Sorrow of the Earth

Sorrow of the Earth traces the history of Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show, which toured America and Europe in the late 19th century. The show featured Native American performers who reenacted scenes from frontier battles and showcased traditional skills. Through a blend of historical research and narrative reconstruction, Vuillard examines the lives of Native American performers like Sitting Bull and Black Elk who joined Buffalo Bill's theatrical enterprise. The text follows their experiences on tour as they portrayed stylized versions of their own defeat and displacement. The book documents the complex relationship between William Cody (Buffalo Bill) and his Indigenous performers, set against the backdrop of rapid American expansion and cultural transformation. It explores the mechanics and economics of the Wild West Show business during its years of international fame. Vuillard's account reveals how entertainment and myth-making intersected with the darker realities of American colonization, raising questions about cultural exploitation and the commodification of defeat.

There are not enough internet reviews to create a summary of this book. Instead, here is a summary of reviews of Éric Vuillard's overall work: Readers commend Vuillard's ability to expose hidden historical connections and power dynamics in concise narratives. On Goodreads, readers frequently mention the author's skill at revealing corporate complicity in historical events. What readers liked: - Brief length that delivers impact (mentioned in 30+ reviews) - Clear, direct prose style - Fresh perspectives on familiar historical events - Connections drawn to present-day politics What readers disliked: - Lack of traditional narrative structure - Dense historical references requiring background knowledge - Some found the writing style too detached or clinical - Occasional confusion about timeline jumps Ratings across platforms: - Goodreads: The Order of the Day 3.9/5 (5,800+ ratings) - Amazon: The Order of the Day 4.2/5 (380+ ratings) - LibraryThing: The War of the Poor 3.8/5 (200+ ratings) One reader noted: "Like a prosecutor laying out evidence." Another commented: "Makes you see historical events through an entirely new lens, but requires concentration."

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🌟 While Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show toured Europe, Queen Victoria herself requested a private performance at Windsor Castle in 1887. 🏹 Sitting Bull, who performed in the show, was paid $50 per week (equivalent to about $1,400 today) but was forbidden from signing autographs, as Buffalo Bill wanted to remain the show's sole star. 📚 Author Éric Vuillard won France's most prestigious literary prize, the Prix Goncourt, in 2017 for his later work "L'Ordre du jour." 🎪 The Wild West Show employed over 1,200 performers at its peak, including 200 Native Americans, making it one of the largest traveling entertainment productions of its time. 🌍 The book highlights how Buffalo Bill's show, while claiming to represent authentic frontier life, actually contributed to transforming real historical events into sanitized entertainment for mass consumption.