted beasts - raced about jostling the onlookers."Fire Top toyed with the medicine bundle hanging from his neck as he lay feigning exhaustion."'Would you rather play ball with the women?' Moon Wolf taunted as he stood over his brother."In a single movement, Fire Top sprang to his feet. His honey gold skin, speckled with freckles, contrasted and accented the dark sorrel tones of Moon Wolf's skin. Pushing the red curls away from his eyes, Fire Top met kick for kick..."So begins the mesmerizing story of Fire Top, the red-haired white brave who came to live with Tall Bear and Quiet Woman in their Cheyenne village after his birth parents were killed by members of another tribe.Muriel Linder brings her characters to life and Fire Top's story will allow the reader to share in life as it was lived among the Cheyenne tribe in the mid-1800s. Follow the stories of Fire Top's love for Moon Wolf and Shining Eyes; his hatred for Big Calf; and his friendship and relationships with the white frontiersmen with whom the tribe lived in peace.
About the Author: Muriel (Ava) Linder lives with her family in Elmira, Oregon. She spent many years studying Native American history, especially that related to the Cheyenne tribe, before writing "The White Man's Brother." After writing it and an unpublished sequel called "The Rainbow Chasers," the manuscripts were laid aside while she concentrated on developing a sewing and alterations business. She finally brought both books out of the closet and worked on them some more. "I had written numerous magazine articles and newspaper items up until that time, but working with fiction was a whole new ballgame. I loved bringing my characters to life!" "White Man's Brother" is the first of these two books. Look for "The Rainbow Chasers, a sequel to WMB, which will be published in late 2015. In her acknowledgements, Mrs. Linder writes: "If it were possible, I would thank George Bird Grinnell personally for the two volumes he wrote on the day-to-day happenings of a Cheyenne village. "Grinnell lived with the Cheyenne for several years and painstakingly recorded the period when they hunted the buffalo and roamed the prairie. This was before the buffalo hunters came. "My hero died in 1938 after a long career as a writer. He had a great love for Native American culture which he passed on to me."