Summary

The Ancient Child opens with a prologue consisting of a brief rendering of the Kiowa myth of the boy who turned into a bear. Eight children are at play when, suddenly, a boy among them is struck dumb, trembles, and begins to run on all fours. His body is suddenly covered with fur and he begins to chase his seven sisters. The fleeing and terrified sisters come upon a great tree that bids them to climb it in order to escape the bear, who seems poised to kill them. They climb the tree and are borne so high above the bear’s reach that they become the stars of the Big Dipper.

The first chapter is the death scene of Billy the Kid. It opens with the question, “Quien es?” in Spanish, which can mean either, “Who is there?” as one would ask upon...