April 2013 Host: Stephanie

 

1,000 White Women:  The Journals of May Dodd by Jim Fergus

 

Summary

 

This novel is set in 1875 and is written from the perspective of a historical event.  In 1854, at a peace conference in Fort Laramie, a Cheyenne chief requested of the US Army authorities the gift of a thousand white women as brides for his young warriors, thinking that this would hasten the assimilation of the matrilineal Cheyenne into the white man’s world.  The request was turned down but the novel is written as if it really happened.   The main character, May Dodd, had two children out of wedlock and was committed to an insane asylum by her family.  In her desperation to escape the walls of the asylum, she volunteered for the brides for Indians program.  Through the diaries of May Dodd, we get a glimpse into the life that has disappeared from our land and we become a part of the Cheyenne nation in the closing days of the military conquest of the Indians.  Most of the women do conceive and present infants to their Cheyenne warriors.  They learn to live the nomadic life and appreciate the Indian’s natural way of living.  The women also realize that this way of life cannot survive under the tide of Western movement.  This novel transports you back in time in the Wild West and is richly descriptive of the landscape, the Indian and white man’s culture in the late 1800s, and wildly disparate characters. We are also privy to the dark side of the Cheyenne and the white man’s culture such as infanticide and the heinous crimes committed while under the influence of whiskey. We all enjoyed and highly recommend this novel.

 

Menu

 

Tuna Salad and Chicken Salad Sandwiches w/ chips

Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing

This simple yet savory dressing consists of 1/2 cup olive oil, 1/4 cup

balsamic vinegar, one teaspon each of honey and dijon mustard, one

shallot and one garlic clove each minced, salt and ground pepper to taste.

Shake vigorously in a glass jar with lid until combined.

 

Baklava Cups

For genuine tasting yet easy to bake baklavi, this recipe can be found on foodnetork.com

(note:  I made the mistake of adding the syrup before I baked them and it is supposed

to be added after baking, which is why they look misshapen)

 

Lemon Tart with Mixed Berries