I'm a history student who has researched the Nez Perce history for several classes. I first read this book long before college and it sparked a life long interest in the Nez Perce history and the Nez Perce War of 1877. I live in Montana so my "backyard" is where most of this history took place. Yellow Wolf is, in my mind, the MOST credible book on the war I have read. Reading Yellow Wolf and then the book by Gen O.O. Howard it is simple to see the half truths and blatant lies the Government published in its efforts to remove the Nez Perces from their land. McWhorter took Yellow Wolf to several sites where Yellow Wolf pointed out things such as rifle pits in the distance that, until McWhorter was right next to them, were invisible to the eye. An excellent book that I have used time and again in giving lectures and writing papers. A must have for anyone researching the Nez Perce Tribal history.

As a child growing up on the Camas Prairie. I was told by my Great Grandma. How her mother as a child & her parents had gone to the Fort at Mount Idaho to seek refuge from the NezPerce in 1877. Years later I was working in a small bar in the town of Whitebird, Idaho (Where the first battle occured.) One day a friend brought me this book and told me that he thought that I might be interested in reading it. That was almost 12 years ago, and I think I've read "Yellow Wolf" at least once a year sense then. Me,my husband and my 2 daughters (19 & 11) have traveled almost all of the NezPerce Trail. This book brings you into the lives of the non-treaty NezPerce on their flight for freedom. They were not a hostile people, but were forced from their homes & their way of life. You feel their pain and suffering from the begining to the end of this book. I feel it is a must read for all poeple. Another good book by L.V. McWhorter "Hear Me My Chiefs!" NezPerce legand & history

Go back in time and live, travel and fight with the Nez Perce as they seek to return to their own lands. Feel their utter despair as gradually they are chased down by the US Army murdered, and finally with so few left, forced to live the lives of captives on a reservation. This book brings home the enormity of the crime committed by the US Government of the day, not only against the Nez Perce but all of the Native Americans, it should be compulsive reading for all US schoolchildren. It is without doubt one of the most absorbing books I have read on the subject of Native Americans. Dont take my word for it, read it yourself, you will not regret it.

This is another in the American Girls series about Kaya'aton'my', a nine-year-old Native-American girl growing up among the Nez Perce people in 1764. After her many adventures, Kaya's life is settling back down, and she is even ending her period of morning for her mentor, Swan Circling. The only thing truly missing from her life is her horse, Steps High. When scouts return with the information that there is a herd of apparently escaped Nez Perce horses in the hill, her hope begins to burn bright. However, when Kaya finds is not what she expects, and great courage is needed.

This is the final, full-length Kaya book, and it is every bit as excellent as the others! My eleven-year-old daughter is now the proud owner of a Kaya doll, which she loves, like she loves this book! We both highly recommend this book to you!

"Changes for Kaya" is the sixth and last book about Kaya. In it, we see how she has changed. When the scouts deliver news that there is a rogue herd of Nimipuu horses in the mountains, Kaya and her father and Raven go investigate one day when they aren't involved in the hunt for elk. Kaya gets her beloved horse, but there's a forest fire in the mountains. Can she save herself--and her horse--in time before they get hurt by the fire? This is the only book I felt deserved 5 stars in the Kaya series. The rest have been lacking a little. This one is the best of the lot.

In "Changes for Kaya"(Book 6 in the series), readers see how Kaya has changed since the first book, "Meet Kaya". She is a courageous girl who has also learned to trust the wisdom of her elders and not rush impulsively into doing things for herself. She is learning to be patient and understand when it is time to get adult or tribal help. Her developing wisdom is rewarded when she has the opportunity to be reunited with her beloved lost horse and a new surprise-her foal! Earlier losses become gifts that bring her to a stronger sense of herself and her place in the tribe. She comes to the awareness that she is growing up and will soon be ready for her vision quest. With the lessons she has learned, she knows that she can face it with the patience and confidence of a leader.

Terry C. Johnston makes the Indian Wars come to life in his novels, injecting a human element and action into stodgy historical fact. He's done it again in this first volume of his projected trilogy covering the Nez Perce war. While this is included in his Plainsman series, regular readers may be disappointed that his hero Seamus Donegan is nowhere to be found in this first novel. And this is what puts Terry at the top of the heap among historical novelists--he refuses to inject his character in a story where realistically he cannot be. When we last saw Seamus, he was still involved in the Lakota/Cheyenne wars down in Wyoming and Montana. It would be physically impossible, and a transparent writer's ploy to put him in Idaho for the sake of keeping Seamus the focus. Too many writers have their main character involved in every frontier fracas possible. But Terry sticks to history melded to crackling good adventure. "Cries From the Earth" sheds light on the long-ignored start of the Nez Perce conflict, and doesn't sugarcoat the facts. There is NO political correctness in this volume, my friend. Terry stays true to the times and the attitudes and foibles of all the participants of this shameful chapter in our history. If you think you know all about the Nez Perce conflict, think again. Terry C. Johnston has read all the histories, talked to all the experts, and he has read between the lines of these volumes and words. He has a practiced knowledge of the frontier, and reaches conclusions based on common sense that others have lacked. Read "Cries From the Earth" and learn, friends. And be entertained as well. A master Storyteller has written!

Once again, Terry takes into the bloody jaws of hell with his wonderful mix of storytelling and history. Well reasearched, this book, like his others carries us into the shoes of the soldier, Nez Perce, and the civilian alike during this start of the Nez Perce War. There is no author that can keep pace with Terry, the best novelist of our time. Cries from the Earth makes little known places come to life with great significance. This book is absolutely wonderful.

So many of us use US 95 and drive down the White Bird Pass and only take a second glance at the monument and what has transpired. Terry Johnston has taken a somewhat unknown battle and if all of his fans take the time to read the novel and assorted readings, I think you will find US 95 a busy tourist area.

I hike in the Salmon river country since 1972. Every year I head down White Bird Pass and quickly look at the monument and drive on.

I am looking forward this year to one week in this area to walk the hills and drink in the atmosphere that Terry has done again. Looking forward to the second book.

Alas, I have been asked by my publisher to write yet another book on Chief Joseph. I wish to do it well and respectfully, and, if possible, break a little new ground. So, I may be one of ten people on earth who has travelled the Nez Perce trail, both known and unknown, from the Wallowa all the way to Tonkawa, with requisite sidetrips to Nespelem and various relevant sites. All in all, I've put about 10,000 miles into this enterprise. And here's the hard truth: Cheryl Wilfong, whoever she is -- and God bless her researching soul -- has made this trip possible. She has broken the route down into three categories -- mainstream traveller, for the pavement folk; adventurous traveller, for the dirt road folk; and intrepid traveller for the white-knuckle, high center clearance, "I don't need guard rails" folk. I did it mostly on the adventurous/intrepid roads. And I can say, unequivocally, that she has created a work that will not soon be bettered, and which is absolutely invaluable for any Nez Perce afficianado, from the casual traveller to the "I only come out of the archives to breathe" geeks who are researching the familial ties between Wahlatits and Yellow Bull.

By the very nature of the task, she has a few errors, and they can put you in harm's way, such as having you travel 1.8 miles to a crossroads in the vast emptiness of Montana's back country when the actual distance is 11.8 miles. But these errors are so few as to be remarkable in their infrequency. Overall, she takes you mile by mile, dusty crossroad by dusty crossroad, rutted mountain pass by rutted mountain path, and conducts you on an assiduously researched journey of the trail that the Nez Perce followed from their homeland in the Wallowa and Snake/Salmon country to their exile in Oklahoma.

I could give you endless specifics, but here is the bottom line: you cannot take this trip, or any portion of it, without this book. You can forget your Josephy, misplace your Haines and your Lavender, or trade your Greene and your McWhorter for extra gas money. But you cannot -- CANNOT -- take this journey without having this book on the seat next to you.

Take it from someone who stopped at every pile of stones, every remnant of rifle pit and breastwork, every old campsite and every battle and staging area; who walked the high country trails near Lolo and the lowland campgrounds on the flats below Fort Leavenworth: You absolutely must buy this book if you choose to retrace any of this journey.

The Nez Perce Historic Trail Foundation and the National Park Service should canonize this woman.

End of story.

The story of the Nez Perce bands of Wallowa Oregon is one of the saddest of the expansion period of the American West. Driven from their homelands by a sneaky treaty they never signed, several bands of Nez Perce were moving reluctantly onto the new, smaller reservation. But a few angry young men left camp, on their own, and killed a white man they knew to be bad to Indians. The U.S. Army responded and thus began the pursuit of the Nez Perce, across Idaho, to Wyoming, and then Montana, over 1100 miles. Eight hundred Nez Perce men, women, and children walked and rode hoping to find a new place to settle where the Army would no longer pursue. But the Army did pursue, and finally caught up with the Nez Perce on a cold October day in Northern Montana, where after a 5 day siege, Chief Joseph finally surrendered to save those that were left, cold, sick, and tired. This book follows the trail, and recounts the history as told by several authors and particpants including General Howard, Yellow Wolf, and some Army Scouts. It is the one book you should read first. Then get out and drive the trail that the Nez Perce rode. I bet you can't drive it in one summer, but they rode that distance, moving camp every day, with the Army shooting at them when ever they didn't move far enough. Chief Joseph wondered when will the white men ever tell the truth. Why is the Indian not allowed to live under the same laws of freedom as the white man.

This is an excellent work which I plan to use as a tool for planning vacations over the next summers. The history is concise yet accurate and supplements works by Helen Addison Howard (Saga of Chief Joseph), Merrill Beale (I Will Fight No More Forever), Alvin Josephy (The Nez Perce and the Opening of the Northwest), L. V. McWhorter (Yellow Wolf & Hear Me My Chiefs!) The maps, side trips, and road condition guides are useful. Classifications of roads for vehicles and travelers described as mainstream, adventurous and intrepid are unique for this type of history book and assist in planning based on the type of vehicle one might be using. Reminds me of hiking books. A knowledge of geography is vital to understanding history. Wilfong aids amature historians visiting the areas to view and get a better understanding of the physical conditions both the troops and the Nez Perce found in this tragic chapter of American history.

One word adequately describes this book-Superb! I have read other accounts of the Nez Perce conflict but none with this degree of detail. For example, other authors have skimmed over some of the smaller engagements of the campaign (such as Canyon Creek) but Greene gives this as well as other episodes the full treatment they deserve. In his introduction, Greene clearly states that he mainly relied on primary source material, using secondary sources for background only. This decision clearly paid off.

Footnotes are used extensively to bring to the fore conflicting testimony as well as useful background information. All of this is augmented by excellent maps that illustrate the action. Greene avoids wasting the reader's time with moralizing sermons. He correctly portrays the military as simply trying to do the job thrust upon them by their civilian masters.

Truly, the best parts of this work are the final chapters detailing the culminating conflict at Bear Paw Mountain. At last, I feel like I am on the way towards understanding this battle. I walked away from this book with new respect and understanding for Greene, the Nez Perce and the much-maligned frontier army.

Over the years I've read a lot on the subject of the Indian Wars. However, it seems that many recent publications are just a re-hash of materials, from secondary sources, presented as a new thesis or from a new perspective. Nez Perce Summer is a notable exception. Greene has used a wealth of primary sources, many never used before, in order to turn up new information and call old notions into question.

This is not a history of the Nez Perce, it is a military history of the campaign against them. While many these days prefer their Indian wars history from an Indian perspective, they should not be deterred from reading this work. This is a history of the military campaign, not a support of it. Indeed, one cannot come away from this without being amazed at how the Nez Perce continually stumped the most experienced Indian fighters of the time.

The narrative is well-written, and Greene holds our attention as well as any fiction writer could. I highly recommend !this book to anyone--scholar or casual reader--interested in the study of the Indian Wars.

In Nez Perce Summer 1877: The U.S. Army and the Nee-Me-Poo Crisis, research historian Jerome Green provides an informative, superbly researched, and wonderfully written account of the Nez Perce conflict with the larger white culture as represented by the U.S. Army. Green is one of those rare historians able to combine meticulous scholarship with a genuine flair for vividly drawn and engaging presented storytelling. Nez Perce Summer 1877 is ardently recommended reading for students of American frontier history in general, and Native American studies in particular.

I thought this was a very good book. I enjoyed the story because it was breath taking and historical fiction. Even though, not all of the characters were real, this event really took place. This book is about an Indian band who is living peacefully in their valley. But one day, they are made to move out because the white people want to build roads and farms on their land. The Nez Perce tribe is forced to move on a reservation, but instead of going there, they set out on a journey to Canada. Soun, the main character, is an Indian boy who cannot speak because of a shock when he is young. Soun is the main helper. He helps herd the horses. I encourage you to read this book to find out if Soun ever speaks again. It is a history helper and is good to realize what happened back then to real Indian tribes.

I thought that this was a very good book, and even though I am 17, it is still a good book to read. I have almost all of his books, which I got a long time ago. I have always enjoyed reading these kinds of books.

When traviling through the Yellowstone and Teton area a while back as a young boy, i picked up a copy of this book. To make a long stroy short,once i started i could not stop. Not only was the historical lessons grand but it was very moving. I actually cried the first couple of times i read it. now over 10 years later i read it every once in a while. Ken is a fantastic writer, and i recomend all his books. Parents and children should read this book. I read it with my grandmother, and at65+ she loved it too.

This is another in the American Girls series about Kaya'aton'my', a nine-year-old Native-American girl growing up among the Nez Perce people in 1764. In this book, Kaya must avoid the root harvesting, lest her troubled thoughts spoil the harvest. She is troubled at the loss of her sister and horse, and the death of Swan Circling. To keep her busy, she is assigned other tasks, and along the way she meets a starving, pregnant dog. Against the advice of her family and tribe, she befriends the wild dog and her litter, and along the way she learns something about friendship.

This is another excellent Kaya story, complete with Bill Farnsworth's wonderful illustrations. My eleven-year-old daughter is a big fan of Kaya, and loved this book as much as the others. We both highly recommend it to you.

In Kaya and the Lone Dog, the 4th book in the series, Kaya is still mourning the death of her namesake Swan Circling. Feeling very much alone and also feeling the continuous guilt of getting her blind sister Speaking Rain captured, she befriends a lone dog, whom Kaya thinks is very much like her, all alone. Though her family and friends object to her befriending the Lone Dog, for it is unusual for a dog to live alone, Kaya doesn't heed their warnings and forms a special bond with the dog. After Lone Dog gives birth to some puppies, Kaya feels more and more attached to the dog and her pups, like they are her family. It is almost like Lone Dog can communicate with her. However, as the pups grow older, Kaya begins to feel the inevitable. Will Lone Dog leave her? Kaya is hopelessly torn as she knows Lone Dog is a dog that want to be free to roam the wild. In the end, Lone Dog gives a very special gift to Kaya, so she could remember her.

Kaya who's the new American Girl character, befriends a dog that calls Lone Dog. She wonders if it could live in her village. She's a Nez Perce indian. But maybe Lone Dog is too wild. One day while visiting her, Lone Dog growls and bares her teeth at a wolf. Lone Dog is going to have puppies. Kaya has to tell her brothers to not disturb Lone Dog and the puppies for she has befriended them. Kaya and Lone Dog soon get along real well. Lone Dog lets Kaya play with, hold, and love her newborn pups. Kaya is glad to have a new friend because her sister, Speaking Rain is still held captive. So dosen't this seem like Match Made in Heaven? Wrongo. Lone Dog and Kaya both have to move on with their lives. They were the best of friends. Even with the torturing of some boys in her village who call her "Magpie," a bird that thinks only of itself. At the end of Kaya and Lone Dog's relationship, Lone Dog sends a present to Kaya. One of her pups. Kaya names him Tatlo, and keeps him as her own pet dog. When her village has to migrate, Kaya has many happy memories of Lone Dog. And now Tatlo too.

Please note: in this book, Lone Dog resembles thus of a coyote or a wolf or a wolfhybrid or maybe even a husky. Thus, she is a dog, as in MAN'S BEST FRIEND.
If you are interested in a Kaya doll, Tatlo plushie, or more accesories go to americangirl.com

First off, contrary to earlier reviewers, this book has NOTHING to do with the Lewis and Clark expedition. Out of the 350 pages in the book, they might be mentioned a half dozen times and one might want to get Lavender's "The Way to the Western Sea," if interested on Meriweather and William's trip.
Instead, "Let me Be Free," is on the Nez Perce tribe which lived in Oregon's Wallowa Valley until it was forced from the land in the 1860's. This is a great book if the reader is interested in a century's worth of history about the tribe but I'd suggest something else if the intent on reading this is solely learning about Chief Joseph's tragic flight from the US military in 1877.
I originally got into Lavender's works after reading his fantastic book, "Bents' Fort" which is about the trading family of William Bent in SE Colorado. I had no interest in the subject but was recommended the book and I fell fully immersed into it because of Lavender's detailed writing-style and ability to create real identities to the historical characters instead of just giving names and dates. He has the same writing style in "Let Me Be Free," and will never shy from a unimportant but lighthearted side story. The writing is anything but dry.
The first half of LMBF is on how the tribe lived and existed, its neighbors, and its relations with the first whites to reach Oregon. Lavender has a contentious understanding of the western Native American tribes and writes in a fair and unbiased reader-friendly style and includes the correct names and terms the Nez Perce (Nimipu) used.
The last 100 pages cover Chief Joseph's (Hin-mah-too-yah-lat-kehht's) flight and includes a fantastic map in the front for the reader to follow the tribe along on its failed march to freedom.
The book fails to get five stars from me because I was most interested in the Nez Perce march and it just took too long to finally reach that subject in the book. It reminded me of "Undaunted Courage," (Ambrose's book on Meriweather Lewis) where there is no much buildup to the expedition that once the reader finally reaches it in the book, it falls a bit flat. However, if anyone is interested on the Nez Perce tribe itself, you won't find a better book. Any Western Oregon historians would also immensely enjoy this work.

David Lavender just may have written the definitive history of the Lewis and Clark expedition. It is a wonderfully wrought narrative, capturing the full width and breadth of this incredible journey. Lavender's sardonic tongue deflates many of the myths surrounding the "voyage of discovery," noting that for the most part this was a well-trodden path. The only actual "discovery" was that of linking the Missouri to the Columbia. However, this makes it no less an adventure.

He downplays the significance of Sacagewea. For the most part she was little used on this voyage. Her one major contribution was helping to secure horses for the great fording of the Bitteroot Mountains. Still, Lavender lavishes much attention on her and her son, which it seems that William Clark did as well. Her presence seemed to secure safe passage during their final leg down the Columbia River, as it made the expedition team seem less war-like.

Lavender also provides the background for the voyage, detailing President Jefferson's dream to establish an American Northwest Passage, linking one ocean to another. Lavender probes the seemingly paternal relationship between Jefferson and Lewis, and how Jefferson was able to win Congress over to a third attempt to cross the continent, despite questions regarding Lewis' qualifications. Jefferson personally trained Lewis for the expedition and provided added tutelage in the form of the leading lights of American science. Like a devoted son, Lewis made every effort to carry out the mission, which Jefferson sponsored, even when it seemed foolhardy to do so.

For those who haven't travelled this route before, you will be in good hands with David Lavender. For those who have, I think you will marvel at how masterful a job Lavender does in recording the events, giving the best rounded version of the "voyage of discovery" that I have read.

Originally subtitled "the U.S. Army's War Against Seven Hundred Nez Perce Men,Women, and Children," this moving history documents the brutal persecution of a small Northwestern tribe. Western historian David lavender never hides his sympathy in this powerful chronicle of Chief Joseph's "flight toward freedom" in 1877 to avoid reservation life. This is a really sad story filled with overlooked possibilities for compromise, understanding, and tolerance. Lavender considers the Nex Perce War the final betrayal of a long and once-promising relationship between white explorers, fur trappers, Christian missionairies, and the tribe. Chief Old Joseph, father of the more famous Chief Joseph, even converted to Christianity for both spiritual and practical reasons. Peaceful coexistence and friendship with the new settlers was his policy. Greed, cultural intolerance, and racial hatred eventually doomed those possibilities for Nez Perce. Although Chief Joseph developed a reputation as an Indian Napeleon for his brilliant fighting tactics, Lavender emphasizes that Chief Joseph continually sought to avoid war. Chief Joseph's simple hope was to have a reservation that would allow his people to live in their traditional land and stay close to his father's grave in Wallowa Valley, Oregon. The United States military commanders of that time, however, demanded the tribe move. This compelling account of the Nez Perce's failed 1700 mile exodus to join Sitting Bull in Canada captures the cruelty, mindlessness, and viciousness of 19th century America's expansionist policies. Chief Joseph's eloquent words, especially when surrending after a blizzard just a few miles south of the Canadian border, accents the pain and injustice.

Finally, something real in Kaya's stories! Unlike Meet Kaya, I had no trouble with this one. The characters seemed to make a little more sense. The plot wasn't cardboard. The story was realistic. I couldn't put this one down! Janet Shaw does a better job of delveoping the characters in this book. I had no trouble telling who Kautsa and Two Hawks were, they were explained very well. The rest of the characters are still cardboard, though, which is why this one got 4 stars.

This is another in the American Girls series about Kaya'aton'my', a nine-year-old Native-American girl growing up among the Nez Perce people in 1764. In this book, when Kaya and her adopted sister Speaking Rain are captured by another tribe during a raid on their village, they face a life of slavery among a people whose language they don't understand. Kaya is determined to avoid this fate, but escape during the beginning of winter holds many dangers.

This is another excellent American Girls book (even better than the first Kaya story). My daughter loves Kaya, and greatly enjoyed this story. I liked the story and the illustrations, but loved the lessons that the book taught. Also, I must say that I was surprised at how alive is Kaya's faith in her religion. Religion is something surprisingly absent from most of the American Girls stories (the only other girl with a noticeable faith is Josefina). My daughter loved this story and so do I. We both recommend this book to you.

I was surprised that Pleasent Company had finally broken their traditional format for the Kaya series, but now I understand why, it is to show that the Indians, including Kaya's Nez Perce tribe have a very special place in our nation's past, present, and future.

Kaya's Escape is the 2nd book in the Kaya series and this time Kaya is faced with tremendous challenges as a neighboring tribe attacks while the warriors are away. Told to hide in the forest with her blind sister Speaking Rain, Kaya disobeys because she is worried for the safety of her horse, Steps High, and her one instinctive decision gets both her and her sister captured. Kaya feels very responsible as they are taken away, as slaves, from their homeland and does everything she can to help with the daily chores of her blind sister, to somehow make up for what she did, all the while hoping her father and the rest of the tribe will come and rescue them. When she learns that the people who captured them will soon be moving for the winter Kaya finally realizes she must escape with her sister or they are done for good and will never be able to return home. She befriends anther Indian slave boy and enlists his help in escaping. However, Kaya knows she must make a big decision, can she leave Speaking Rain behind, and go for help, for their is no way a blind girl could make such a journey? This story about Kaya was another success. I recommend all to read it, for it gives a unique experience on Indian life, during the period when the whites had not interfered with their culture.

"Kaya's Hero" is the third book of six in the Kaya stories. Kaya looks up to and would like to be friends with a woman by the name of Swan Circling, who is a highly respected warrior woman who married into the tribe. Only problem is, Kaya feels that she is not good enough, in a sense, to befriend Swan Circling, because of her nickname and because she left her sister, Speaking rain, as a slave. When Swan Circling dies, and Kaya is left with a very special gift, Kaya learns about second chances. The peek into the past section includes information on sek-le-waal, the Nez Perce equivalent to Christmas.

This is another in the American Girls series about Kaya'aton'my', a nine-year-old Native-American girl growing up among the Nez Perce people in 1764. In this book, Kaya finds a hero in the form of Swan Circling, a woman whose bravery puts her in a class by herself. Kaya looks for praise from Swan Circling, but is deeply afraid of what she'll think when she learns of the mistakes that Kaya has made.

This is another excellent Kaya story, and a great addition to the American Girls library. My eleven-year-old daughter and I both loved this book, for its lessons, its entertaining story, and its wonderful illustrations. Kaya is different than most of the other American Girls in that she actually evinces her religion, something I wish they could have worked in with all of the other girls. So, my daughter loved this book, and recommends it for your daughters, and I heartily agree!

In Kaya's Hero, the 3rd book in the series, Kaya is in awe at the bravery of a particular young woman in her tribe named Swan Circling. Kaya respects Swan Circling's fearlessness, and how she even goes with the men into battle. Kaya desperately wants to be friends with Swan Circling, but is afraid her past mistakes, which earned her the nickname "Magpie" might turn Swan Cirling away. As Kaya begins to know Swan Circling better she decides to tell Swan Circling the truth of her past, even if it mean jeoperdizing their new friendship. However, something terrible happens before Kaya can spill her feelings out. But with the tragedy, Kaya also learns a new lesson, and gets one of the most special gifts from Swan Circling. I liked this new Kaya book quite a lot, and it might turn into my favorite book in the series. You can really see how Kaya grows through this book, and Swan Circling seems like the perfect role model.