Rainbow Reviews

BOOK BLURB:
Gideon Makepeace grew up in Bill Tourney's Traveling Wild West Show, so he knows Indians better than a lot of folks of his day. He and his half-breed lover, Jedediah Buffalo Bird, are traveling east to New Orleans where Gideon hopes they'll find a home together, safe among the crowds of the big city. But it's winter in the desert and a storm is blowing in, so when they run across Kingman, Arizona, just before Christmas, they decide to take their chances and hunker down for the holiday.

BOOK REVIEW:
The authors do a magnificent job of setting the scene, paying attention to small details such as describing the bath house, the sidewalks made of wood. Of particular interest was the almost universal distrust of the townsfolk to Jeb, a half-breed Indian. One can’t help but think of later times when African Americans and more latterly gays have come under similar harsh scrutiny.

Jeb’s character seemed especially realistic. Despite being an Indian brave he adopted a cowed demeanor around white folks, barely saying a word. He was also pretty quiet when alone with Gideon. Jeb’s refusal to make love in the barn loft because he was too fearful of discovery was heart-rending. This was made all the more poignant when later we learned more of Jeb’s past, and why discovery held such terror for him.

I liked how Gideon was protective of, and stood up for, his native American lover. The story is narrated entirely by Gideon. Thus not surprisingly he focused more upon his lover than himself, so we ended up knowing less about Gideon’s past, save that his folks ran a wild west show. We are left in no doubt that Gideon loves Jeb, and is sure of Jeb’s love being returned.

Clement, the smithy who gave them shelter was one of the few decent men of the town. I liked how he seemed not to judge the two men. At first I thought Clement as kindly but still a little prejudiced, regarding Jeb as Gideon’s servant. However, later, in front of the sheriff, Clement came into his own and showed what a truly decent man he was.

This is a wonderfully heartwarming holiday story about how love and tolerance can conquer ignorance and intolerance. I highly recommend.

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