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My Life on the Plains is a narrative from George Armstrong Custer about his activities on the plains from 1867-1869. Custer begins by giving a short background of the plains. This is quite interesting, because when Custer gives an overview on the Indians, he sounds like he sympathizes and respects them. This strikes me as very interesting because he is probably the best known Indian fighter. Although Custer may sympathize with the Indians, he has no trouble ambushing and fighting them, like at the Battle of the Washita, and no trouble threatening to hang a few chiefs to force compliance from the Indians. I have no doubt he would have hung them if they did not comply. He also goes into great detail to describe a few other incidents with Indians where he was not present, like the defense of Beecher's Island by General Forsyth. Custer spends quite a bit of words on the Indian policy of the time, and its follies. The book ends with a dramatic story of Custer and his men forcing several tribes to go to the reservations, and the rescue of two white women captives. That story was so dramatic that it would have been fit for a movie.
Custer's book is a good read, but I can tell why it has been called "My Lie on the Plains". His tales seem to be grounded in truth, but so much drama is added that the reader has to wonder if these events actually happened at all like Custer describes them. I think that it does provide a good source to view attitudes of the time on Indians. His book seems to have had two purposes. One was to influence a change of the Indian policy by appealing to the masses, and the other was to just garner more attention.