Preview of Laughing Boy Summary:

Laughing Boy is an idyllic account of the love and marriage of two Navajo Native Americans, Laughing Boy and Slim Girl. It is one of many novels depicting a romantic love that overcomes numerous obstacles, only to end with the heroine's early death. The novel is a memorable account of an ill-fated, but deep and poignant, romantic love.

In a larger sense, the book chronicles the cultural conflict of whites and Native Americans found in the areas where Native Americans remain a significant percentage of the population. It was perhaps the first novel to treat Native Americans not as villainous savages or idealized noble primitives, but as a people with their own mores, culture, and religion that can be appreciated even by outsiders. La Farge sought to celebrate a way of life that was passing out of existence, the life of Native Americans living on a reservation relatively...