More than a good story . . .
I picked this up because I have an interest in American Indian history, especially the early tribes that lived in and around North Carolina. The storyline is compelling, but I more so enjoyed the novel for the painstaking research that went into it. Long knows his history and I appreciated how he aligned an accurate historical portrayal with the character development. Well done! — Laurel Johnson
Sidanela earnestly explores the complex interfamilial bonds in a pre-colonial Native American tribe. This book tackles big philosophical questions while also building a compelling narrative that kept me coming back for more. — Gregory Miglis
Entertaining, historical, touched me on an emotional level. — Happy Traveler
Available through Ingram Spark: Paperback 978-1-960865-0-07
A thousand years ago . . . in what is now the Central Piedmont area of North Carolina . . .
The Pee Dees were a tribe of roughly 500 Native Americans living around 1250 AD in Town Creek. Sidanela (which translates as “family”) chronicles a suspenseful season in the lives of the tribe as seventeen-year-old Red Willow, a feisty tomboy, navigates an agonizing choice. While following her fifteen-year-old brother, Running Wolf, into the woods to spy on his hunt, she witnesses him committing murder and must decide whether to turn him in at an annual confession event—where he’ll be put to death by a relative of his victim—or live with a secret that violates the values her late father taught her. This harrowing story features spellbinding ceremonies, tender moments of love and loss, and prophetic dreams, set against a tribe’s struggles to survive hostile neighbors, famine, and a sociopathic leader who will kill anyone to gain power. Throughout this thoroughly researched historical coming of age novel, the courageous spirits of Red Willow and Running Wolf lead the way out of crisis and towards a more hopeful future.
About the Author
Forty-five years ago I was born in a modest hospital in a modest town in the rolling hills of the Piedmont region of North Carolina, known mostly as the cradle of the tobacco industry. As I grew older and learned more about the place I lived, I gained a deeper respect for all that has transpired before me to make it what it is today. Unanswered questions about the Town Creek Indian Mound inspired me to write this novel, which, through research and invention, fills in historical gaps for the land I call home. Sidanela is my first attempt at a novel, and writing it has been an imaginative pleasure. My hope is that it will be received in the same way by its readers.