The Watchers on the Mountain

About the Book

When Ira William's teenage son Johnny wins a prize young bull at a rodeo, it sets a series of events into motion that alienates them from one another and brings conflict and danger, not only to them, but also to Ira's wife Eba, his mother Betty Billy and his daughters Faye and Velma. Ira is already walking in personal darkness from abandoning the Navajo Way of life in an unsuccessful attempt for them all to adapt to the Anglo culture. His inner conflicts drive him to confrontations that creates a deadly enemy in the person of Velma's renegade Navajo lover Lee Sabin who uses any means, including witchcraft, to maim and then kill Ira, and finally, Ira's family, including Velma. As bitter conflict within Ira's family mounts, an ominous blizzard threatens, evoking supernatural tension as its winds howl across the reservation. Cash is scarce for the Williams family, so Johnny's dream that his prize bull will grow to be the source of a new hope for his father is threatened because hay is not available to feed the bull, which has become the powerful symbol of his dream. Johnny finds a remote place to secrete the bull and forages grass and hay for it. Meanwhile, Johnny's grandmother warns of dark powers working against them; Ira for rejecting his Navajo heritage, Johnny for longing to become a shaman and a blessing to his people. In harrowing double climaxes set during the fury of the blizzard, a crazed Lee Sabin stalks Velma to kill her, while Johnny is making a poignant sacrifice to save his father's life.

About the Author

Don Ingalls, a veteran television writer and producer for many years, became interested in the Navajo culture through many visits to the Navajo reservation and was particularly impressed by the character, dignity and courage of its people, the Dinee. A long time Californian, he now lives on 10 acres of woods in Washington State.