Hillerman & Dark Winds

 

Reviewed by Jeanne

 

Although Tony Hillerman wrote his first Navajo police mystery in 1970, I didn’t encounter his work until the ‘80s but I quickly became a fan.  He introduced me to a beautifully complex culture and people, about whom I knew very little.  His settings were so vivid I could almost see the canyons.  I loved his two main characters:  the “legendary lieutenant” Joe Leaphorn whose calm demeanor and sharp intellect made him more than a match for any wrong doers;  young Jim Chee, still learning the ropes in the early novels, sometimes making mistakes, but a good man.  I liked that these characters changed and grew over the course of the series. 

Some years after Tony Hillerman’s passing, his daughter Anne took up the series.  She has since written eight more books in the series, with a ninth to be published in 2024. 

Such rich source material led to several different filmed versions of Hillerman’s books, including The Dark Wind with Lou Diamond Phillips as Jim Chee and Fred Ward as Joe Leaphorn and a three-episode PBS series called Skinwalkers:  The Navajo Mysteries starring Wes Studi as Leaphorn and Adam Beach as Jim Chee. 

The most recent version is AMC’s Dark Winds, with Zahn McClarnon as Leaphorn and Kiowa Gordon as Chee, and Jessica Matten as Bernadette Manuelito, a character who was introduced near the end of Tony’s books but who is a major character in Anne’s series. There have been two six episode seasons of the show to date.

The library was able to buy the first season of Dark Winds when it became available on DVD this summer, so I had to check it out. Visually, it’s amazing, both in terms of the people and the country. It was worth watching for the scenery and costumes alone.  It’s set in the 1970s, when Hillerman wrote the first books, which added to the ambiance as far as I was concerned.  Many in the cast and crew have Native American ancestry, but not necessarily Navajo.  (McClarnon, for example is Lakota while Gordon is Hualapai.)  There were some jumps back and forth in time which could be a little confusing, but that is a minor quibble. The other reviews on it have been glowing so a lot of people have enjoyed it, including other Hillerman fans.

I liked it, but to be honest I was bothered by some of the changes and themes in the series.  Mostly I didn’t like what was to me a very different version of Jim Chee and some other changes to characters’ backgrounds.  Other Hillerman fans didn’t find it a problem, so don’t let that deter you!  Anne Hillerman wrote at her website (www.annehillerman.com) about the series, listing all the things she liked but adding, “While these adaptations aren’t part of Dad’s and my stories, they are creative and entertaining.” (Among the things she says she likes is that the show “portrays the essence of Joe Leaphorn and Bernie [Manuelito] in a way that makes me proud.  I know my Dad would be happy, too.” I noted that she did not include Jim Chee in that statement.

Season two of the series just aired, but there is no word as to whether there will be a season three.

The library does hold copies of both of the Hillermans’ books as well as a DVD of the first season of the new series.  If you watch the series, I would be interested to know what you think!

If you haven’t read Hillerman’s books, here’s a list in order of publication:

1.       The Blessing Way

2.      Dance Hall of the Dead

3.      Listening Woman

4.      People of Darkness

5.      The Dark Wind

6.      The Ghostway

7.      Skinwalkers

8.     A Thief of Time

9.      Talking God

10.  Coyote Waits

11.   Sacred Clowns

12.  The Fallen Man

13.  The First Eagle

14.  Hunting Badger

15.  The Wailing Wind

16.  The Sinister Pig

17.   Skeleton Man

18.  The Shape Shifter

Books by Anne Hillerman:

1.       Spider Woman’s Daughter

2.      Rock with Wings

3.      Song of the Lion

4.      Cave of Bones

5.      The Tale Teller

6.      Stargazer

7.      The Sacred Bridge

8.     The Way of the Bear

9.      Lost Birds (due out 2024)