Historian Marshall (Keep Going
) looks to the life and accomplishments of Lakota warrior Crazy Horse for lessons on leadership in this curious and ultimately disappointing book. Best known for his 1876 defeat of General Custer at the Battle of Little Bighorn, Crazy Horse was renowned for being the consummate Lakota leader: resolute in battle, courageous, magnanimous, generous to his people and conscious of the example he set. From the events of Crazy Horse's life, the author abstracts four principles of leadership: “Know Yourself,” “Know Your Friends,” “Know Your Enemies” and “Take the Lead.” While the biographical sections on Crazy Horse are tightly detailed, the personal development advice is fuzzy and unfocused. Marshall insists that anyone can and should become a leader, but his examples are almost all drawn from politics and provide few examples on how to guide families, workplaces and communities, thereby stressing the importance of choosing leaders wisely but neglecting to show readers how to grow into leadership themselves. (Jan.)
