"Lost in Las Vegas" reviews, a novel by Monty Joynes

"lost in las vegas" reviews

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“LOST IN LAS VEGAS continues the story of NAKED INTO THE NIGHT. After a profound, likely authentic, visionary kiva ritual, the Anglo’s adopted Pueblo tribe elders select him to rescue a young Indian man who is a prodigy of traditional dancing, and a potential successor to leadership, from the lifestyle of a performer in a Las Vegas resort hotel. The contrast, between the consciousness that the Pueblo traditions propagate and the brilliant distractions of Vegas life, could hardly be more dramatic. It makes for high drama, genuine spiritual struggle with illusion of various kinds, and excellent reading.”

The Independent Press Book Review

“White Wing, the extraordinary dancer whose body is a vessel for all that is sacred to his struggling Pueblo tribe, spurns Native prophecy, turns his back on his spiritual destiny, and disappears into the City of Neon Light. Anglo, the adopted white brother of the tribe, is sent by the Elders to bring him back. The book is the story of that attempt, a sequel to Joynes’s NAKED INTO THE NIGHT, itself the tale of a man lost and found. Joynes’s knowledge of Native ways, down to the very nuances of ritual and communication, is remarkably displayed throughout, unveiling a world seldom seen or experienced in such detail.”

NAPRA REVIEW

“A key to the book’s success is in its ability to get across a strong sense of place. The characters mingle and make their choices in the wide spiritual frontier that stretches between the sacred space within a Pueblo kiva and the stages of Las Vegas casinos. Joynes seems familiar with both environments. The device of portraying two characters meeting on a bridge between two realities is inspired and effective and could have been disastrous if used by a less skillful writer. Joynes never allows his characters to become melodramatic stereotypes. The character of “Anglo” may be a little too good to be true, expressing the wishful thinking of an author with an outsider’s affinity to native culture, but the author seems to make a sincere attempt to respect and portray the essence of that culture.

In the end I feel that LOST IN LAS VEGAS is a laudable accomplishment by an author with the facility to play convincing characters against an authentic sense of place and to come up with an original and inspiring story. The strengths of the book are ultimately those of any good book: It is well written.”

AHP Perspective

“Joynes has a remarkable grasp of Indian history and current life. Few have the insights into Indian affairs that he possesses. I am amazed how accurately he presents modern Indians in their typical settings.”

Ted Zuern, S.J., Bureau of Catholic Indian Missions

“Great find! This is the second book in Monty Joynes's series about Anglo (aka Booker Washington), a white man who has meandered his way into the spiritual center of a contracting Pueblo Indian community.

I discovered LOST IN LAS VEGAS after stumbling across the initial work, NAKED INTO THE NIGHT, in my local college library. I was quite impressed, all the more so because I discovered half way through reading it that the author lived in my relatively obscure mountain town! I found him in the phone directory, gave him a call, and after a half-hour conversation, immediately went out and bought the other two books. I was not disappointed!

LOST IN LAS VEGAS takes Anglo, who has by now earned a place of controversial respect among elders of his adopted Pueblo tribe, on the onerous task of retrieving a lost young Indian leader who is squandering his special dancing talents in the irreverent casinos of Nevada's gambling capitol. With characteristic sangfroid and guileless generosity, Anglo eventually wins the trust of the cynical dancer and even the high-class prostitutes who control him. Anglo assists Dancer on an extraordinary vision quest in the desert outside Las Vegas, which realigns the young man with his Native roots. While the outcome is predictable, the journey is uplifting and often spellbinding. This is my favorite of the three works published so far.

All the books in Monty Joynes' series belong in the category of what might be called spiritual or allegorical fiction. Although the stories are obviously imaginary, they evoke perennial truths and awaken an intuitive sense of the sublime. I am really surprised these works have not received greater popular acclaim. Perhaps they'll be the sleepers of the year.”

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