Dustin White
Editor

While Ernie LaPointe isn’t a towering man, he is imposing nonetheless. He speaks with an expertise that can’t be faked, and a passion few can muster. As the great-grandson of Tatanka Iyotake, Sitting Bull, and having immersed himself not only in the oral stories that were passed down to him, but the culture of the Lakota people as well, it is clear that he is an authority. So when I had the chance to pick up his book, “Sitting Bull: His Life and Legacy,” I had very high hopes for the work.

His book first came to my attention while preparing for a story on Sitting Bull. I had the great pleasure to meet LaPointe earlier that year, and having listened to him speak, he mentioned that he had written a book based on the oral tradition of his family.

Even though I had a dozen other books on Sitting Bull scattered around my desk, gaining a different perspective, one coming directly from his family, was something I couldn’t pass up. While the book was initially just one more source for a story, it has become one of my go to resources.



Initial Response
Thumbing through the pages of “Sitting Bull,” it is what one would expect; a biography. It is broken into manageable sections, with clear reason. Using the book as a resource, it is easy to find what one is looking for.

Unlike many other biographies though, it does lack a bibliography in which the sources used are detailed. However, that’s because “Sitting Bull” isn’t a normal biography. From a western perspective, LaPointe takes more of an unorthodox approach to this history.

While western historical works are generally based on a written tradition, LaPointe returns to his Lakota roots, and bases his work on the oral sources, which were passed down to him. In doing so, LaPointe shares a history, and tradition, that those who aren’t Lakota wouldn’t generally be privy to.

Opening that door, LaPointe leads the reader into a different view of history. However, it also makes part of the reading feel a bit foreign. With LaPointe having to translate his Lakota oral tradition into English, there are places that the transition isn’t so simple, as is true with most translations.

In many ways then, this is a foreign work. While Sitting Bull lived in what would be the United States, he was not an American citizen; he was Lakota. And even though he was a native inhabitant of this continent, the readers, themselves, become foreigners. As such, staying true to his heritage, LaPointe often uses the traditional Lakota terminology for many things, including people and places. Its an aspect that takes a bit of getting used to, but one that adds a great deal to the work, and with a helpful glossary, is easy to manage.

Even more though, LaPointe had to try to communicate, in the written word, a story that was meant to be passed through an oral telling. To do so is a difficult task, as it takes away part of the natural story telling, but it is one that LaPointe faces head on.

These difficulties do present themselves in a few area, but it isn’t uncommon for historical works to face obstacles. The true test is how the author manages those obstacles. For LaPointe, he traverses them in a manner that seems quite effortlessly, which makes the reading quite smooth.

However, as with any quality work, those difficulties are pointed out early on, in the Forward and Preface. By doing so, from the very beginning of the book, the reader is able to prepare for such, and can become ready to read a biography that isn’t conventional.

Story
LaPointe’s biography on his great-grandfather often stands at odds with various other biographies out there. Based on an oral history, one that was passed through Tatanka Iyotake’s immediate family, it isn’t surprising that the perspective is different, and LaPointe freely points that out. After all, he is relating a part of the story that largely hasn’t been told.



As LaPointe points out, and is one of his main criticisms, is that historians, who wrote the first biographies of Sitting Bull, never sought out the actual lineal descendants in order to get the entire story. Thus, a bias crept up into many of those early writings, which have served as a foundation for later works.

This bias becomes clear when reading through the other literature on the life of Sitting Bull. Comparing LaPointe’s work to other historians, especially the earlier historians, they often stand at great odds. However, when compared to some of the works by more recent historians, those biases do begin to break down, with those depictions coming more inline with LaPointe’s portrayal.

A great example of this is in the simple use of a name. While many other’s have written about Sitting Bull, who in many of the works becomes nearly a mythical character or a stereotypical depiction of Indians in general, LaPointe speaks of Tatanka Iyotake, the Buffalo Bull Who Sits Down. The difference is quite important.

Breaking through those early biases also allows for a more accurate depiction of various historical events. The Battle of the Little Bighorn is a prime example. Instead of seeing Indians as the aggressors, hell bent on massacring whites, George Custer and his Seventh Calvary are seen as searching out Tatanka Iyotake, who is just trying to defend his people from an attack by the U.S. Army. It becomes a battle between nations.

As with any work though, there are some biases that do creep into LaPointe’s book. In this particular case, it isn’t necessarily a bad thing. From the beginning, LaPointe is clear that what he is writing is the oral history that has been passed down through his family. His attempt is to accurately portray that.

Since, by the very nature of his work, a work that deals with the betrayal and murder of Tatanka Iyotake, as well as a very tumultuous period of history, it is only natural that some bias would enter into the work. However, to strip that away would have stripped away an important aspect of the work. An aspect that makes the story more authentic, and truly draws the reader in.

One of the strongest aspects of LaPointe’s work though is that he is offering a new perspective on Tatanka Iyotake’s life. Instead of the white European view that many of us have become familiar with, LaPointe allows us to see a Lakota perspective to this important part of history.

Impact
With LaPointe bringing a different perspective, his work has the possibility of making a profound impact. Effectively, LaPointe has the chance to change what many think they know about Sitting Bull, and instead transform his great-grandfather into Tatanka Iyotake, a figure who, for me, is much more interesting and dynamic.

The work also offers up challenges to what largely has become “common knowledge.” While LaPointe isn’t overly confrontational about his challenges, he does make his readers rethink events such as the Battle of the Little Bighorn, as well as the death of Tatanka Iyotake.

He speaks of these events more in a conversational tone, matter of factly, which brings the reader more into the history. It also makes the work much more accessible, and thus the topic, easier to approach.

Criticism
No work is perfect. There are always some short comings. For LaPointe’s book, the main one is that it is too short. I could listen to LaPointe speak all day, and knowing the degree of knowledge he has on the subject, I have no doubt that many areas could have been expanded on. As the story is so fascinating, having more of it would have been great. It may be an ideal problem to have.

One particular area that could have benefited from such an expansion was the section on the death of Tatanka Iyotake. For me, it was one of the most important incidences, yet, there wasn’t much written about it. That portion of the history was a bit hazy; however, that is a common occurrence in books about Tatanka Iyotake.



The work is complete though. Even though I would have enjoyed for various areas to be expanded, nothing of great importance seems to be left out. A full picture is given. While additional little details could have been given, adding a bit more clarity, it wasn’t necessary. It would have been a welcomed option nonetheless.

Overall
Taking the book as a whole, it simply is a wonderful work. For those who are interested in Tatanka Iyotake, events such as the Battle of the Little Bighorn, or even Indian-European relations, this is a book that is definitely worth a read.

It is a book I highly recommend.