The Death of Bernadette Lefthand

by Ron Querry, Ronald B. Querry, Gregory T. Smith (Illustrator)

Overview

Twenty-fifth anniversary edition of Ron Querry's haunting first novel about the mysterious death of a young Indian dancer is a stunning portrayl of the spirit and struggles of the Southwest's native peoples.

Ron Querry's debut novel, originally published in 1993 by Red Crane, is a foundational novel in contemporary Native American writing. Querry uses the alternating viewpoints of Gracie, Bernadette's younger sister, and Starr Stubbs, the wealthy New Yorker who lives just outside of Dulce, New Mexico-to detail the tragic end of Bernadette's life. The conflicting accounts create a compelling novel about heritage, family, and the dark magic of the twisted soul.

This twenty-fifth anniversary edition of Ron Querry's debut novel features a new afterword in which the author offers insight into the writing of this American classic.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781878610256
Publisher:	Red Crane Books
Publication date:	06/28/1993
Series:	Red Crane Literature Series
Pages:	232
Product dimensions:	5.79(w) x 8.83(h) x 0.92(d)

About the Author

Ron Querry is an internationally-acclaimed, American author and member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. Querry served in the Marine Corps during the 1960s and, after his term of service, studied English at the University of Oklahoma. He later received a PhD in American Studies at the University of New Mexico. Querry lives in northern New Mexico, in a century-old Queen Anne/Victorian house with his wife—fine art photographer Elaine Querry—and their cow dogs—BeauDog and Shorty.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"The Death of Bernadette Lefthand is an American Indian classic, a contemporary story of love and death, of history and magic, all set against the panorama of the Southwest. It is a book that deserves to be read more than once."—Thomas King, author of Green Grass, Running Water and The Inconvenient Indian

Editorial Reviews

"The innocence of Gracie's youth and her anguish in relating her sister's life story work like a magnet to pull the tale along." "Querry, a Choctaw, chooses Arizona, his present home, as the setting for this excellent first novel. It is a landscape peopled by Natives, where Navajo, Apache and Hopi reservations jostle up against one another, literally and figuratively. The book deals with the murder of its eponymous heroine. In the process it becomes a fine vignette of modern Indian existence, giving readers a genuinely felt view of the pow-wows, dances, rodeos, alcoholism, intertribal rivalry and poverty that are the facts of life for many Native Americans. At the beginning of the novel, Bernadette is found dead and her drunken husband, Anderson George, has disappeared. The story of their tumultuous union is told in flashback from the points of view of Gracie, Bernadette's sister, and Starr Stubbs, a white woman who knew her but may have been less than a friend. With his compelling storytelling, Querry leads the reader methodically and inexorably back in time (to witness the final moments of Bernadette's short life) and deeper into the darkness of the witchcraft that destroys both her and Anderson. The innocence of Gracie's youth and her anguish in relating her sister's life story work like a magnet to pull the tale along." (first edition) — Publishers Weekly

"This excellent debut by a promising new novelist should appeal to anyone interested in the Southwest and Native Americans." Bernadette Lefthand got killed, "but it wasn't in no car wreck," and the police are looking for her Navajo husband. The story instantly pulls its reader into the events surrounding a young Pueblo Indian's bizarre and brutal murder. Set on the Navajo and Jicarilla reservations, this novel explores the effects that poverty, alcoholism, and witchcraft have on the communities. Gracie, Bernadette's younger sister, and Starr Stubbs, the white woman for whom Bernadette kept house, tell most of the story. The chapters flip-flop between the narrators' points of view, cleverly exposing the contrast between Indian and white perspectives and their cultural differences. This excellent debut by a promising new novelist should appeal to anyone interested in the Southwest and Native Americans." (first edition) — Library Journal

"The best novel of its type since Leslie Sitko'sCeremony. The Death Of Bernadette Lefthandshould rank among the classics of American fiction."(first edition) — Tony Hillerman, author ofThe Blessing Way

From the Publisher