Rodney Barker

The Broken Circle is a true story of murder and magic in Indian country. In a riveting, story-telling fashion it presents a dramatic account of the torture-murder of three Navajo Indians by a thrill-seeking group of white teenagers that looses ethnic furies in a town bordering the Navajo Reservation in the American Southwest. But what starts out as a story of white crimes and their social repercussions soon becomes a tale of red justice, as Navajo militants attempt to put the town itself on trial, and traditional tribal members seek revenge through the secret practice of Navajo witchcraft...

 

Writing with candor and sensitivity to conflicting cultural perspectives, Barker shows, in harsh and fascinating detail, the realities of contemporary Indian life through the eyes of those who are victims of white racism, as well as the militants who are willing to give up their lives to reverse a long history of injustice and oppression. He also introduces us to the mysterious world of Navajo sorcery, where mystical powers are invoked to settle and balance earthly grievances.

 

Even as he follows the effect of a disturbing crime and its frightening aftermath on the citizens and officials of a deeply conservative community, Barker takes us into the minds of juvenile mass murderers, tracing out the unpredictable and astonishing consequences of their sadistic actions.

 

The Broken Circle is an illuminating work of contemporary history that, in its own way, brilliantly succeeds in revealing both sides of a dramatic conflict, a turning point in the struggle of Native Americans to reassert their rights, their lives and their ancient traditions.

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