Canyons by Gary Paulsen is a 1990 novel published by Delacorte Press. Paulson uses his story of two 14-year-old boys, Brennan Cole and Coyote Runs, to explore themes such as Human Behavior Transcending Time and Culture, Deep Connections to the Natural World, and Violence as a Part of Colonization. Paulsen, who was the author of more than 200 books of children’s and young adult fiction, frequently explores notions of independence and survival in rural settings, both of which are topics present in Canyons. When Paulsen was awarded the 1997 Margaret Edwards Award, which is awarded to young adult authors for their entire body of work, Canyons was specifically cited as a contributing factor to the decision.

This guide is based on the Kindle version of this work.

Content Warning: Canyons explores concepts such as racism, colonialism, and violence against children.

Plot Summary

In the first nine chapters of Canyons, the perspective alternates each chapter between two 14-year-old boys of different centuries: Coyote Runs, an Apache boy training to become a warrior in the 1850s, and Brennan, a young runner who discovers Coyote Runs’s skull in a remote canyon over a hundred years later.

In the first chapter, Coyote Runs prepares eagerly for his first raid to prove his manhood, a crucial step in earning respect, finding a wife, and owning his own horse. Coyote Runs is filled with excitement and anticipation, aided by an older man named Magpie who offers him a pony for the raid. The night before the raid, Coyote Runs meticulously checks his equipment.

Over a century later, Brennan Cole, a teenager from El Paso, Texas, struggles with solitude and his unique family situation. Brennan has a complexion weathered by the Texas sun and finds solace in running. His obsession with running isn’t about competition or fitness but rather is a way to escape his loneliness and forge his own identity. Brennan lives with his single mother, and their lives are disrupted when his mother introduces Bill Halverson, her new boyfriend. Brennan’s initial discomfort with Bill intensifies when he’s invited along on a camping trip with Bill and the troubled kids in the youth group he runs.

In Chapter 3, Coyote Runs embarks on the raid with a sense of purpose, buoyed by signs from the spirits indicating a successful mission. He joins his village’s raiding party headed south toward Mexico, having prepared his arrows with tobacco for better flight. Despite initial excitement, Coyote Runs is tasked with guarding the raiding party’s extra horses, a responsibility that disappoints him.

In El Paso, Brennan reluctantly accompanies his mother and Bill on a camping trip with boys from Bill’s youth group. Brennan feels out of place among the rowdy boys, discomforted by their lack of discipline. The journey takes them to a rugged canyon, where Bill shares stories of the area’s history as a refuge for Apache warriors during conflicts with colonizers. Brennan feels a fleeting connection to the landscape but remains conflicted about the trip and Bill’s presence in his life.

Coyote Runs experiences the thrill and danger of the raid, successfully capturing horses with the raiding party. However, the joy turns to terror when soldiers from Fort Bliss pursue them. During his desperate attempt to escape, Coyote Runs is cornered by the soldiers behind a boulder and summarily executed.

During the camping trip, Brennan discovers a centuries-old skull while attempting to gain distance from the younger children. Brennan becomes obsessed with the skull, believing it belonged to an Apache boy unjustly killed by soldiers. He also starts to hear voices, sounds, and commands from the skull, which he believes is the spirit within speaking to him. With the guidance of his teacher, Homesley, Brennan delves into historical documents to uncover the boy’s identity and the context of Apache conflicts with colonizers.

Brennan’s quest to return the skull to its rightful place intensifies despite opposition from his mother and Bill, who involve authorities due to concerns about Brennan’s behavior. Undeterred, Brennan runs alone into the desert, guided by the voice of the Apache boy, whom he discovers is named Coyote Runs. Evading search parties and overcoming hunger, exhaustion, and fear, Brennan navigates the canyon, evading his pursuers, and continues on further to find the “medicine place” where he might be able to return the skull to where it rightfully belongs.

Brennan climbs to a sacred spot in the canyon and lays the skull to rest, fulfilling his mission to honor Coyote Runs’s memory. Through this act, Brennan finds a profound connection with the past and a deeper understanding of his own identity and place in history. The novel concludes with Brennan’s return to his life in El Paso, forever changed.