Robert J. Conley - 1940
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I. Biography
Robert J. Conley was born in 1940 in Cushing, Oklahoma. Raised in Wichita Falls, Texas, he attended
Midwestern State University in Wichita Falls where he received a B.A. in drama and art in 1966 and an M.A. in English in 1968. After earning his degrees, he taught English at Northern Illinois University and Southwest
Missouri State, and Indian Studies at Eastern Montana College, Bacone College, and Morningside College. He has also served as the assistant
programs manager for the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma and currently writes full time at his home in Talequah, Oklahoma. II. The Witch of Goingsnake and Other Stories The Witch of Goingsnake and Other Stories
is a well-written, detailed chronicle of Cherokee history and culture. It depicts the life and trials of the Cherokee people and the
United States government's inhumane treatment of them. Vividly reliving the Trail of Tears, Conley describes how John Rollin Ridge, a.k.a. Tsisqua Dahlonageh, grows up with
his father and uncle, two of the Cherokee responsible for signing a treaty with President Jackson forced upon the Cherokee nation. Conley also includes a timeline of the time
before and during the Trail of Tears. He shows what happens when the U. S. government reneges on a promise to help the Cherokee and, indeed, all Native Americans. III. Other Works by Robert J. Conley
The Actor (Doubleday, 1987) IV. Works Cited
Back to Malachi (Doubleday, 1986)
Border Line (Pocket Books, 1993)
Brass (Leisure Books, no date given)
Captain Dutch (Pocket Books, 1995)
Colfax. (M. Evans Co., 1989)
Crazy Snake (Pocket Books, 1994)
The Dark Island (Doubleday, 1995)
Dark Way (Doubleday, 1993)
Geronimo: An American Legend (Pocket Books, 1993)
Go-ahead Rider (M. Evans Co., 1990)
Killing Time (M. Evans Co., 1988)
The Long Trail North (Pocket Books, 1993)
The Long Way Home (Doubleday, 1994)
Mountain Windsong: A Novel of the Trail of Tears (University of Oklahoma Press, 1992)
Ned Christie's War (M. Evans Co., 1991)
Nickajack (Doubleday, 1992)
Outside the Law (Pocket Books, 1995)
Quitting Time (M. Evans Co., 1989)
Rattlesnake Band and Other Poems (Indiana University Press, 1984)
The Saga of Henry Starr (Doubleday, 1989)
Strange Company (Pocket Books, 1991)
To Make a Killing (Pocket Books, 1994)
The War Trail North (Doubleday, 1995)
The Way of the Priests (Doubleday, 1992)
The Way South (Doubleday, 1993)
The White Path (Doubleday, 1993)
Wilder and Wilder (Pageant Books, 1988)
The Witch of Goingsnake and Other Stories (University of Oklahoma Press, 1988)
Zeke Protector: Cherokee Outlaw (Pocket Books, 1994)
Conley's works also appear in numerous anthologies.
This essay was submitted by a student of Sheryl Row, a teacher at Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas, Texas.