SONG BEFORE SUNRISE

The author of Arrows Into The Sun (Knopf, 1943) writes again of the Navajos and the persecution they suffered at the hands of the Spaniards. Through the life of Dennis Julian, of French descent, and his exploits as trapper, muleteer, scout, runs his feeling for his friends among the Indians, and when he falls in love with Nijoni, daughter of the Spanish priest, Jesus De Baca, and an Indian woman, although it is long before he accepts it, his destiny is sealed. In all his activities he defies the injustice and inhumanity of the Spanish rule, creating a substantial circle of enemies, and in his pursuit of Nijoni, they are able to harm him through her. It is she who is the signal for a Navajo attack that frees Julian to join her for good. Filled with the turmoil of the 1840's in the New Mexican territory, Santa Fe particularly, of the coming of trade from the East, the story has a strong regional feel and a deep comprehension of period, and provides physical action that is combined with an inner search in a thoughtful manner.