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The Which Way Tree
The dangerous and poignant odyssey of a tenacious young girl who boldly traverses the Texas frontier as she seeks to avenge her mother's death.
Early one morning in the remote Hill Country of Texas a panther attacks a family of homesteaders, mauling a young girl named Samantha and killing her mother, a former slave -- whose final act is to save her daughter's life. Samantha and her half brother, Benjamin, survive, but she is left traumatized, her face horribly scarred.
Narrated in Benjamin's beguilingly plainspoken voice, The Which Way Tree is the story of Samantha's relentless determination to stalk and kill the notorious panther and avenge her mother's death. In this quest she and Benjamin, now orphaned, enlist a charismatic Tejano outlaw and a haunted, compassionate preacher with an aging but unstoppable tracking dog. As the members of this unlikely posse hunt the panther, they are in turn pursued by a hapless but sadistic Confederate soldier with a score to settle.
In the tradition of the great pursuit narratives, The Which Way Tree is a breathtaking tale of revenge against an implacable and unknowable beast. Yet with the comedic undertones of Benjamin's storytelling, it is also a timeless story full of warmth and humor, and a testament to the enduring love between a sister and brother in an adventure whose legend will last a lifetime.
Early one morning in the remote Hill Country of Texas a panther attacks a family of homesteaders, mauling a young girl named Samantha and killing her mother, a former slave -- whose final act is to save her daughter's life. Samantha and her half brother, Benjamin, survive, but she is left traumatized, her face horribly scarred.
Narrated in Benjamin's beguilingly plainspoken voice, The Which Way Tree is the story of Samantha's relentless determination to stalk and kill the notorious panther and avenge her mother's death. In this quest she and Benjamin, now orphaned, enlist a charismatic Tejano outlaw and a haunted, compassionate preacher with an aging but unstoppable tracking dog. As the members of this unlikely posse hunt the panther, they are in turn pursued by a hapless but sadistic Confederate soldier with a score to settle.
In the tradition of the great pursuit narratives, The Which Way Tree is a breathtaking tale of revenge against an implacable and unknowable beast. Yet with the comedic undertones of Benjamin's storytelling, it is also a timeless story full of warmth and humor, and a testament to the enduring love between a sister and brother in an adventure whose legend will last a lifetime.
288 pages, Hardcover
First published February 6, 2018
248 people are currently reading
6944 people want to read
About the author
Elizabeth Crook
7 books387 followersI grew up mostly in San Marcos, Texas, (with a brief time away in Washington D.C and Australia) graduated from San Marcos High School, attended Baylor and Rice, moved for a while to New Braunfels, Texas, and now live in Austin. One of the great blessings of my childhood was having a mother who read to my brother and sister and me for hours every night, long after we could read for ourselves. Those nights of listening transported us to foreign places and other centuries and allowed us to connect with characters living lives in stark contrast to our own. This was a great gift my mother gave us.
I've written six novels, including The Night Journal, which received The Spur Award from Western Writers of America and the Willa Literary Award from Women Writing the West, Monday, Monday, which received the Jesse H. Jones Award from the Texas Institute of Letters and was named a Best Fiction Book of 2014 by Kirkus Reviews, and The Which Way Tree, which received The Willa Literary Award and is currently in development for film. The Madstone will be published in November of 2023.
I'm a slow, slow reader (one of those people you see in public places staring at pages and moving their lips,) and I'll be giving most books on Goodreads a rating of four or five stars, because that many hours spent together creates a certain loyalty. If a book doesn't capture me I usually set it aside; mostly what you'll see here are books I've loved.
I've written six novels, including The Night Journal, which received The Spur Award from Western Writers of America and the Willa Literary Award from Women Writing the West, Monday, Monday, which received the Jesse H. Jones Award from the Texas Institute of Letters and was named a Best Fiction Book of 2014 by Kirkus Reviews, and The Which Way Tree, which received The Willa Literary Award and is currently in development for film. The Madstone will be published in November of 2023.
I'm a slow, slow reader (one of those people you see in public places staring at pages and moving their lips,) and I'll be giving most books on Goodreads a rating of four or five stars, because that many hours spent together creates a certain loyalty. If a book doesn't capture me I usually set it aside; mostly what you'll see here are books I've loved.
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August 2, 2024
4.25⭐️
Earlier this year, I had the pleasure of reading Elizabeth Crook’s The Madstone, which features then nineteen-year-old Benjamin Shreve as he recounts the sixteen-day odyssey across Reconstuction-era Texas and the perils he faces in his efforts to assist a stranded traveler and a pregnant woman and her young son. I found Benjamin to be an endearing character and was thrilled to find out that the author had previously penned a novel featuring Benjamin and his half-sister. I was eager to read The Which Way Tree and I’m glad to say that I was not disappointed!
The narrative is presented in epistolary format through letters written by seventeen-year-old Benjamin in 1866, addressed to Judge E. Carlton, as a part of his testimony against one Clarence Hanlin, believed to be responsible for the murder of eight travelers.
In the course of his testimony on his several encounters with Hanlin, Benjamin, excited to be able to share his story, drafts a series of long letters detailing the story of his family and the tragedies that befell them. Of particular significance was how three years ago was his then twelve-year-old half-sister Samantha “Sam” ’s quest to exact revenge on a panther (referred to as El Demonio de Dos Dedos“The Demon of Two Toes” by the locals) that killed her mother Juda (Benjamin’s stepmother) and left Sam disfigured, when she was six years old child, resulted in several encounters between Hanlin and themselves.
Well-paced with vivid descriptions and a cast of interesting characters, this is an engaging read that had me glued to the pages. Elizabeth Crook is a master storyteller who writes with a keen sense of time and place. The depiction of the hardships of life in Civil War-era Texas, the rustic landscape and the wilderness, and the dangers of the wild compounded further by roaming murderers, highway robbers and outlaws will transport you to Texas Hill Country with our characters. Though a tad far-fetched, this is an immensely enjoyable story of family, friendship, adventure, bravery and vengeance. Benjamin is an endearing character and I thoroughly enjoyed following him, Samantha and their friends Preacher Dob and his aging yet alert tracker dog Zechariah and Mexican outlaw Lorenzo Pacheco on their adventures through the wilderness of Texas Hill Country.
Benjamin’s narrative voice draws you in, his enthusiasm and excitement in being able to pen his story is palpable and despite his tendency to go into minute detail, there is not a boring moment in this tightly-woven novel. I loved how the author depicted Benjamin’s bond with Sam, his frustration with her utter disregard for his admonishments but always concerned for her well-being. Sam is a fascinating character – brave, obsessed with revenge and willing to take on the panther irrespective of whether anyone comes with her. The author’s portrayal of an enraged and traumatized twelve-year-old who lives with a constant reminder of a violent episode that forever changed her life in more ways than anyone could imagine is convincing and though she might appear stubborn and reckless, you will want to root for her. The secondary characters are also well fleshed out and the author infuses the narrative with a healthy dose of humor into the narrative to balance the hardships, loss, grief and violence.
Overall, with the author's masterful storytelling, exquisite writing and superb characterizations, I found this novel to be an immensely satisfying read. I look forward to reading more from the author in the future.
I paired my reading with the audiobook narrated by Will Collyer, whose expert narration breathed life into the characters and the story, making for an enjoyable immersion-reading experience.
Though this novel predates The Madstone, I am glad to have read it after, as the novel also gives us a glimpse into Benjamin's life decades after the incidents described in both books. However, Sam’s story remains a mystery (a few hints are dropped in this novel) and I would love to know what became of the young girl I admired for her bravery and determination.
Connect with me! ✏ Instagram ✏ My Blog ✏ The StoryGraph
Earlier this year, I had the pleasure of reading Elizabeth Crook’s The Madstone, which features then nineteen-year-old Benjamin Shreve as he recounts the sixteen-day odyssey across Reconstuction-era Texas and the perils he faces in his efforts to assist a stranded traveler and a pregnant woman and her young son. I found Benjamin to be an endearing character and was thrilled to find out that the author had previously penned a novel featuring Benjamin and his half-sister. I was eager to read The Which Way Tree and I’m glad to say that I was not disappointed!
The narrative is presented in epistolary format through letters written by seventeen-year-old Benjamin in 1866, addressed to Judge E. Carlton, as a part of his testimony against one Clarence Hanlin, believed to be responsible for the murder of eight travelers.
In the course of his testimony on his several encounters with Hanlin, Benjamin, excited to be able to share his story, drafts a series of long letters detailing the story of his family and the tragedies that befell them. Of particular significance was how three years ago was his then twelve-year-old half-sister Samantha “Sam” ’s quest to exact revenge on a panther (referred to as El Demonio de Dos Dedos“The Demon of Two Toes” by the locals) that killed her mother Juda (Benjamin’s stepmother) and left Sam disfigured, when she was six years old child, resulted in several encounters between Hanlin and themselves.
Well-paced with vivid descriptions and a cast of interesting characters, this is an engaging read that had me glued to the pages. Elizabeth Crook is a master storyteller who writes with a keen sense of time and place. The depiction of the hardships of life in Civil War-era Texas, the rustic landscape and the wilderness, and the dangers of the wild compounded further by roaming murderers, highway robbers and outlaws will transport you to Texas Hill Country with our characters. Though a tad far-fetched, this is an immensely enjoyable story of family, friendship, adventure, bravery and vengeance. Benjamin is an endearing character and I thoroughly enjoyed following him, Samantha and their friends Preacher Dob and his aging yet alert tracker dog Zechariah and Mexican outlaw Lorenzo Pacheco on their adventures through the wilderness of Texas Hill Country.
Benjamin’s narrative voice draws you in, his enthusiasm and excitement in being able to pen his story is palpable and despite his tendency to go into minute detail, there is not a boring moment in this tightly-woven novel. I loved how the author depicted Benjamin’s bond with Sam, his frustration with her utter disregard for his admonishments but always concerned for her well-being. Sam is a fascinating character – brave, obsessed with revenge and willing to take on the panther irrespective of whether anyone comes with her. The author’s portrayal of an enraged and traumatized twelve-year-old who lives with a constant reminder of a violent episode that forever changed her life in more ways than anyone could imagine is convincing and though she might appear stubborn and reckless, you will want to root for her. The secondary characters are also well fleshed out and the author infuses the narrative with a healthy dose of humor into the narrative to balance the hardships, loss, grief and violence.
Overall, with the author's masterful storytelling, exquisite writing and superb characterizations, I found this novel to be an immensely satisfying read. I look forward to reading more from the author in the future.
I paired my reading with the audiobook narrated by Will Collyer, whose expert narration breathed life into the characters and the story, making for an enjoyable immersion-reading experience.
Though this novel predates The Madstone, I am glad to have read it after, as the novel also gives us a glimpse into Benjamin's life decades after the incidents described in both books. However, Sam’s story remains a mystery (a few hints are dropped in this novel) and I would love to know what became of the young girl I admired for her bravery and determination.
Connect with me! ✏ Instagram ✏ My Blog ✏ The StoryGraph
March 18, 2018
Civil War era, Texas, the hill country where a panther attacks a homesteading family. The young daughter is severely injured, will wear the marks of the panther on her face, her mother killed trying to defend her daughter. Eventually Benjamin and his half sister Sam, will only have each other. Sam, vows to hunt down and kill the panther, and so the tale begins. A few others will join the group, including Zachary, a panther hunting dog.
A judge is looking into the hanging deaths of three men found on the trail. Benjamin knows exactly who killed these men, and using materials the judge has given him sets out to tell his tale. So the story is told in a series of letters to the judge. Benjamin is a wonderful story teller, his writing engaging and humorous. This could be a tale told and passed on by cowboys in the old West, sitting around a campfire. Many times their trek to capture and kill the panther stretches credibility, but it is so well told, put together like a comedy of errors. Things happen, the group encounters tough conditions, serious mishaps, but the brother, sister bond is strong despite everything. Benjamin loves to talk, and his account is thorough, he seems to believe that every detail must be noted.
Despite the harsh conditions, the friendship between the group grows in wonderful ways. I enjoyed this account of Benjamins very much. Such a humorous story, but adequately eveloping the times.
At books end we pick up fifty years or so later, and we find out what happened to this group in the intervening years. A very well done yarn of a story.
ARC from Netgalley.
A judge is looking into the hanging deaths of three men found on the trail. Benjamin knows exactly who killed these men, and using materials the judge has given him sets out to tell his tale. So the story is told in a series of letters to the judge. Benjamin is a wonderful story teller, his writing engaging and humorous. This could be a tale told and passed on by cowboys in the old West, sitting around a campfire. Many times their trek to capture and kill the panther stretches credibility, but it is so well told, put together like a comedy of errors. Things happen, the group encounters tough conditions, serious mishaps, but the brother, sister bond is strong despite everything. Benjamin loves to talk, and his account is thorough, he seems to believe that every detail must be noted.
Despite the harsh conditions, the friendship between the group grows in wonderful ways. I enjoyed this account of Benjamins very much. Such a humorous story, but adequately eveloping the times.
At books end we pick up fifty years or so later, and we find out what happened to this group in the intervening years. A very well done yarn of a story.
ARC from Netgalley.
April 2, 2018
"The question come to us then as to whether we was tracking the panther or if, by some unknown hand we was dealt, the panther might be tracking us."
Tragedy strikes with the weight of a mighty calling card. It doesn't strut with a selective swagger. For it leans in on the rich and the poor and everyone in between. And like a slammin' door, you know it's paid you a visit.
The Civil War years have formed a blockade landscape around the Hill Country in central Texas. Everyone scratches out an existence to merely stay alive. And that includes a ferocious panther that steps silently onto the Shreve homestead late one night eyeing the goats and chickens in the pen. Little did he know that young Samantha would be rushing out-of-doors there in the moonlight having charged out of the cabin in anger. Juda, her mother, recognizes the howls of that grewsome panther as it attacks her daughter. Armed with a short hatchet, Juda is no match for those jaws. Benjamin, Samantha's half-brother, can only stand on the porch in helpless agony. Their father is miles away near Camp Verde.
The remaining scars on Samantha's face will tell that story every day of her life. But the scars from within are a driving force that constantly propel her forward in vengeance. She is keen on tracking down the panther with or without her brother's help. Samantha can almost feel the huge pelt of the animal across the worn boards of the cabin's floor. It will be a heavy price to pay in order to honor her mother, Juda. And that powerful momentum will drive this storyline like the wick of lit dynamite.
Elizabeth Crook breathes life into her main character, Benjamin, as his country-tinged voice re-tells this adventurous story through letters to Judge Carlton presiding in the county of Bandera. Benjamin had previously witnessed a horrendous crime committed by a wanted outlaw. It is this particular crime that gives legs to the panther episode as we experience the individual drives of both Benjamin and his sister, Samantha. Crook weaves tightly drawn threads as she introduces us to others who will perform exceedingly throughout the story: A Tejano outlaw with a remarkable pinto, a stalwart old minister, and a dog with the envy of every cat's nine lives.
Crook is a masterful storyteller in The Which Way Tree. She has an uncanny ability to wrap the storyline around you in a deep sense of time and place and dabbles in little inserts of laugh-out-loud humor. I'm from the Hill Country and Crook has incorporated the notches of the near and the far here. Although a rooted story of vengence, The Which Way Tree also seeps into you as a source of forgiveness and hope. Colorful characters, historically befitting anecdotes, and the magnetic draw of the human spirit make The Which Way Tree an exceptional read.
Tragedy strikes with the weight of a mighty calling card. It doesn't strut with a selective swagger. For it leans in on the rich and the poor and everyone in between. And like a slammin' door, you know it's paid you a visit.
The Civil War years have formed a blockade landscape around the Hill Country in central Texas. Everyone scratches out an existence to merely stay alive. And that includes a ferocious panther that steps silently onto the Shreve homestead late one night eyeing the goats and chickens in the pen. Little did he know that young Samantha would be rushing out-of-doors there in the moonlight having charged out of the cabin in anger. Juda, her mother, recognizes the howls of that grewsome panther as it attacks her daughter. Armed with a short hatchet, Juda is no match for those jaws. Benjamin, Samantha's half-brother, can only stand on the porch in helpless agony. Their father is miles away near Camp Verde.
The remaining scars on Samantha's face will tell that story every day of her life. But the scars from within are a driving force that constantly propel her forward in vengeance. She is keen on tracking down the panther with or without her brother's help. Samantha can almost feel the huge pelt of the animal across the worn boards of the cabin's floor. It will be a heavy price to pay in order to honor her mother, Juda. And that powerful momentum will drive this storyline like the wick of lit dynamite.
Elizabeth Crook breathes life into her main character, Benjamin, as his country-tinged voice re-tells this adventurous story through letters to Judge Carlton presiding in the county of Bandera. Benjamin had previously witnessed a horrendous crime committed by a wanted outlaw. It is this particular crime that gives legs to the panther episode as we experience the individual drives of both Benjamin and his sister, Samantha. Crook weaves tightly drawn threads as she introduces us to others who will perform exceedingly throughout the story: A Tejano outlaw with a remarkable pinto, a stalwart old minister, and a dog with the envy of every cat's nine lives.
Crook is a masterful storyteller in The Which Way Tree. She has an uncanny ability to wrap the storyline around you in a deep sense of time and place and dabbles in little inserts of laugh-out-loud humor. I'm from the Hill Country and Crook has incorporated the notches of the near and the far here. Although a rooted story of vengence, The Which Way Tree also seeps into you as a source of forgiveness and hope. Colorful characters, historically befitting anecdotes, and the magnetic draw of the human spirit make The Which Way Tree an exceptional read.
May 19, 2018
4 haunting stars to The Which Way Tree! ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
The Which Way Tree was recommended by my friend, Diane S. Thanks, Diane!
Living in the Texas frontier, Benjamin Shreve has quite the story to tell written in his own twangy voice in letters of “testimony” to a judge. The Which Way Tree is considered a pursuit narrative, and I would add that it was very much an adventure in that pursuit.
Benjamin and his sister, Sam, are pursuing a panther that not only scarred Sam’s face, her childhood, and her future, but also tragically killed her mother. She wants revenge.
I absolutely loved hearing Benjamin’s voice and his natural gift for storytelling. Sam is a strong, invincible girl, and I rooted for her throughout. The abiding and enduring sister/brother relationship between Sam and Benjamin was beautiful to watch unfold. Their struggle to survive was impactful.
There were some triggers (violence human-to-human and between animals and humans), and living on the wild frontier “some” violence is certainly understandable.
Overall, The Which Way Tree is a well-written, engaging, and beguiling tale of the brother and sister bond and a thirst for revenge no matter the cost.
Thank you to Elizabeth Crook, Little, Brown and Company, and Netgalley for the ARC. The Which Way Tree is available now!
My reviews can also be found on my shiny new blog: www.jennifertarheelreader.com
The Which Way Tree was recommended by my friend, Diane S. Thanks, Diane!
Living in the Texas frontier, Benjamin Shreve has quite the story to tell written in his own twangy voice in letters of “testimony” to a judge. The Which Way Tree is considered a pursuit narrative, and I would add that it was very much an adventure in that pursuit.
Benjamin and his sister, Sam, are pursuing a panther that not only scarred Sam’s face, her childhood, and her future, but also tragically killed her mother. She wants revenge.
I absolutely loved hearing Benjamin’s voice and his natural gift for storytelling. Sam is a strong, invincible girl, and I rooted for her throughout. The abiding and enduring sister/brother relationship between Sam and Benjamin was beautiful to watch unfold. Their struggle to survive was impactful.
There were some triggers (violence human-to-human and between animals and humans), and living on the wild frontier “some” violence is certainly understandable.
Overall, The Which Way Tree is a well-written, engaging, and beguiling tale of the brother and sister bond and a thirst for revenge no matter the cost.
Thank you to Elizabeth Crook, Little, Brown and Company, and Netgalley for the ARC. The Which Way Tree is available now!
My reviews can also be found on my shiny new blog: www.jennifertarheelreader.com
December 18, 2017
Elizabeth Crook spoke to me in a mid 19th century Texas drawl. So earthly, I could taste it. The Civil War era was one of my favorite times in American history. Life was different back then. Long before many of the modern conveniences we've grown accustomed to. I suppose that's what folks will be saying when they look back to the 21st century. The author delivered a rousing, well-written narrative in this character-driven storyline. I couldn't help but get tangled up with the main characters. There was just no getting out of their way. Suited me fine. The action was set on one long slow fuse. Burned with anticipation of a big bang. I was not disappointed.
Just a few years before the start of the brutal Civil War, in the back hills of Texas, Samantha Shreve, age six was viciously mauled by a panther. Her mother had valiantly come to her rescue only to suffer mortal wounds in the melee. Though Samantha survived, her face was left a mask of horror. Older brother Benjamin, age eight, could offer little help in fending off the enraged big cat. That guilt weighed heavily upon his shoulders. Samantha always talked and dreamed about exacting her revenge on that four-legged scourge of the West. That's all she lived for. Waiting for the showdown to come. It would. Woman against Panther. Only one would survive.
My thanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown and Company for this ARC in exchange for an unbiased review.
Just a few years before the start of the brutal Civil War, in the back hills of Texas, Samantha Shreve, age six was viciously mauled by a panther. Her mother had valiantly come to her rescue only to suffer mortal wounds in the melee. Though Samantha survived, her face was left a mask of horror. Older brother Benjamin, age eight, could offer little help in fending off the enraged big cat. That guilt weighed heavily upon his shoulders. Samantha always talked and dreamed about exacting her revenge on that four-legged scourge of the West. That's all she lived for. Waiting for the showdown to come. It would. Woman against Panther. Only one would survive.
My thanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown and Company for this ARC in exchange for an unbiased review.
May 9, 2025
I finished this yesterday and didn't write a review right away because I knew I would gush uncontrollably. Hard not to with a book this good.
Written in letter form from our narrator Benjamin to a traveling Judge requiring his testimony, it's very effective because of Benjamin's voice. He is 17 at the time of writing, but just 14 when the events took place. He's uneducated, but can read and write. He has a mulatto half sister 2 years younger than him, who is disfigured in a panther attack that also killed his stepmother when the kids were 6 and 8. His father dies a couple of years later, so the kids are left to survive and raise themselves.
Samantha is driven by one thing in life, finding that panther and killing it. She's one of the most irritating characters in literature, singing a one-note song, but you have to admire her grit and determination and courage. They have a run in with a bad man named Hanlin, ( the reason for Ben's written testimony to the Judge), get involved with a Mexican hombre named Mr. Pacheco and a Preacher who owns a panther hunting dog, and the chase is on!
That's the set-up, now I can gush!
These characters! The non-stop action once they set off, Benjamin's growing relationship with the Judge through letters and packages, the old panther hunting dog named Zachariah, the pinto Mustang that may or may not be stolen, and yes, even the wily panther. I dare you not to love and admire all these people and animals. The writing is unbelievably good, from an author I wasn't aware of. I can't help hoping Hollywood will film this.
This was a group read with a very small group, and Wyndy gets a shout out for choosing it. My favorite book of the year so far. I could go on, but I'll stop here. Howard, if you read this review, consider it a personal recommendation from me to you, it's going on my western literature shelf.
Written in letter form from our narrator Benjamin to a traveling Judge requiring his testimony, it's very effective because of Benjamin's voice. He is 17 at the time of writing, but just 14 when the events took place. He's uneducated, but can read and write. He has a mulatto half sister 2 years younger than him, who is disfigured in a panther attack that also killed his stepmother when the kids were 6 and 8. His father dies a couple of years later, so the kids are left to survive and raise themselves.
Samantha is driven by one thing in life, finding that panther and killing it. She's one of the most irritating characters in literature, singing a one-note song, but you have to admire her grit and determination and courage. They have a run in with a bad man named Hanlin, ( the reason for Ben's written testimony to the Judge), get involved with a Mexican hombre named Mr. Pacheco and a Preacher who owns a panther hunting dog, and the chase is on!
That's the set-up, now I can gush!
These characters! The non-stop action once they set off, Benjamin's growing relationship with the Judge through letters and packages, the old panther hunting dog named Zachariah, the pinto Mustang that may or may not be stolen, and yes, even the wily panther. I dare you not to love and admire all these people and animals. The writing is unbelievably good, from an author I wasn't aware of. I can't help hoping Hollywood will film this.
This was a group read with a very small group, and Wyndy gets a shout out for choosing it. My favorite book of the year so far. I could go on, but I'll stop here. Howard, if you read this review, consider it a personal recommendation from me to you, it's going on my western literature shelf.
March 6, 2022
This novel is a work of historical fiction which takes place in the hill country of Texas towards the end of the civil war. It is written in the voice of Benjamin Shreve, a teenager who is trying to keep house with his unhelpful half-sister Samantha after their father passes away. Her mother Juda was killed in an attack by a huge panther that had first attacked Sam and left her terribly scared. Sam wants revenge, it's the driving force of her life, but at 12, she can't do it alone. Eventually they team up with a Mexican man on a beautiful pinto horse and a preacher man who owns a panther hunting dog and head out on the journey of their lives.
The story is told in letters to Judge Edward H. Carlton who holds court in a Texan judicial district that extends down to the Mexican border. As the story opens, the judge is presiding over a grand jury hearing on April 25, 1866, and the court is questioning Benjamin Shreve about the evidence he can give regarding the hanging deaths of several civilians near Julian Creek. Ben, who is 17 at this time, testifies that he observed a man looting the bodies while he was out near the creek hunting. He states he can identify the man, one Clarence Hanlin, a Confederate soldier, because he's had run-ins with him since and believes he is now deceased.
The judge asks that Benjamin write his testimony in a detailed letter and send it off to him through the post office in Comfort. He will return to Banderas County in three months time to render his recommendation to the grand jury.
What follows is a very detailed account indeed of Benjamin's entire life story and is fascinating reading. I really enjoyed meeting this character as well as several others, especially the warm relationship that develops between them. This is an enthralling adventure story which is often quite amusing and tender-hearted.
When a book has an unusual title such as this one, I am always interested to learn where it comes from, and I spotted the reference for this one on page 183. The travelers are wet, cold and discouraged and on the verge of giving up, when the Lord gives them a sign to continue. 'We stand in a crossways place, and he give us a Which Way tree. He has shown us the way we are to go, and it is onward,' says Preacher Dob.
Many thanks to my youngest daughter who insisted I must read this book after we read The Book of Lost Friends for our last mother-daughters book club meeting. Both books take place in relatively the same time period and locale and both have memorable leading characters. I highly recommend both.
The story is told in letters to Judge Edward H. Carlton who holds court in a Texan judicial district that extends down to the Mexican border. As the story opens, the judge is presiding over a grand jury hearing on April 25, 1866, and the court is questioning Benjamin Shreve about the evidence he can give regarding the hanging deaths of several civilians near Julian Creek. Ben, who is 17 at this time, testifies that he observed a man looting the bodies while he was out near the creek hunting. He states he can identify the man, one Clarence Hanlin, a Confederate soldier, because he's had run-ins with him since and believes he is now deceased.
The judge asks that Benjamin write his testimony in a detailed letter and send it off to him through the post office in Comfort. He will return to Banderas County in three months time to render his recommendation to the grand jury.
What follows is a very detailed account indeed of Benjamin's entire life story and is fascinating reading. I really enjoyed meeting this character as well as several others, especially the warm relationship that develops between them. This is an enthralling adventure story which is often quite amusing and tender-hearted.
When a book has an unusual title such as this one, I am always interested to learn where it comes from, and I spotted the reference for this one on page 183. The travelers are wet, cold and discouraged and on the verge of giving up, when the Lord gives them a sign to continue. 'We stand in a crossways place, and he give us a Which Way tree. He has shown us the way we are to go, and it is onward,' says Preacher Dob.
Many thanks to my youngest daughter who insisted I must read this book after we read The Book of Lost Friends for our last mother-daughters book club meeting. Both books take place in relatively the same time period and locale and both have memorable leading characters. I highly recommend both.
April 10, 2018
3.5 stars This was a very fun, fast-paced story. I enjoyed the different narrative techniques, of the letters and testimonies, to tell the story as well. It didn't blow my mind but it was really enjoyable, well written & researched, and I could see this making a very entertaining film. Would definitely recommend to people who enjoy things set in the wild west.
June 18, 2025
A tale of adventure and the pursuit of revenge. Benjamin Shreve, age 17 years, is our guide as he takes us back 3 years to the attack on his half sister, Sam and her mother, Juda, by a panther. Juda dies and Sam is left horribly scarred. Sam becomes obsessed with finding and killing the panther and Benjamin becomes her unwilling ally.
It is also a heart warming tale. The story is relayed by Benjamin through letters to a judge, who becomes invested in this fine young man. Benjamin was my favourite- he was a responsible, kind boy, who looked out for his sister. He is only 14 when the events take place. Sam is 12. Benjamin had a penchant for learning and for books.
Benjamin and Sam receive help from Preacher Dob and Mr. Pacheco. We follow along with them and Preacher Dob’s dog, Zechariah, as they track the panther. Of course, there are lots of adventures and misadventures along the way.
“The question comes to us the as to whether we was tracking the panther or if, by some unknown hand we was dealt, the panther might be tracking us.”
The panther was a larger than life symbol in the lives of Benjamin, and especially Sam. A riveting adventure in the wilds of Texas.
My thanks to Diane Barnes, whose enthusiastic review brought me to this book.
Published: 2018
It is also a heart warming tale. The story is relayed by Benjamin through letters to a judge, who becomes invested in this fine young man. Benjamin was my favourite- he was a responsible, kind boy, who looked out for his sister. He is only 14 when the events take place. Sam is 12. Benjamin had a penchant for learning and for books.
Benjamin and Sam receive help from Preacher Dob and Mr. Pacheco. We follow along with them and Preacher Dob’s dog, Zechariah, as they track the panther. Of course, there are lots of adventures and misadventures along the way.
“The question comes to us the as to whether we was tracking the panther or if, by some unknown hand we was dealt, the panther might be tracking us.”
The panther was a larger than life symbol in the lives of Benjamin, and especially Sam. A riveting adventure in the wilds of Texas.
My thanks to Diane Barnes, whose enthusiastic review brought me to this book.
Published: 2018
May 18, 2018
This novel is pitch perfect and I do not say that very often. In fact, have I ever said that? Maybe I said it once or twice. I'm saying it today. I put it down and thought, "This is why I read fiction. This is the experience I seek." The novel is epistolary (a word I NEVER get to use)... epistolary, epistolary, epistolary. So either you like reading letters (and I do) and you'll enjoy this journey about a panther, loss, stamina, heartache, the power of the written word, hope, stubbornness, dirt, goats, the effects of heavy rainfall, trees OR you don't like letters and you'll be all kind of "wahhhh, why did you suggest this?" So make sure you like epistolary writing and fiction set in bygone eras and the resilience of humans in the face of a lot of adversity before you buy this or go to the library.
I got to the library and this was on hold for me and I thought hmmmm, I have zero recollection of putting this on hold. Then the librarian came over and told me she put it on hold for me on my card after she'd read it. Ha. I live in a small place.
This Elizabeth Crook excels at evocative detail. It was a deft and nifty piece of writing. Five gold stars.
Over and out,
Fishgirl
I got to the library and this was on hold for me and I thought hmmmm, I have zero recollection of putting this on hold. Then the librarian came over and told me she put it on hold for me on my card after she'd read it. Ha. I live in a small place.
This Elizabeth Crook excels at evocative detail. It was a deft and nifty piece of writing. Five gold stars.
Over and out,
Fishgirl
May 13, 2025
"The Lord has now spoke. He has told us to complete the journey. He has reminded me that journeys will not often be of my choosing. We stand in a crossways place, and he give us a Which Way tree, the same as he done for Sam Houston at the fork in the road at San Jacinto. He has shown us the way we are to go, and it is onward." ~ Preacher Dobson Beck
An epic story of young mulatto Samantha Shreve's all-consuming obsession with avenging her mother's death and her own mutilation at the jaws and claws of a notorious panther named El Demonio de Dos Dedos, The Demon Of Two Toes, set in the hill country of Texas in the mid-1860's just after the end of the Civil War. This was a perfect fusion of some of my favorite Western-themed novels but with its own distinctive voice as heard through the letters and testament of 17-year-old Benjamin Shreve, Samantha's older half-brother.
The novel begins when Benjamin is asked to provide epistolary testimony to traveling judge Edward Carlton about war crimes he witnessed when he was fourteen years old. As one question leads to another, Benjamin begins to spin out his and Samantha's riveting tale of adventure, revenge, survival, friendship and faith . . . of a sort. The animals, landscapes, weather and people are so rich and vivid here that you are transported straight to the core of these people and this place. I shed a couple tears with this one between the pitch perfect humor and the selfless acts of kindness. And that's what earns this novel a fifth star from me - the emotional power. I'm thrilled to discover the writing of this talented, award-winning native Texan and plan to move straight on to her novel The Madstone, which picks up Benjamin's story where this one leaves off. Let the next adventure begin!
“Dear Judge . . . I have been reading The Whale again, and I seen where Ishmael says that a most perilous and long voyage ended only begins a second, and a second ended only begins a third, and so on, for ever and for aye.”
~ Benjamin Shreve
An epic story of young mulatto Samantha Shreve's all-consuming obsession with avenging her mother's death and her own mutilation at the jaws and claws of a notorious panther named El Demonio de Dos Dedos, The Demon Of Two Toes, set in the hill country of Texas in the mid-1860's just after the end of the Civil War. This was a perfect fusion of some of my favorite Western-themed novels but with its own distinctive voice as heard through the letters and testament of 17-year-old Benjamin Shreve, Samantha's older half-brother.
The novel begins when Benjamin is asked to provide epistolary testimony to traveling judge Edward Carlton about war crimes he witnessed when he was fourteen years old. As one question leads to another, Benjamin begins to spin out his and Samantha's riveting tale of adventure, revenge, survival, friendship and faith . . . of a sort. The animals, landscapes, weather and people are so rich and vivid here that you are transported straight to the core of these people and this place. I shed a couple tears with this one between the pitch perfect humor and the selfless acts of kindness. And that's what earns this novel a fifth star from me - the emotional power. I'm thrilled to discover the writing of this talented, award-winning native Texan and plan to move straight on to her novel The Madstone, which picks up Benjamin's story where this one leaves off. Let the next adventure begin!
“Dear Judge . . . I have been reading The Whale again, and I seen where Ishmael says that a most perilous and long voyage ended only begins a second, and a second ended only begins a third, and so on, for ever and for aye.”
~ Benjamin Shreve
January 28, 2018
A pleasantly surprising, fun, unique, engaging, and, ultimately, gratifying novel (in the truest sense of the word, with bonus points for its novelty). And don't be surprised if this ends up on the big screen (sooner rather than later, but more on that below).
Texas (which is obviously Crook's stomping ground) after the Civil War is the backdrop for this coming-of-age, epic revenge-based quest/crusade, period piece that offers a story within a story, each of which, to some extent, stands nicely alone. My sense is the publisher saw an analogy to True Grit, which somewhat recently enjoyed a renaissance and renewed level of interest, but that undersells the work. Sure, much of the art here lies in Crook finding (and perfecting) the narrator's voice (which she explains in the acknowledgements). My sense is that some readers may initially struggle to buy into the narrator's authenticity, but if they give up, that will be their loss. (I'm reminded of the number of times folks have told me that they never embraced (or felt or heard) the cadence and lilt and inflection that constitutes the magic of Hillary Mantel's exquisite Wolf Hall and Bring Up the Bodies,; if you can't hear the voice, I have no doubt both books are a disappointing slog. But ... but ... once you hear the music..., oh my!) Here, once you let go, give yourself over, and (of course) suspend your disbelief, and you begin hearing Benjamin's voice, the story merrily sings along.
Serious reader's tip: after you've read the book, don't skip the author's acknowledgements, particularly the passage about the author's inspiration for the book. If you don't feel a tingle up your spine, we're not cut from the same cloth. And sure, it's fun to know whether the story is destined for the big screen (or at least something on cable)? It sure sounds like it, and it's fun to think about casting the production. (Would Robert Duvall play Preacher Dob? Frankly, my preference would be Judge Carlton (although that would require a slightly different spin on the story, but Peter Falk's brilliant role in The Princess Bride immediately comes to mind).)
This book was dramatically different, and significantly more compact (OK, shorter) than the other Crook novels I've read, but every bit as entertaining. I didn't read it in one sitting but, if my schedule had been more flexible, I'm confident I could have (and would have immensely enjoyed doing so).
I'm immensely curious to see if, over time, the publisher tries to market this to the ever-expanding and diverse young adult (YA) reading community. It seems like the genre has exploded with supernatural/fantasy fiction (dystopia, vampires, etc.), and one always hopes that enthusiastic younger readers will broaden their horizons by sampling slightly different genres. Is this too Western for that readership? I hope not. Sure, this is a dramatic departure from the steady stream of reliable best sellers that John Green keeps writing (or, in a prior generation, S.E. Hinton's classic The Outsiders); but part of me thinks that younger readers who enjoyed, among others, The Book Thief, Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, The Golden Compass/Dark Materials, Ender's Game, and, I dunno, maybe even The Graveyard Book are willing to read stories completely divorced from their day-to-day experience, so why not? Apparently, they're still reading Paulson's Hatchet.... Could this be a modern-day Little House on the Prairie? If it shows up on the big screen, who knows?
As a sucker for a good ending, I thought Crook nailed it here. Enough twists and turns that I didn't see it coming, but enough of the right answers to my asked and unanticipated questions to leave me satisfied, relieved, slightly saddened, but fully gratified with the whole.
In any event, it's something completely different, elegantly constructed, and well worth a read.
Texas (which is obviously Crook's stomping ground) after the Civil War is the backdrop for this coming-of-age, epic revenge-based quest/crusade, period piece that offers a story within a story, each of which, to some extent, stands nicely alone. My sense is the publisher saw an analogy to True Grit, which somewhat recently enjoyed a renaissance and renewed level of interest, but that undersells the work. Sure, much of the art here lies in Crook finding (and perfecting) the narrator's voice (which she explains in the acknowledgements). My sense is that some readers may initially struggle to buy into the narrator's authenticity, but if they give up, that will be their loss. (I'm reminded of the number of times folks have told me that they never embraced (or felt or heard) the cadence and lilt and inflection that constitutes the magic of Hillary Mantel's exquisite Wolf Hall and Bring Up the Bodies,; if you can't hear the voice, I have no doubt both books are a disappointing slog. But ... but ... once you hear the music..., oh my!) Here, once you let go, give yourself over, and (of course) suspend your disbelief, and you begin hearing Benjamin's voice, the story merrily sings along.
Serious reader's tip: after you've read the book, don't skip the author's acknowledgements, particularly the passage about the author's inspiration for the book. If you don't feel a tingle up your spine, we're not cut from the same cloth. And sure, it's fun to know whether the story is destined for the big screen (or at least something on cable)? It sure sounds like it, and it's fun to think about casting the production. (Would Robert Duvall play Preacher Dob? Frankly, my preference would be Judge Carlton (although that would require a slightly different spin on the story, but Peter Falk's brilliant role in The Princess Bride immediately comes to mind).)
This book was dramatically different, and significantly more compact (OK, shorter) than the other Crook novels I've read, but every bit as entertaining. I didn't read it in one sitting but, if my schedule had been more flexible, I'm confident I could have (and would have immensely enjoyed doing so).
I'm immensely curious to see if, over time, the publisher tries to market this to the ever-expanding and diverse young adult (YA) reading community. It seems like the genre has exploded with supernatural/fantasy fiction (dystopia, vampires, etc.), and one always hopes that enthusiastic younger readers will broaden their horizons by sampling slightly different genres. Is this too Western for that readership? I hope not. Sure, this is a dramatic departure from the steady stream of reliable best sellers that John Green keeps writing (or, in a prior generation, S.E. Hinton's classic The Outsiders); but part of me thinks that younger readers who enjoyed, among others, The Book Thief, Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, The Golden Compass/Dark Materials, Ender's Game, and, I dunno, maybe even The Graveyard Book are willing to read stories completely divorced from their day-to-day experience, so why not? Apparently, they're still reading Paulson's Hatchet.... Could this be a modern-day Little House on the Prairie? If it shows up on the big screen, who knows?
As a sucker for a good ending, I thought Crook nailed it here. Enough twists and turns that I didn't see it coming, but enough of the right answers to my asked and unanticipated questions to leave me satisfied, relieved, slightly saddened, but fully gratified with the whole.
In any event, it's something completely different, elegantly constructed, and well worth a read.
August 26, 2025
What an unusual and delightfully told story this is. I would not have thought I would be so engrossed in a panther hunt, but I felt myself shivering from the cold, smelling the skunk (which is an odor I have encountered in real life and not one you want to revisit), and riding with the wind into unforgettable scrub brush and canyons.
Benjamin Shreve, the young man who tells of this adventure to a judge via a series of letters, is marvelously drawn, as are all the characters Benjamin introduces us to as the story unfolds. He has read Moby Dick, The Whale, and I dare say his life has parallels with that story in the obsession of his sister, Sam, with the panther that has left its mark on her body and soul. If she is Ahab, he is Ishmael. I loved the echoes of that great book that ring through this one. Elizabeth Crook knows how to pay homage.
Too much can be said about books that have dynamic plot lines and characterizations. You want to effuse and in doing so risk ruining the story for other readers. I never, ever want to do that; so I am going to say nothing more than give yourself a gift and read this one.
Thank you to my friend, Diane, for pointing me here. She has done this many times over the years, and I am always grateful.
Benjamin Shreve, the young man who tells of this adventure to a judge via a series of letters, is marvelously drawn, as are all the characters Benjamin introduces us to as the story unfolds. He has read Moby Dick, The Whale, and I dare say his life has parallels with that story in the obsession of his sister, Sam, with the panther that has left its mark on her body and soul. If she is Ahab, he is Ishmael. I loved the echoes of that great book that ring through this one. Elizabeth Crook knows how to pay homage.
Too much can be said about books that have dynamic plot lines and characterizations. You want to effuse and in doing so risk ruining the story for other readers. I never, ever want to do that; so I am going to say nothing more than give yourself a gift and read this one.
Thank you to my friend, Diane, for pointing me here. She has done this many times over the years, and I am always grateful.
July 23, 2019
Cute shaggy dog Western uses dead-on mid-19th-century dialect to tell the tale of a hapless boy and his hard-headed sister
We wouldn't do it for Randolph Scott, but we might for Gene Wilder.
who's determined to revenge herself upon a legendary mountain lion. Needs brisker pacing in the second half, and deeper character development wouldn't run amiss. But it's fun for the language alone.
We wouldn't do it for Randolph Scott, but we might for Gene Wilder.
who's determined to revenge herself upon a legendary mountain lion. Needs brisker pacing in the second half, and deeper character development wouldn't run amiss. But it's fun for the language alone.
April 4, 2018
I loved this book! Author Elizabeth Crook presents some interesting characters and great storytelling through the eyes of young Benjamin Shreve, a seventeen year old orphan who is living on his own with his younger sister.
Set in the Texas hill country immediately following the war between the states, Benjamin and his sister Samantha experience a traumatizing event involving a panther. They soon learn the panther is widely known throughout the area and even has a bounty on his head. Samantha becomes obsessed with getting revenge on the panther, to the point where she disregards safety for herself and others.
Through a series of Benjamin’s letters to a circuit judge concerning an unlawful hanging, readers learn the story of Benjamin’s family and what happened when the panther crossed their path. As Benjamin writes these letters, it is evident that he is growing into an upstanding young man. His letters have a wonderful voice and give life to the other characters in the book.
I enjoyed the unlikely group of panther hunters--a Tejano cowboy, a humble preacher with a past, a panther-tracking dog named Zechariah, Benjamin and Samantha. And of course, no western is complete without a villain. Benjamin is so eloquent in describing Clarence Hanlin, an unsavory Confederate soldier who is one of the men responsible for the unlawful hanging that occurred.
This one is going on my list of favorites and I can recommend it to anyone who loves westerns, historical fiction or just wonderful storytelling, no matter what the setting.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Little Brown & Company for allowing me a copy to read and give my honest review.
Set in the Texas hill country immediately following the war between the states, Benjamin and his sister Samantha experience a traumatizing event involving a panther. They soon learn the panther is widely known throughout the area and even has a bounty on his head. Samantha becomes obsessed with getting revenge on the panther, to the point where she disregards safety for herself and others.
Through a series of Benjamin’s letters to a circuit judge concerning an unlawful hanging, readers learn the story of Benjamin’s family and what happened when the panther crossed their path. As Benjamin writes these letters, it is evident that he is growing into an upstanding young man. His letters have a wonderful voice and give life to the other characters in the book.
I enjoyed the unlikely group of panther hunters--a Tejano cowboy, a humble preacher with a past, a panther-tracking dog named Zechariah, Benjamin and Samantha. And of course, no western is complete without a villain. Benjamin is so eloquent in describing Clarence Hanlin, an unsavory Confederate soldier who is one of the men responsible for the unlawful hanging that occurred.
This one is going on my list of favorites and I can recommend it to anyone who loves westerns, historical fiction or just wonderful storytelling, no matter what the setting.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Little Brown & Company for allowing me a copy to read and give my honest review.
July 12, 2018
I listened to the audiobook and the reader made it feel as I was listening to a tall tale told around a campfire.
Set in Texas just after the Civil War and narrated by Benjamin Shreve, a teenager who's stepmother and younger half sister, Samantha, are attacked by a legendary panther. The stepmother is killed and Samantha is mauled, leaving her face permanently scarred. So begins the adventurous and perilous journey of an unlikely posse determined to track and kill the demon panther.
Told with wit, charm and candor, this engaging novel would make a fabulous movie.
4.5 stars
Set in Texas just after the Civil War and narrated by Benjamin Shreve, a teenager who's stepmother and younger half sister, Samantha, are attacked by a legendary panther. The stepmother is killed and Samantha is mauled, leaving her face permanently scarred. So begins the adventurous and perilous journey of an unlikely posse determined to track and kill the demon panther.
Told with wit, charm and candor, this engaging novel would make a fabulous movie.
4.5 stars
August 8, 2025
Thanks to Diane for putting this book on my radar and thanks to my library’s Libby app for this book having no wait to download. Now, that means that it’s not as desirable a read as many of the “It” books right now, but I think it’s a better choice and lots more fun! If you are in the mood for adventure with high stakes chasing of a panther, renegade soldiers, larger-than-life characters then this is for you!
This is told in letters and worked very well that way. A 17-year-old witness to a crime, Benjamin Shreve, has been told by the judge to provide written testimony regarding evidence he may have about a “Sesesh” soldier’s guilt in a hanging of 8 men and thieving of their persons. Benjamin very cleverly writes and narrates his story to the judge in a matter-of-fact manner which was just so endearing to me. The story not only provides evidence for the crime, but it weaves in his own story of an epic panther hunt.
Benjamin also tells his half-sister Samantha’s story, who is left scarred in her face at 6 years old after being attacked by a panther. Her mother, in full-on child protective fashion, engages in a terrible battle with the panther hacking off two of its toes before being killed. Needless to say, stubborn and possessed Samantha sets out on an obsessive vengeance to kill the vicious panther! She becomes much like the panther in her untamable spirit and a force to be reckoned with! I am thinking now that this is really her story told by her brother.
Thus, the adventure throughout takes readers all over southern Texas on an epic journey just after the end of the Civil War. This was romp of a tale and kept the pages turning!
This is told in letters and worked very well that way. A 17-year-old witness to a crime, Benjamin Shreve, has been told by the judge to provide written testimony regarding evidence he may have about a “Sesesh” soldier’s guilt in a hanging of 8 men and thieving of their persons. Benjamin very cleverly writes and narrates his story to the judge in a matter-of-fact manner which was just so endearing to me. The story not only provides evidence for the crime, but it weaves in his own story of an epic panther hunt.
Benjamin also tells his half-sister Samantha’s story, who is left scarred in her face at 6 years old after being attacked by a panther. Her mother, in full-on child protective fashion, engages in a terrible battle with the panther hacking off two of its toes before being killed. Needless to say, stubborn and possessed Samantha sets out on an obsessive vengeance to kill the vicious panther! She becomes much like the panther in her untamable spirit and a force to be reckoned with! I am thinking now that this is really her story told by her brother.
Thus, the adventure throughout takes readers all over southern Texas on an epic journey just after the end of the Civil War. This was romp of a tale and kept the pages turning!
March 13, 2024
A fine, unpretentious story set in the old west involving two kids, a deadly panther, and adventure. Splendidly narrated by the very talented Will Collyer. Every bit as good as its sequel (which I read first), "The Madstone."
February 3, 2018
The Which Way Tree by Elizabeth Crook commanded my attention from the fist page. I loved the voice and the story kept my interest.
In 1866 Texas, Ben is called to testify about a murder incident that occurred three years previous. The judge hopes to determine if Hanlin murdered eight Union soldier prisoners. Ben said he had come across Hanlin at the scene of the crime and that he was also at Hanlin's death.
A natural story teller, the boy's statement starts at the beginning of his life and the circuit judge, needing to move one, asks the boy to write down his testimony and mail it to him.
In a series of letters the boy relates a tale of single-minded vengeance.
Ben's mother died when he was a few years old. His father brought home a former slave to take care of the home and children; Sam was soon born.
When Ben was eight a panther attacked Sam. Her Sam's mother fought the cat and hacked off several of its toes. She died saving Sam's life, but the girl was left hideously scarred.
After the death of their father, the children struggled on their own. The nearby Civil War prisoner of war camp have cleared out ready game. Ben must travel far for game and one day he happened upon Hanlin pick-pocketing the bodies of dead Union prisoners.
Sam is obsessed with killing the panther. While stalking the panther, the children come into conflict with Hanlin. They rescue his prisoner Pacheco. Hanlin now holds a grudge against them, but in Pacheco they have found a friend.
Ben's Testament is told in a series of letters, showing a fatalistic acceptance of his hard life in a hostile environment filled with danger from Secesh, Indians, and bandits. He works a job and takes care of their few livestock but Sam is idle and defiant. Her obsession with killing the deadly panther takes the children on a journey fraught with danger and filled with colorful characters who have lived ungodly lives.
Preacher Dob warns Sam that vengeance belongs to the Lord, and she replies, only if he can beat me to it. Preacher Dobs found religion and seeks to expiate his sins. The Mexican Pacheco knows all his mistakes are behind him.
Ben's life is filled with loss and hardship but there is something noble and perfect about him. He is unassuming and grateful and earns the judge's esteem. And the readers. He is a marvelous creation.
Ben is a natural story-teller and the judge comes to appreciate the boy's love of writing. When Ben requests more paper and ink, the judge readily provides them. When Ben complains about his worn quill pen, wishing he had a modern pen, the judge sends that as well. The judge's gifts increase, sending Ben books including Tristram Shandy.
When Ben threw ears of corn over the fence to the Union prisoners someone in return threw back his treasure: a copy of Moby Dick. The novel enthralled the boy and he mentions the book twice in his Testament.
Ben's tale is inspired by Melville's novel. There is Sam's single-minded obsession with revenge on the beast called El Demonio de Dos Dedos--the Demon of Two Toes. I also noted how Pacheco face scarred by pocks of black gunpowder parallels Queequeg's Maori tattoos. I had to wonder if Ben has embellished his Testament, writing not subjective truth but transforming his tale. Isn't that what writers do? Take life and tweak it, giving it meaning and form?
An Act of God, or nature, brings Ben's tale to a nail-biting conclusion, revealing at last what the judge wanted to hear at the beginning: why Ben is convinced that Hanlin was a murderer and is deceased.
In her Acknowledgement, Crook states that her manuscript came to Robert Duvall, who played Gus McCrae in Lonesome Dove. (A marvelous movie and book!) I can imagine Crook's book as a movie. Here's hoping!
I received a free e-book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.
In 1866 Texas, Ben is called to testify about a murder incident that occurred three years previous. The judge hopes to determine if Hanlin murdered eight Union soldier prisoners. Ben said he had come across Hanlin at the scene of the crime and that he was also at Hanlin's death.
A natural story teller, the boy's statement starts at the beginning of his life and the circuit judge, needing to move one, asks the boy to write down his testimony and mail it to him.
In a series of letters the boy relates a tale of single-minded vengeance.
Ben's mother died when he was a few years old. His father brought home a former slave to take care of the home and children; Sam was soon born.
When Ben was eight a panther attacked Sam. Her Sam's mother fought the cat and hacked off several of its toes. She died saving Sam's life, but the girl was left hideously scarred.
After the death of their father, the children struggled on their own. The nearby Civil War prisoner of war camp have cleared out ready game. Ben must travel far for game and one day he happened upon Hanlin pick-pocketing the bodies of dead Union prisoners.
Sam is obsessed with killing the panther. While stalking the panther, the children come into conflict with Hanlin. They rescue his prisoner Pacheco. Hanlin now holds a grudge against them, but in Pacheco they have found a friend.
Ben's Testament is told in a series of letters, showing a fatalistic acceptance of his hard life in a hostile environment filled with danger from Secesh, Indians, and bandits. He works a job and takes care of their few livestock but Sam is idle and defiant. Her obsession with killing the deadly panther takes the children on a journey fraught with danger and filled with colorful characters who have lived ungodly lives.
Preacher Dob warns Sam that vengeance belongs to the Lord, and she replies, only if he can beat me to it. Preacher Dobs found religion and seeks to expiate his sins. The Mexican Pacheco knows all his mistakes are behind him.
Ben's life is filled with loss and hardship but there is something noble and perfect about him. He is unassuming and grateful and earns the judge's esteem. And the readers. He is a marvelous creation.
Ben is a natural story-teller and the judge comes to appreciate the boy's love of writing. When Ben requests more paper and ink, the judge readily provides them. When Ben complains about his worn quill pen, wishing he had a modern pen, the judge sends that as well. The judge's gifts increase, sending Ben books including Tristram Shandy.
When Ben threw ears of corn over the fence to the Union prisoners someone in return threw back his treasure: a copy of Moby Dick. The novel enthralled the boy and he mentions the book twice in his Testament.
Ben's tale is inspired by Melville's novel. There is Sam's single-minded obsession with revenge on the beast called El Demonio de Dos Dedos--the Demon of Two Toes. I also noted how Pacheco face scarred by pocks of black gunpowder parallels Queequeg's Maori tattoos. I had to wonder if Ben has embellished his Testament, writing not subjective truth but transforming his tale. Isn't that what writers do? Take life and tweak it, giving it meaning and form?
An Act of God, or nature, brings Ben's tale to a nail-biting conclusion, revealing at last what the judge wanted to hear at the beginning: why Ben is convinced that Hanlin was a murderer and is deceased.
In her Acknowledgement, Crook states that her manuscript came to Robert Duvall, who played Gus McCrae in Lonesome Dove. (A marvelous movie and book!) I can imagine Crook's book as a movie. Here's hoping!
I received a free e-book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.
September 3, 2023
Now this was FUN! I listened to this book and I loved the narrator. Very quick listen & very entertaining.
An old western story told by the endearing Benjamin through a series of letters. The characters are so perfectly developed. I loved their personalities each and every one for who they are. I loved picturing the judge receiving these letters and being thoroughly entertained by this kid Benjamin who feels he needs to share every detail about his experience. At the same time being sucked Into this crazy tale. Benjamin was just my absolute favorite and I also loved the bad guy...they both entertained me. Such a great adventure!
Okay so I first listened to this in 2019 and that is the previous review.
I recently listened to again because I was giving the book as a gift for a book exchange. I thought I might need to just double check it was good. I should not have doubted it. I was only going to listen a little and skip around. But I just love this story and listened to the whole thing. I even fell in love with all of the characters this time.
I have listened to it a total of 3 times and enjoyed it so much. One of those times was with my teenage daughter and she loved it also. It has a few swears but the way the narrator says them in the bad guys voice makes me laugh. Good old Wild West language.
This book is like a movie you just rewatch and love!
Listened to it a 4th time 8/24/23 Fabulous!
An old western story told by the endearing Benjamin through a series of letters. The characters are so perfectly developed. I loved their personalities each and every one for who they are. I loved picturing the judge receiving these letters and being thoroughly entertained by this kid Benjamin who feels he needs to share every detail about his experience. At the same time being sucked Into this crazy tale. Benjamin was just my absolute favorite and I also loved the bad guy...they both entertained me. Such a great adventure!
Okay so I first listened to this in 2019 and that is the previous review.
I recently listened to again because I was giving the book as a gift for a book exchange. I thought I might need to just double check it was good. I should not have doubted it. I was only going to listen a little and skip around. But I just love this story and listened to the whole thing. I even fell in love with all of the characters this time.
I have listened to it a total of 3 times and enjoyed it so much. One of those times was with my teenage daughter and she loved it also. It has a few swears but the way the narrator says them in the bad guys voice makes me laugh. Good old Wild West language.
This book is like a movie you just rewatch and love!
Listened to it a 4th time 8/24/23 Fabulous!
February 14, 2019
Samantha Shreve is a young woman, a child, really, looking for the panther that killed her ma. There is some “True Grit” here, and some “Moby Dick.” Ishmael in this story is Samantha’s extraordinarily put-upon older half-brother, Benjamin Shreve. At least Ishmael chose to board The Pequod of his own free will—no such luck for poor Benjamin, as he, along with a number of other remarkable characters, are dragged into Samantha’s harrowing quest by the force and purity of her desire for revenge. Samantha out Ahabs Ahab by a far piece. How it happens that in the course of this novel, we come to understand Benjamin’s deep love for his half-sister, despite the anger that swamps every redeeming quality she might otherwise possess, is written-word magic.
This is a wonderful novel which confirms my belief that there is a renaissance in literature concerning that remarkable time and place and people sometimes called “The Wild West.” It stands alongside other old iron renewed and re-worked in a fresh fire, like Dewitt’s “The Sisters Brothers” and the Coen Brother’s “The Ballad of Buster Scruggs.”
Highly recommended.
This is a wonderful novel which confirms my belief that there is a renaissance in literature concerning that remarkable time and place and people sometimes called “The Wild West.” It stands alongside other old iron renewed and re-worked in a fresh fire, like Dewitt’s “The Sisters Brothers” and the Coen Brother’s “The Ballad of Buster Scruggs.”
Highly recommended.
May 4, 2019
When I first started this I did not like the narrator and the manner in which the store is told (a series of testimonial letters) was also bothersome to me. These two factors were distracting me and I didn't realize how much I was liking the story until I was about half way done. So what did I do? As soon as it was finished I started it right over and listened to it all again and thoroughly enjoyed every minute! I've never done that before and I'm so glad I did. I even slowed down the speed on the second go round! If you like True Grit and The Sisters Brothers I think you will enjoy this. I laughed out loud at the bad guy. All the characters were so great! And if anyone wants to make this into a movie talk to me about casting...I already have a few lined up. 4.5 stars
There is good ol cowboy language, really only from one character, but still...Lois Lamour would probably not approve.
There is good ol cowboy language, really only from one character, but still...Lois Lamour would probably not approve.
July 25, 2019
La voz narrativa es un arma de doble filo, por un lado la narración de Benjamín hace muy amena y divertida la lectura pero por otro le resta dramatismo y tensión a muchas escenas. Lo he leído a gusto pero esperaba un poquito más de esta novela.
January 28, 2021
Very easy, fast listen! Love the main character and his story told through letters. Perfect narrator too. Love hearing South Texas towns so close to home.
March 9, 2021
A future classic of its genre. Set in post-American Civil War Texas, the obsessive search by the girl, Samantha, for the panther who had killed her mother and mauled her very badly, especially facially. A disparate group accompanies her: her older brother, Benjamin; a Mexican, possibly a horse-thief; a minister; his good-for-nothing nephew and the minister's "panther dog.". The story is told by Benjamin in a series of letters he writes to a judge as a form of deposition, ostensibly about men he found dead at a creek. The story takes off from there. Each of the characters was well-drawn; the story, though simply told was well done, and I really liked the author's use of dialect, phonetic rendering of any Spanish; and the way people might talk, shown in Benjamin's letters. Huckleberry Finn came to mind. The Which Way Tree refers to a tree at which the minister prayed that the Lord show them which way they should now go--forward after the panther, or back home. I was thinking that in the right hands the story might make a good movie.
Most highly recommended.
Most highly recommended.
August 27, 2025
A solid civil-war era western set in the Texas hill country, then thinly-settled. A panther (mountain lion) attack leaves the mother dead and her daughter badly maimed. And obsessed with killing the big cat. The story is told by her half-brother, in a series of letters to a judge who's trying to put away a rebel who apparently murdered a bunch of innocent people and stole their stuff. The bad guy is a little over-the-top, I never quite believed in the girl, and the epistolary style is slow-going at times. But the story picked up at the end, and the details rang true. This isn't a classic, but if you like western adventure stories set in the early days, this will scratch that itch. For me this was a 3.5 star read, and the solid ending earns it a round-up. Cautiously recommended book, for Western fans.
February 4, 2021
This was a very fun book to listen to. It moved very fast and held my interest the whole way through. It was especially enjoyable to me because I am familiar with much of the setting’s geography and some of the area’s history that was briefly touched upon.
January 31, 2018
via my blog: https://bookstalkerblog.wordpress.com/
'The fact that she was so hard on me and on Samantha makes it all the more curious the way she laid her life down, in such a bloody fashion, in defense of Samantha the day a panther came calling.'
I usually don’t read a lot of novels set in the Civil War era but this story is written in such a way that the reader feels they’ve traveled back in time. The language feels authentic, I marvel at authors with the ability to place the proper drawl in their writing. The mother of Benjamin died after his birth, in the hard scrabble existence of the times, his father needed a woman so he found a mate in Juda, a ‘borrowed’ black woman whom he decided to love or keep, depending how you look at the situation. She birthed a daughter, his half-sister Sam. Mean to the bone, she fast showed young Benjamin who was boss of the house, but the meanness was born of hardness she must have experienced, as one night when she disrobed to show Ben he has already been beat in ‘leaving his mark on her flesh’. She certainly doesn’t take kindly to threats, especially from young boys. When a panther comes calling, she sacrifices herself to save her daughter Sam, but the panther can’t be bested by Juda’s grit. The attack on Sam can’t be stopped, leaving her face ravaged. A taste for vengeance is born in her, as her mother is dragged off by the big cat. It’s too late by the time their father returns to save Juda.
Through letters to a judge, Jim is testifying about the deaths of prisoners one Clarence Hanlin may have a part in, but this becomes for the reader the story itself. “For six years, Sam had been waiting in a way that was eager. It seemed sometimes that all she did was wait, and watch for that panther.” Her obsession among other hardships they face force them to venture out after their father dies. They interfere with a Secesh named Hanlin, saving one Lorenzo Pacheco (the Mexican) . Taking a finger off with a hell of a shot, they discover that Hanlin’s uncle, Preacher Dob owns a dog that is a great tracker of… panthers. Hanlin is a bad seed, as the preacher is fast to remind with stories of his childhood deeds. The dog decides to help the children hence, the preacher joins them on their journey. Things don’t pan out as Hanlin thought they would, he wants his money, and he will stalk them as they stalk the devil panther and get his horse back too!
Life is more than hardscrabble, in fact Sam has grown to be as hard as her own mother was, minus the work ethics. She isn’t the most likable person, but if you explore what you learn about her, it’s hard to imagine her any other way. A face wrecked by a wild animal that killed her mother, her mother was ‘given’ to her father so there is her mixed race to contend with, the environment, the hardscrabble existence, what’s to be so dang happy about anyway? Ben, where does Ben get his light? He doesn’t seem to carry the same poison inside of him his wounded, angry half-sister does. He too lost his mother, though he never knew her. The only touch of a mother he ever knew had been through Juda, and based on the prologue we know she was mean to the marrow of her bones yet somehow manages to maintain a natural peace. By simply writing his letters, he encounters everything from rattlesnakes, to back-breaking work, hunger, not to mention the hassle of his spitfire sister who can’t seem to be bothered, to the point even Sam’s mare would be happy to see her elsewhere. It’s simply the state of his life, not one he complains about. He charms the judge through their correspondence, and receives help without ever asking for it. Sam is a different story entirely, and she makes her own ending, one Benjamin hears much later.
Do they kill the panther, avenging Juda’s death? Can they survive the threat of the Secesh, the Comanches, and all the hard luck things that befall them? Will the truth of just how bad Clarence Hanlin is ever be proven? You have to read.
I don’t usually read western novels, but I wanted a break from my usual reads. I wasn’t disappointed.
Publication Date: February 6, 2018
Little, Brown and Company
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'The fact that she was so hard on me and on Samantha makes it all the more curious the way she laid her life down, in such a bloody fashion, in defense of Samantha the day a panther came calling.'
I usually don’t read a lot of novels set in the Civil War era but this story is written in such a way that the reader feels they’ve traveled back in time. The language feels authentic, I marvel at authors with the ability to place the proper drawl in their writing. The mother of Benjamin died after his birth, in the hard scrabble existence of the times, his father needed a woman so he found a mate in Juda, a ‘borrowed’ black woman whom he decided to love or keep, depending how you look at the situation. She birthed a daughter, his half-sister Sam. Mean to the bone, she fast showed young Benjamin who was boss of the house, but the meanness was born of hardness she must have experienced, as one night when she disrobed to show Ben he has already been beat in ‘leaving his mark on her flesh’. She certainly doesn’t take kindly to threats, especially from young boys. When a panther comes calling, she sacrifices herself to save her daughter Sam, but the panther can’t be bested by Juda’s grit. The attack on Sam can’t be stopped, leaving her face ravaged. A taste for vengeance is born in her, as her mother is dragged off by the big cat. It’s too late by the time their father returns to save Juda.
Through letters to a judge, Jim is testifying about the deaths of prisoners one Clarence Hanlin may have a part in, but this becomes for the reader the story itself. “For six years, Sam had been waiting in a way that was eager. It seemed sometimes that all she did was wait, and watch for that panther.” Her obsession among other hardships they face force them to venture out after their father dies. They interfere with a Secesh named Hanlin, saving one Lorenzo Pacheco (the Mexican) . Taking a finger off with a hell of a shot, they discover that Hanlin’s uncle, Preacher Dob owns a dog that is a great tracker of… panthers. Hanlin is a bad seed, as the preacher is fast to remind with stories of his childhood deeds. The dog decides to help the children hence, the preacher joins them on their journey. Things don’t pan out as Hanlin thought they would, he wants his money, and he will stalk them as they stalk the devil panther and get his horse back too!
Life is more than hardscrabble, in fact Sam has grown to be as hard as her own mother was, minus the work ethics. She isn’t the most likable person, but if you explore what you learn about her, it’s hard to imagine her any other way. A face wrecked by a wild animal that killed her mother, her mother was ‘given’ to her father so there is her mixed race to contend with, the environment, the hardscrabble existence, what’s to be so dang happy about anyway? Ben, where does Ben get his light? He doesn’t seem to carry the same poison inside of him his wounded, angry half-sister does. He too lost his mother, though he never knew her. The only touch of a mother he ever knew had been through Juda, and based on the prologue we know she was mean to the marrow of her bones yet somehow manages to maintain a natural peace. By simply writing his letters, he encounters everything from rattlesnakes, to back-breaking work, hunger, not to mention the hassle of his spitfire sister who can’t seem to be bothered, to the point even Sam’s mare would be happy to see her elsewhere. It’s simply the state of his life, not one he complains about. He charms the judge through their correspondence, and receives help without ever asking for it. Sam is a different story entirely, and she makes her own ending, one Benjamin hears much later.
Do they kill the panther, avenging Juda’s death? Can they survive the threat of the Secesh, the Comanches, and all the hard luck things that befall them? Will the truth of just how bad Clarence Hanlin is ever be proven? You have to read.
I don’t usually read western novels, but I wanted a break from my usual reads. I wasn’t disappointed.
Publication Date: February 6, 2018
Little, Brown and Company
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December 15, 2018
Set in the time during and right after the Civil War, THE WHICH WAY TREE immediately engages the reader with the voice of Texan Benjamin Shreve, 17 years old as we begin the novel, but younger in the tale he tells us. Let me correct myself—his purpose in sharing his tale is to provide testimony to a judge. A murder trial has begun, but the circuit judge is only beginning the proceedings and encourages Benjamin to write down what he knows of possible criminal named Clarence Hanlin. In three months, the judge intends to resume the trial.
Benjamin has read few books in his lifetime, but one of them was Moby-Dick, so he has command of the English language and comes to enjoy sending letters. As a bonus, the judge takes an interest in the boy and begins sending him writing materials and other gifts. Benjamin’s parents are dead. He scratches out a hardscrabble living doing woodwork and other odd jobs. As if life were not hard enough, he must take care of his half sister Samantha (“Sam”) and this is no easy task.
Sam is one of the most cantankerous, unobliging, and stubborn characters ever met in fiction or life. But we must have some sympathy for the girl because her face was badly mauled by a panther, not just any panther, but one legendary throughout the Texas Hill Country. This same panther killed Sam’s mother, and like Ahab chasing the white whale, she is obsessed with finding and killing it. Benjamin has little choice but to fall in with her quest, though he more or less thinks she is tilting at windmills.
Next in the story is Zechariah—an old one-eyed hound, equally as legendary as the panther. Although Zechariah is a genius at tracking the panther, his owner, Preacher Dob, is initially dead-set against loaning him out. Soon, though, both are involved in the hunt. Lending much gallantry to what becomes a panther posse is a Tejano outlaw named Pacheco.
Misfortune and bad luck ensue, due especially to interactions with Preacher Dob’s nephew, Clarence Hanlin—a despicable fellow who nurses a deep hatred for Sam. You see, she shot off his finger.
Suspenseful up until the very end, Benjamin’s descriptions and interpretations of what went down during the panther hunt are by turns wry, raw, colorful and endearing. Readers who enjoy Larry McMurtry’s western novels will appreciate The Which Way Tree. Also, because of the time period and setting, I was reminded of News of the World by Paulette Jiles. In the Acknowledgements, I learned that actor Robert Duvall read and enjoyed an early draft of the novel, so perhaps this roiling tale will hit the big screen.
Thank goodness for talented authors who write about the bygone days of the American West. My fascination with those times continues to flourish because of their literary skills.
This review also appears on LitLovers:
http://www.litlovers.com/reviews/2018...
Benjamin has read few books in his lifetime, but one of them was Moby-Dick, so he has command of the English language and comes to enjoy sending letters. As a bonus, the judge takes an interest in the boy and begins sending him writing materials and other gifts. Benjamin’s parents are dead. He scratches out a hardscrabble living doing woodwork and other odd jobs. As if life were not hard enough, he must take care of his half sister Samantha (“Sam”) and this is no easy task.
Sam is one of the most cantankerous, unobliging, and stubborn characters ever met in fiction or life. But we must have some sympathy for the girl because her face was badly mauled by a panther, not just any panther, but one legendary throughout the Texas Hill Country. This same panther killed Sam’s mother, and like Ahab chasing the white whale, she is obsessed with finding and killing it. Benjamin has little choice but to fall in with her quest, though he more or less thinks she is tilting at windmills.
Next in the story is Zechariah—an old one-eyed hound, equally as legendary as the panther. Although Zechariah is a genius at tracking the panther, his owner, Preacher Dob, is initially dead-set against loaning him out. Soon, though, both are involved in the hunt. Lending much gallantry to what becomes a panther posse is a Tejano outlaw named Pacheco.
Misfortune and bad luck ensue, due especially to interactions with Preacher Dob’s nephew, Clarence Hanlin—a despicable fellow who nurses a deep hatred for Sam. You see, she shot off his finger.
Suspenseful up until the very end, Benjamin’s descriptions and interpretations of what went down during the panther hunt are by turns wry, raw, colorful and endearing. Readers who enjoy Larry McMurtry’s western novels will appreciate The Which Way Tree. Also, because of the time period and setting, I was reminded of News of the World by Paulette Jiles. In the Acknowledgements, I learned that actor Robert Duvall read and enjoyed an early draft of the novel, so perhaps this roiling tale will hit the big screen.
Thank goodness for talented authors who write about the bygone days of the American West. My fascination with those times continues to flourish because of their literary skills.
This review also appears on LitLovers:
http://www.litlovers.com/reviews/2018...
December 14, 2019
“I don’t give a snap about grace.”
The Which Way Tree by Elizabeth Crook is a novel about a murderous almost mythical panther (which was what they called mountain lions in the 1800s) and the motley crew that set off to find and kill it in the hill country of Texas. This crew includes a kindly white preacher (Dobb), a poor white boy (Benjamin), his headstrong half-black half-sister (Samantha), and an elegant Mexican (Pacheco). The conceit of the story is that it is told via letters that Benjamin writes to a judge in the service of solving of a murder. I wished the story had just been told straight without this conceit because it made any digression and backstory feel labored and unnecessary. This is a pity because the digressions and backstory are fascinating (but feel ridiculous in this epistolary courtroom context). The plot and pacing are quite gripping, and I also enjoyed the canyon landscape (wild and lovely), the weather (fierce and in your face), and the language (a mix of old-timey formalism and slang).
“He is a freethinker and will not entertain a notion unless it can be proved.”
I found the consistent and constant denigration of Indians (Native Americans) (specifically the Comanche and the Apache) wearying and offensive. They are a constant source of danger to white colonialists (go figure) and considered savages and worse. I also found the character of Samantha, the biracial sister, to be a typical misogynist racist trope: loud, unattractive, constantly complaining, and unaccountably willful. Her mother (a black woman) is not much better (in looks or manner or disposition). At least Mexicans come off ok, as one of the main characters (Pacheco) is stylish and well spoken and kind. But overall, this is a book about the heroics of white males, in the face of terrible odds, like annoying girls and angry panthers and armed mercenaries.
“It’s a hard task to make your life count when you stole the life of another.”
Still, The Which Way Tree is a quick and easy read and Crook knows how to set a scene and keep the action fresh and compelling. I’m not sure I’d give her other books a try unless one centers women or POC, or at least portrays them in a nuanced non-stereotypical way.
The Which Way Tree by Elizabeth Crook is a novel about a murderous almost mythical panther (which was what they called mountain lions in the 1800s) and the motley crew that set off to find and kill it in the hill country of Texas. This crew includes a kindly white preacher (Dobb), a poor white boy (Benjamin), his headstrong half-black half-sister (Samantha), and an elegant Mexican (Pacheco). The conceit of the story is that it is told via letters that Benjamin writes to a judge in the service of solving of a murder. I wished the story had just been told straight without this conceit because it made any digression and backstory feel labored and unnecessary. This is a pity because the digressions and backstory are fascinating (but feel ridiculous in this epistolary courtroom context). The plot and pacing are quite gripping, and I also enjoyed the canyon landscape (wild and lovely), the weather (fierce and in your face), and the language (a mix of old-timey formalism and slang).
“He is a freethinker and will not entertain a notion unless it can be proved.”
I found the consistent and constant denigration of Indians (Native Americans) (specifically the Comanche and the Apache) wearying and offensive. They are a constant source of danger to white colonialists (go figure) and considered savages and worse. I also found the character of Samantha, the biracial sister, to be a typical misogynist racist trope: loud, unattractive, constantly complaining, and unaccountably willful. Her mother (a black woman) is not much better (in looks or manner or disposition). At least Mexicans come off ok, as one of the main characters (Pacheco) is stylish and well spoken and kind. But overall, this is a book about the heroics of white males, in the face of terrible odds, like annoying girls and angry panthers and armed mercenaries.
“It’s a hard task to make your life count when you stole the life of another.”
Still, The Which Way Tree is a quick and easy read and Crook knows how to set a scene and keep the action fresh and compelling. I’m not sure I’d give her other books a try unless one centers women or POC, or at least portrays them in a nuanced non-stereotypical way.
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