Grenville Goodwin (1907–40) was a well-known and respected ethnographer of the Apaches. Neil Goodwin is an independent filmmaker and the president of Peace River Films. He has produced the documentary Geronimo and the Apache Resistance, as well as other films for public television.

"Goodwin provided a many-layered and fascinating account of his quest to make sense of his father's engagement with the Apaches. The book is both a well-told detective story and a moving story of one man's search for his past. It is also a valuable addition to literature on the Apaches."—Times Literary Supplement "Part history, part anthropology, part archaeology—and in large part a fascinating travel adventure set in a relatively inaccessible mountain range just south of the border—The Apache Diaries is one of the most engaging contributions to the literature on the U.S.-Mexico borderlands and the Apache culture in years."—The Bloomsbury Review "Rarely do anthropology books provide such abundant historical and research information while furnishing the reader with an in-depth understanding of their authors."—Library Journal