Last fall my husband and I were watching Dark Winds on the television. I loved the Tony Hillerman books when I read them back in the day.
I loved Jim Chee. I loved the Chee in the books. I loved that he wanted to be a shaman. I loved that he was struggling to fit into a changing world. Leaphorn, of course, was less of a believer and it’s very touching when he asks Chee to do a ceremony for him.
The series changes that. Chee comes in as an undercover FBI agent rather than a green detective. And he’s a smart ass. I didn’t like him as much in the TV series as I did in the books, but isn’t that the way.
It’s still a good mystery series to watch. I recommend it. But the books by Tony Hillerman are better. They should still be available in most bookstores, though they were written back in the 80s and 90s.
When moving east, I stayed the night in Gallup New Mexico. I loved seeing the signs for the places that Hillerman had written about. I think that’s the sign of a good book. Years after reading them, as I passed through the places that inspired his world, I was transported back.
I would have stopped and explored, but I was traveling with three cats and, well, cats don’t exactly like to travel!