Oh Gosh, how often do you say, the movie was so much better than the book! I did not like this book at all! I seem to recall I didn't care for the characters, and if you don't like the people, there is no liking the story, good or bad. And just for info here, this book was not about the Sioux like in the movie, and don't expect any of the movie characters. Costner really performed a miracle turning this into such a beautiful movie.

An awesome book. This is one everyone should read. You won't be able to put it down. You will think about it long after you've closed the book on the last page.

When a drunken major ordered Lieutenant John Dunbar to an abandoned army post, the war-weary soldier suddenly found himself alone, beyond the edge of civilization, with only a wolf and some roving Comanches for company.

Thievery and survival soon forced Dunbar into the Indian camp, where he began a dangerous adventure that changed his life forever. Each day in the wilderness, Dunbar became more Indian, learning the ways of a proud and glorious people. But when his past came back to haunt him he was faced with the greatest decision of his live, Dunbar discovered who the real savages were and where his lobalty lay.....

The Costner movie based on this book is one of my favorite movies ever, so it was only natural for me to pick this book when I saw it. As most would agree, the movie is NEVER as good as the book, so I quickly surmised that, since the movie was fabulous, the book must reach vast unknown limits of greatness, right? Well, not exactly. Michael Blake's writing of DANCES WITH WOLVES is certainly a good book and a wonderful story, it is Costner's ability to turn this story into such a brilliant production that is the real achievement here.

I have found that normally, if I like a movie and read the book afterwards, it serves to enhance what I saw on film. In this case, however, the book had somewhat the opposite effect for me. There are differences between the two that only seem to diminish Costner's work. A couple of things I knew already, such as Costner's use of the Indian Chief, Ten Bears, who I knew to have been a great Comanche, not a Sioux.

Well, as it turns out, the book is written to that effect. The Indians befriended by Lt. Dunbar and portrayed in the movie as Sioux, are actually Comanche. Now I can understand the alteration here, for a couple of reasons. First of all, though most Americans are notoriously ignorant of our rich history, for the most part, people do know the Comanche were the badest of the bad and it would be an increased degree of difficulty to portray the Comanche in a positive light as being rather passive and wanting only to be left alone to live in peace. Though the Sioux were hardly any more docile, their reputation is certainly not nearly as notorious. Also, for cinematic reasons, it's certainly understandable that the domain of the northern Sioux is a more picturesque backdrop that the barren plains of the Southern Comanche. Also, the Sioux language of the movie has a more poetic feel to it and is somewhat more widely recognized than the rather obscure Shoshonean spoken by the Comanche.

I hope I haven't given the wrong impression here. This is a very enjoyable read, though it is a rare occasion where the book was not nearly as enjoyable, for me at least, as was the movie.
AMAZON.COM READER'S REVIEW

delightful read, re-enter the world of Indians and the cavalry and one man's search for himself

One of the great classics od American Indian life , as white soldiers were just beginning to interfere and make their presence known. **** Very good book.

Not as good as the movie, but still a really good read!

The book is better than the movie.

A beautiful story...this book is a real gem!

The original novel upon which the outstanding Academy Award winning film was based. Not as good as the film -- but a wonderful read for fans of the best and most inspirational movie about Native Americans ever made.

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wonderful, wonderful, wonderful
I love this book, and the movie's great too
One of my all time favorites!!!!

When a drunken major ordered Lieutenant John Dunbar to an abandoned army post, the war-weary soldier suddenly found hinself alone, beyond the edge of civilization, with only a wolf and some roving Comanches for company.

Thievery and survival soon forced Dunbar into the Indian camp, where he began a dangerous adventure that changed his life forever. Each day in the wilderness, Dunbar became more Indian, learning the ways of a proud and glorious people. But when his past came back to haunt him and he was faced with the greatest decision of his life, Dunbar discovered who the real savages were and where his loyalty lay...

I hope these reviews aren't keeping people from reading this great western. I loved this book so much. Usually after seeing a movie I'm not interested in the book but this book adds more depth to the movie. I even ordered the sequel, which was good too.

Novelization of the movie.

looks good

Read All Book Reviews of "Dances with Wolves"