Publication Date: January 31, 2023
Thunder Falls chronicles the transformation of Leopold Wolf from a naive young man into an outspoken advocate for Native American rights during the late 1800s.
Leo works for the Carlisle Indian School, an institution governed by the motto “kill the Indian, save the man” and notorious for the harshness of its abuse, neglect, and victimization of the children under its care.
Leo’s quest takes him to Lakota territory, where elder and holy man Black Elk has a vision of Leo recovering the tribe’s Sacred Pipe, stolen years ago. Leo’s journey into the caverns of the Black Hills reveals extraordinary phenomena about the Lakota and about himself.
Within the caverns, Leo encounters the red wolf, Thunder Falls, and the Soul Tree, all of which guide him toward his destiny. While pursuing the eternal love of Sarah Cameron-niece of a senator notorious for his enmity against the Lakota, Leo crosses the country with Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show and ultimately risks his life for the people he has come to care for.
The assimilation of Native Americans in the 19th century is well documented as the battle over land forced tribes to cast aside their heritage at the order of the invaders.
Thunder Falls, which is subtitled The Education of Leopold Red Wolf, tells the story of a young Jewish woodworker who lends his talents to help build the Carlisle Indian School. He never imagined the horrors that would take place within the confines of the school.
Author Neil Perry Gordon uses this likable main character to demonstrate how one person can make a difference. As Leo witnesses the efforts to Americanize the natives, he becomes an advocate for them. Along the way, he completes a quest for the Lakota to find a prized heirloom.
His support of the Native Americans puts his safety at risk, threatening to take away a future with his beloved Sarah. The author incorporates historical events, including references to Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show.
Thunder Falls, told from Leo’s perspective, illustrates the determination of one man to make a difference and raise awareness of a culture targeted for elimination.
Beginning with his debut novel—A Cobbler’s Tale, followed by Moon Flower, The Righteous One, The Bomb Squad, Hope City, Sadie’s Sin, Cape Nome, Otzi’s Odyssey, Denali, Thunder Falls and soon to be released—The Nazarite, Neil Perry Gordon has established himself as a well-respected and prolific historical and metaphysical fiction novelist.
​His storytelling ability has earned him high editorial praise from the likes of Kirkus, Midwest Book Review, Book Viral and others, including hundreds of four and five-star reader reviews on Amazon and Goodreads.
Neil attributes his love of the writing process from his formative education at the Green Meadow Waldorf School, where he understood that classes such as music, dance and theater, writing, literature, legends and myths, were not simply subjects to be learned, but lessons to be experienced.
His creative writing methods and inspiration have been described as organic; meaning he begins his work with a premise for his characters, rather than working within the confines of a formal, detailed outline. This encourages his writing to offer surprising twists and unexpected outcomes, which readers have celebrated. His novels have the attributes of being driven by an equal balance between character development and face-paced action, which moves his stories along at a swift page-turning pace.
