Little Big Man by Thomas Berger

2nd reading; first read in the late '60s.


Seeing a recent TV broadcast of the 1970 film adapted from this book reminded me how much I enjoyed reading the novel almost 50 years ago. The good news is that I found it just as entertaining and thought provoking today, which is not always true of the books that I liked when I was younger.

Most older folks probably already know the basic plot, even if only from viewing the movie, which was a box office success. The narrator is 111-year-old Jack Crabb, telling the story of his younger self: of his capture at age 10 by the Cheyenne Indians; of his raising as the adopted son of a chief; of his return to the white world and endeavors as a shop keeper, buffalo hunter, gambler, and mule skinner; and finally, of his being the only white survivor of Custer's battle at the Little Big Horn. While jumping from one incident to the next in a picaresque manner and being generally ironically humorous, the novel is also historically accurate as to the details of life in the Old West, based as it is on extensive research. It is, of course, highly improbable that one person could have been present at so many significant events and have known so many noteworthy people, but that is of little matter because Jack is more than believable as an interpreter of the real story of the West, as opposed to the myth.

The thought-provoking aspect comes from Jack's situation as a member of both the Indian and the white world. Through his eyes we can better understand the values and ideas of both groups. It seemingly became inevitable that one viewpoint had to prevail, because the two peoples saw life in such different terms. Neither was all right or all wrong, but obviously someone had to change for co-existence to be possible.

I would go so far as to say that this is the best book ever written about the white man versus Indian problems in the Old West. Little Big Man is one of those under-recognized novels which deserves a place among the classics of American literature.