The Color of Lightning

The Civil War is coming to an end, and recently freed slaves Britt Johnson and wife, Mary, head west with their three children to start a new life. They leave the Confederate South to settle in the North Texas plains near Indian Territory occupied by the Comanche and the Kiowa. Soon after establishing themselves in Elm Creek, Mary dreams of starting a school and Britt is eager to develop a freighting business. Life abruptly changes when a raiding party of Kiowa and Comanche descends upon the settlement. Britt, away to get supplies, returns to find his oldest son killed and his wife and two children captured by the Kiowa. This is where Britt begins his odyssey to find his family, venturing into unknown enemy territory to return them home and to find others who are missing. At the same time, a Quaker from Philadelphia is sent as new Indian agent to warlike tribes of the plains. The struggle for survival is depicted in a riveting account where danger abounds. Based on a true story of the Elm Creek raid of 1864, Jiles presents a vivid account of life on the frontier and one man’s determination to make his family whole again, set against the backdrop of competing cultures.