Moccasin Tracks

About the Book

MOCASIN TRACKS

A Novel about Survival
and heroism among a band
of crow Indians in the
old west

(What if a 7 y/o captive with great intelligence and special skills appeared in 1837 at a strategically-located village of Crow Indians; that the boy grew up to manhood living among the people, finding, through serendipitous circumstances, that this Crow village responded positively to his leadership. Could this partnership have enabled this particular band to form an organization, unique among American Indians, powerful enough to survive the dire threats to non-Europeans sweeping across America during the 1800’s?)

Rick Ruja
August, 2010

About the Author

The author is a "baby boomer" who grew up in the optimistic days of the 1950's. Born to Jewish parents in Los Angeles, his interests were sports, pursuing lovely girls, and education. Fate placed him at the turning point in American history, when his fi rst day at U.C. Berkeley coincided with the "Free Speech Movement", the fi rst lesson that taught the new generation to challenge all rules set forth by their Government (i.e., their parents). Parental infl uences and the Viet Nam War sent him into medical school, even though, as a straight "A" major in history, he was not following his heart or his interests. He spent 25 years in the medical profession (a fi ne undertaking for someone else), before a near-fatal illness convinced him to return to what he loved: History of the Western United States. Studying the Lewis and Clark exploration and the life of the Rocky Mountain fur-trappers led to further interest in the American Indians of the Great Plains. Hopping a freight train from Denver into the Rockies, the Colorado River at his feet, exploring the Grand Tetons/Jackson Hole area refl ected a life-long interaction with the area. Rick worked for the Napa Historical Society, briefl y, researching his hero, James Clyman, the greatest, yet least known, of the Rocky Mountain fur-trappers, buried in a Napa cemetery. Through his studies, Rick became shocked by the completeness of the U.S. Government’s brutal termination of the American Indian life-style by the end of the 1800's. Surprised and infuriated, Rick was inspired to write an alternative history novel, historically accurate, that re-opened a window to review certain issues of justice. However, it was the author’s primary intent to write an exciting, compelling story of that era. He lives in Napa, California, playing tennis in concert with his fellow tennis fanatics.