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David Crow

David Crow is the author of The Pale-Faced Lie, an award-winning memoir about family, survival, and the healing power of forgiveness. He spent his early years on the Navajo Indian Reservation in Arizona and New Mexico, escaped an abusive childhood, and graduated from college. He is also a lobbyist with more than 40 years' experience in Washington, D.C.
On LuvemBooks, we've reviewed The Pale-Faced Lie.
1
Books Reviewed
Cover of The Pale-Faced Lie: A True Story
The Pale-Faced Lie: A True Story

4.5/5

reader rating · 25,342 ratings

David Crow chronicles his Navajo upbringing under his violent, ex-con father, Thurston Crow. The narrative tracks his siblings' shared trauma and his eventual escape into a Washington career. Readers seeking harrowing memoirs will find a raw account of survival.

Reviewed Nov 7, 2026

Ask LuvemBooks about David Crow

David Crow is a memoirist whose work draws directly on his own life: a childhood spent on the Navajo Indian Reservation in Arizona and New Mexico, an abusive upbringing under his father, and an eventual escape into a long lobbying career in Washington, D.C. We have reviewed 1 of his books, The Pale-Faced Lie, a raw account of family trauma and survival that has earned a 4.5/5 reader rating from over 25,000 Amazon ratings. His writing centers on the lasting effects of violence within a family and the difficult work of forgiveness afterward.
Where should I start?
Start with The Pale-Faced Lie — it's the only David Crow book we've reviewed, and it's the memoir he's known for. The book follows his childhood on the Navajo Indian Reservation under his violent, ex-con father and his path out of that life, and it holds a 4.5/5 reader rating from more than 25,000 Amazon ratings.
What's their writing style?
Based on The Pale-Faced Lie, Crow writes memoir that is raw and unflinching about violence within a family. The narrative moves between his Navajo upbringing and his later life in Washington, tying personal survival to the theme of forgiveness. Readers seeking harrowing, firsthand accounts of surviving an abusive childhood will find that register here.
Books we've reviewed
We've reviewed 1 David Crow book. The Pale-Faced Lie is his award-winning memoir of growing up on the Navajo Indian Reservation under a violent, ex-con father, his siblings' shared trauma, and his escape into a Washington career — rated 4.5/5 by readers across 25,342 Amazon ratings.
What genre do they write?
David Crow writes memoir. The Pale-Faced Lie is a true-story account of his own life — his Navajo upbringing, his father's violence, and his eventual escape into a Washington career. It's a fit for readers of survival memoirs and family-trauma narratives.
Is The Pale-Faced Lie based on real events?
Yes. The Pale-Faced Lie is subtitled 'A True Story' and is a memoir of Crow's actual life. It covers his upbringing on the Navajo Indian Reservation under his violent, ex-con father, Thurston Crow, the trauma shared with his siblings, and his eventual escape into a career in Washington.
Who would like this book?
The Pale-Faced Lie suits readers looking for harrowing, firsthand memoirs of survival. If you're drawn to true stories about escaping an abusive childhood, sibling trauma, and eventual forgiveness, this is the David Crow book for you. Its 4.5/5 reader rating from over 25,000 Amazon ratings suggests it has connected widely with that audience.
Who is David Crow?

Who is David Crow?

David Crow is the author of The Pale-Faced Lie, an award-winning memoir about family, survival, and the healing power of forgiveness. He spent his early years on the Navajo Indian Reservation in Arizona and New Mexico, escaped an abusive childhood, and graduated from college. He has also worked for more than 40 years as a lobbyist in Washington, D.C.

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