Montana Books

Looking forward to Jake's next adventure.

Excellent, entertaining reading for young adults. This and each title in the Jake Montana series provide exceptional insights into native American culture in an informative and entertaining manner. A modern day Hardy Boy Mystery series with spiritual and mystical elements.

I was thrilled to recieve this book as a gift. My grandparents were two of the oft-mentioned characters and I knew a few more of the people involved throughout my life. This author did a very thorough job researching the background and happenings of the main event. It was wonderful to see the fruits of interviews done with my grandmother finally appear in print. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves reading about local history. I hope that Kevin Giles writes another such book soon.

I just finished reading this impressive piece of scholarship. The author, Kevin S. Giles, was the son of a prison guard who worked at one of the toughest prisons in the United States at a terrible, pre-reform era of widespread prison disturbances in America. Between 1952 and 1955, there were 47 riots in U.S. prisons.

The author's father barely escaped becoming a hostage in a bloody standoff triggered by an arrogant and ambitious new warden who disturbed the delicate balance of power in a place filled with shanks and stingers, cons and psychos, and two particularly disturbed men - a burglar who'd been incarcerated for all of his adult life and his murderous teenage boyfriend.

The sheer depth of Giles'research is impressive. The way the story is structured is also glue on the reader's hands. There is a slow, detailed, agonizing buildup to the fatal events, and Giles never tips his cards before he starts playing trump.

But what really held me fast to the book was the enormous quality of the prose. (Giles has several years of newspaper writing and editing experience.) I read several paragraphs two or three times in appreciation of it. When a writer spends a full decade not only conducting hundreds of interviews but reflecting on what he's writing, when the narrative offers genuine insight into the events, when the story is more than just a story to the author, it quite plainly shows. Take this excerpt about the moment that a prison guard realized that things were about to go horribly wrong:

"For a few moments only silence came to his ears, and in prison, silence deafens. Here, a dictionary of sounds lay open in Clyde Sollars' mind, as it did for every guard, ready for quick reference. In this prison of a thousand eyes, danger usually came first to the ears. Sounds that fill the prison alarm new guards. As months pass those sounds become a pattern of routine. The prison at its safest was a numbing routine and a guard was soon to learn that he should listen close when the routine changes.

"From somewhere in the maze of rooms came an urgency of shoes on tile. They weren't squeaks of new shoes but the warnings of a struggle. Sollars felt curious and then afraid. He crept into the lobby. Here in this gloomy room, where convicted men had tromped a trail in the linoleum, he saw no carpenters, nor did he see anyone else. Where was Jones, the turnkey guard? And why were both barred doors to the yard standing open?

"That very second, as Sollars comprehended a guard's greatest fear, a squat and sweating convict rumbled into the lobby from Deputy Warden Ted Rothe's office. His big fist clutched a thin ugly knife, red with blood...."

You can read (or watch) Shawshank Redemption forty times and learn less of real prison life in the era than in a chapter of this book. What struck me most was the sheer foreseeability of the fatal riot; the prison itself was a disaster waiting to happen. As a "criminal city," Montana State Prison was "backwater Bastille," rotting and old -- half the prisoners used buckets for toilets. Some of the guards were illiterate and recruited from bus depots; some were corrupt; some were elderly; none had any formal training. And they were outnumbered more than 30 to 1.

Giles also paints a stunning portrait of the ringleader, Jerry Myles, who had several mothers and names until he drifted "into the arms of crime." In Leavenworth and Alcatraz, he learned more about prison administration than the men who guarded him. He became a "professional convict," a "penitentiary homsexual," a "bull in heat." In 1955, he was briefly paroled. He selected Montana State as his next home based on rumors of poor conditions there. Jerry Myles deliberately committed a burglary in Montana and waited for police to arrive, hurriedly pleaded guilty so he could gain admittance to one of the worst prisons in the country, then cooly planned his mayhem, including a list of the prison officials he planned to execute:

"Myles would relish each tragic and dangerous moment. Those moments would be building blocks, and after he had constructed a monument to himself that stood high and public and sated his depest desires for glory, and after the streets of Deer Lodge filled with onlookers and all the papers wrote about what he had done and hostages' wives cried and he could feel anguish of his captive guards in the heavy cool air of the cell house, he would commit murder before his monument toppled. Two dozen hostages waited to die...."

Congratulations go out to the author for this achievement; one hopes this book acts as sunlight to drive away some of the demons that once cursed the people of Deer Lodge, Montana, still haunted by this long-ago prison disaster.

When nothing is going right, sometimes all you can do is run away. "Kyleah's Tree" is the tragic tale of one young Kyleah. Losing her brother, losing her father, losing her own personal place, she finds the only person to understand her in her foster brother. The two leave the serenity of Kansas on a long whirlwind journey that crosses international borders, learning that even when things are at their worst, love and respect can bring joy to one's heart. "Kyleah's Tree" is a unique story of growing up done in a rarely before seen way, greatly recommended to youth readers.

Reviewed by Brenna Bales (age 10) for Reader Views (7/08)

This is the first book I have read by Janet Muirhead Hill, and I enjoyed it immeasurably. I am hoping that the sequel will come out soon and the same for the third of the series. The author brings out the characters' true feelings and visions of what is happening in the book. She produces a feeling of understanding in you for Kyleah.

Kyleah lives in a foster home in Kansas, but runs away hoping to find her father and twin brother, Kendall. She runs away with her brother-like friend Benjamin, who makes up their phony travel story. They hope to get to Canada, where Benjamin hopes to find part of his family. They finally find relatives of Benjamin's once they get there, but they never find Kyleah's family during their trip. Her foster family flies Kyleah back to Kansas after the police come and find them in Benjamin's grandmother's house. Benjamin is allowed to stay with his family. Kyleah is in high spirits for Benjamin, but disappointed that she won't get to see him anymore.

The author writes in a way that reminds the reader of what can happen in the real world. Anybody would enjoy reading this book because you see the characters learning life skills such as trust, determination, and working together. The trip secures the friendship between Benjamin and Kyleah as if they actually were brother and sister. I give the book a perfect score of five. This book has even taught me some life skills.

The ending reveals that Kyleah's dream does come true. She discovers she really is beautiful inside and out, and in her own special way. I would very much like to see the author write a book about Kyleah's real mother and father, and maybe even one about Benjamin's life before the orphanage.

The ending of "Kyleah's Tree" fills you with happiness just as when Benjamin sees his real family once again. It's a great story that anybody will adore. It's also a great story that you can read to the family. The author is a superior writer, and a great storyteller. I certainly hope to read more of Janet Muirhead Hill's books.

I read this book when I was study Psychology in the Central American University, Nicaragua. The author of the book give you the opportunity to get a new vision of life. Specifically when he explain to you what mean to be "a new man",("hombre nuevo"). You always could made another extra step if you really have the appropiate inspiration. From that time the idea to be a "new man" is always present in every one and all of my actions. This book change my life because I got a new perspective of how to see and live my own life. I recomend this book to anyone who really want to learn and get a high dosis of positive stimulus.

A new man..... Hombre nuevo
Reviewer: Carlos Avalos from Providence, RI USA
I read this book when I was study Psychology in the Central American University, Nicaragua. The author of the book gives you the opportunity to get a new vision of life. Specifically when he explain to you what mean to be "a new man",("hombre nuevo"). You always could make another extra step if you really have the appropriate inspiration. From that time the idea to be a "new man" is always present in every one and all of my actions. This book changes my life because I got a new perspective of how to see and live my own life. I recommend this book to anyone who really wants to learn and get a high dose of positive stimulus.

La Montana Magica is a book that everybody interested in literature should read. I enjoy the characters and their profound psychology.
I recommend this book definitely.

This novel works like a huge and beautiful testimony of the years before the Great War in Europe. It transcends the limits of the genre and becomes a great Encyclopedia full of fascinating characters, archetypes and allegories. The intelectual battle between Naphta and Settembrini (the religious and social view between the liberal and individualistic perspective) is, maybe, the most perfect chronicle of a philosophical and political controversy that hasn't end yet.
At the end we all scream with the chilling scene of the duel and cry with Hans Castorp`s fate.

Well, Ethan Walker, 43 survived his trial and now has a fight on his hands.
The big, burly, unsocial rancher is determined to raise his niece, baby Darcy.
Marilee Taylor, 32 was too young to die. She was delivered to Ethan, her brother, in the middle of a snow storm by Homer Gilmore, a prospector and hermit. Then Homer disappeared.

Lori Bains, a certified nurse and mid-wife showed up to help get Marilee to the hospital and also bare witness to Marilee's desire that Ethan promise not to let her child fall into the clutches of her cruel in-laws.
[Lori Bains story coming up Baby Wanted!]

Now this is very interesting -- Kate Randall is a court Judge and wants to help Ethan keep his niece. Yet Ethan's temper gets him into trouble once again. People still believe he killed Charlie.

Mary Jo Kincaid had followed Ethan's trial every day. She was certainly disappointed that Ethan got off.

Noble Taylor was a snob and determined that no outlaw rancher was going to raise his granddaughter. Kate kept trying to bring about a reconciliation between the Taylors and Ethan. But something funny was going on.

What was Kate's secret? Why did she want to marry Ethan? Was it for the baby or to help Ethan keep Darcy? Very intrigueing!

Definitely Recommend -

Ethan Walker is a loner, a rugged individual who lives on his ranch outside of Whitehorn, Montana. He has one ranch hand, a man called John Mountain, no electricity and he's miles from his nearest neighbor and he likes it that way.

Then on a snow filled, stormy night a prospector named Homer shows up at his door with his younger sister Marilee. Marilee had run her car off the road on her way to Ethan's. She is in labor. Marilee gives birth at Ethan's, then makes Ethan swear that if anything happens to her, that he'll raise the child. Ethan, worried about his sister as she's lost so much blood, promises her he'll do it as an emergency helicopter lands out front. Then, sadly, Marilee dies in the chopper on the way to the hospital.

When he was younger, Ethan had been accused and arrested for murder, but he'd been acquitted. However in the minds of many in Whitehore he was guilty. So things look bad for Ethan when the baby's paternal grandparents decide to sue for custody. Then beautiful Judge Kate Randall has a solution. She'll marry Ethan, in name only of course, and that'll give him the respectability he needs, plus, with a wife, he's sure to win custody. However will he win custody of Kate's heart as well? And can Kate settle this loner down.

"The Law is No Lady" was a nice romance that kept me up for the better part of a Friday evening. Helen Myers put a generous dose of humor (two rugged men dealing with a baby) and suspense (will the grandparents get custody, will the judge and the loner fall in love) in her book and topped it off with a keen writing style. Highly recommended.

This detailed chronicle of the Plains Indians covers most of the 19th century explorations from Lewis and Clark to the overwhelming encroachment of the "white plague" (white settlers)fed by the railroad which destroyed the Indians' way of life.
Author Keim left no stone unturned in detailing the lives and times of all (but especially, the Flathead Indians)the Western Indian tribes of the 19th century.
I was being mentored by the author while he was finishing, what was to be, his final book. He definitely knew about the geography of Montana as he lived in buffalo country until he shipped out with the Montana 163rd Infantry Regiment to fight in the jungles of New Guinea during WWII.
A life-long collector of arms, his knowledge of weaponry is expertly inserted throughout the book.
History buffs of this era of westward expansion will enjoy this masterpiece.

Little Coyote is one of the best studies of plain/plateau Indians I have ever read!!! I recently spent a year in Montana and my birth mother loaned me her copy to read. At first I was daunted by its length, but then the story kept me enrapt for many an hour.

It is a running history of a People that few have heard of and shows them as they are, a People that are destined to lose their way of life. It is a cronicle of daily life and all its struggles, happiness, joys and sorrows.

This book is an excellent book for those who want to know just how much a People lost and how their ethnicity has been lost. The Character development is excellent. It is a book I highly recommend to anyone.

great to deal with. the book was out of print, so it was older,but in great shape. it arrived promptly. thank you.

I grew up in the area of Montana whereof this book is written. In fact, I was there at the campsite where Mrs. Jaeger's daughter was taken during the time period covered. I was one of the children that Mrs. Jaeger came to realize were saved by the loss of Her Child at the hands of a man who had murdered several children through the years.

I read this book cover to cover in a couple of hours. What a tremendous struggle and glorious victory over evil in this world because of this one woman's willingness to not only bear the cross, but to search the scriptures, pray steadfastly for guidance, and be willing to move forward in that process. A wonderful, wonderful book of love, spiritual growth, true Christlike compassion and forgiveness. I'll never forget it!

You can never go wrong with a novel written by Cheryl St.John. Whether it is a contemporary or historical novel, Cheryl brings both the characters and environment to life. The story of Bryanna and Devlin is one that is hard to put down. Don't miss this one!

Dr. Brynna Shaw doesn't do anything spur of the moment. She thinks things through. But there was no thinking when Devlin Holmes walked into her life. That might explain why she was married to him a few short days later. But as the saying goes, marry in haste, repent in leisure. Eight month's after the I-do's, Brynna's wondering if she made the biggest mistake of her life. Does she have enough with Devlin to ride out some mighty rough waters?

Cheryl St. John gets to the heart of Brynna and Devlin's emotions, the heart of the story...and what the reader finds is a whole lot of love! A wonderful read!

My grandfather's (Lynn Rae Ingersoll) mother (Rose Collins Ingersoll) was the daughter of Mary Collins of whom the author writes. My Auntie Iona Ingersoll (of Scoby Montana and spouse of Lynn Rae Ingersoll II) and I thought this book was fastinating. A couple corrections we agreed on; George Ingersoll and Rose Collins Ingersoll had 3 adult children: George Ingersoll Jr. Lynn Rae Ingersoll and a daughter Dixie Ingersoll. I have seen a military portait of George Ingersoll Jr and Iona's husband worked for George Jr. for awhile. Also, Lynn Rae Ingersoll and Bernice Kempton Ingersoll had five sons, not four. Dick Ingersoll, Lynn Rae Ingersoll II, Tom Ingersoll, Bruce Ingersoll (our Dad) and Gerry Ingersoll. Thank you for writing this book!

What a well written book. It provides great texture and a sense of what life was like during such an amazing period of our history. Whether you are related to Mrs. Collins or not, you will be captivated by the story and the sense of place.

Well done!