Book and Movie List

The following books and movies were selected to enhance any player's enjoyment of the Werewolf games, W:tA and W:WW. I've avoided reproducing the suggested movies and books in W:tA, W:WW, and the Werewolf Storyteller's Guide, although I do like and recommend many of the works there. So go check those out, too.

Black Elk Speaks, 1932. Black Elk, as told through John G. Neihardt. It's amazing to me that this is absent from the reading lists in both W:tA and W:WW. U.S. assimilation efforts all but eradicated Native American cultures on reservations across the country; many Native Americans of various tribes have turned to this book to reclaim their heritage. Garou spirituality, in turn, is largely based on Native American religion. This book will give you a colorful, narrative idea of the relationship between the Garou and the spirit world. It's is largely the work of Neihardt, an American poet who adjusted Black Elk's words to achieve a particular artistic and philosophical agenda; for a more accurate (though, I imagine, less readable) version, check out The Sixth Grandfather, the published transcripts of Neihardt's interviews with Black Elk.

The Monkey Wrench Gang. Edward Abbey. Blowin' up bridges, torchin' bulldozers, runnin' from the law, and fightin' the monster corporations ... Abbey's rough team of eco-terrorists is a shoe-in for the real origins of the W:tA pack. You'll learn loads about monkeywrenching and pack politics in this fabulous story of green saboteurs and danger in the American Southwest.

Thunderheart, 1992, Rating: R, 3 stars. Dir. Michael Apted; perf. Val Kilmer, Graham Greene. Based on political events on reservations throughout the U.S. in the 1970's, Thunderheart follows an FBI agent who discovers a secret uranium mine, the murders to cover it up, and his own heritage on the Pine Ridge Reservation in southwest South Dakota. Environmental causes, tribal spirituality, and violence ... it doesn't get more Werewolf-esque than that, folks.

The Ghost and the Darkness, 1996. Rating: R, 2½ stars. Dir. Stephen Hopkins; perf. Val Kilmer, Michael Douglas, John Kani. I'm not especially a Val Kilmer fan, I just happen to think these two films go nicely with Werewolf! The Ghost and the Darkness are a pair of lions who terrorize a village of workers trying to build a bridge across a river in Africa, while a dedicated engineer fights back. Try not to get too put-off by the shameless depiction of colonialism and civilization as good versus the ruthless evil of nature, and enjoy the bone-crunching violence and chaotic battle scenes.

Reservation Blues, 1995. Sherman Alexie. This is an amazingly hopeful and desperate book about modern reservation life for a handful of misfit Indians in Eastern Washington. The book bleeds of the spirituality and desperation that is the modern Native American, which carries over nicely to modern Garou in light of the coming Apocalypse. Especially good for players who like Galliards.

Once upon a Time in the West, 1969. Rating: PG, 3½ stars. Dir. Sergio Leone; perf. Charles Bronson, Henry Fonda. This is my all-time favorite Western. Leone directs this very stylistic spaghetti Western about a dying breed of men, the inherently stronger, meaner type that dominates the West, but eventually falls under the advancing wheel of civilization. Sound familiar?

The Searchers, 1956. Rating: 4 stars. Dir. John Ford; perf. John Wayne. This Western is probably most intriguing for its treatment of issues surrounding race and racism; viewers will have a difficult time reconciling the dark side of the main character with his heroic side. John Wayne's performance provides perhaps one of the Western genre's most stunning examples of an anti-hero, a man of heroic proportions whose rage begins to cross the line to darkness and villainy. This film could provide fertile ground for a W:WW chronicle exploring conflicts between European and Native American werewolves. Star Wars fans should watch this one especially closely....

Blood Meridian, 1985. Cormac McCarthy. This is the most brutally beautiful book you will ever read. Violence is at the heart of Werewolf and the Old West, and you will never be more disturbed or fascinated by it than in Blood Meridian. A must-read for W:WW players.

by McRey "Mac" Moyer

Dark Spiral Copyright © White Wolf Web Ring