Native American Heritage Month - Non Fiction Booklist

Unpacks the twenty-one most common myths and misconceptions about Native Americans In this enlightening book, scholars and activists Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz and Dina Gilio-Whitaker tackle a wide range of myths about Native American culture and history that have misinformed generations. Tracing how these ideas evolved, and drawing from history, the authors disrupt long-held and enduring myths such as: "Columbus Discovered America" "Thanksgiving Proves the Indians Welcomed Pilgrims" "Indians Were Savage and Warlike" "Europeans Brought Civilization to Backward Indians" "The United States Did Not Have a Policy of Genocide" "Sports Mascots Honor Native Americans" "Most Indians Are on Government Welfare" "Indian Casinos Make Them All Rich" "Indians Are Naturally Predisposed to Alcohol" Each chapter deftly shows how these myths are rooted in the fears and prejudice of European settlers and in the larger political agendas of a settler state aimed at acquiring Indigenous land and tied to narratives of erasure and disappearance. Accessibly written and revelatory, "All the Real Indians Died Off" challenges readers to rethink what they have been taught about Native Americans and history.

Arts & Crafts of the Native American Tribes is an authoritative illustrated reference that has been carefully created to be a companion to Encyclopedia of Native Tribes of North America, not a competitive title. It examines in detail how Native American culture evolved and considers the regional similarities and differences of the arts and crafts created by tribes across the continent. Contemporary and modern photographs, fine line illustrations and step-by-step reconstructions (including a Plains Indian warrior dress with headdress, war bonnet, shirt and leggings) show the techniques of manufacture and display the skill and artistry of the crafters. The book opens with concise coverage of the main cultural areas of North America and a survey of styles by region and over time. A major section on the living structures - huts, tipis, igloos, etc. - is followed by an analysis of individual crafts. These include: Baskets - plaiting, twining, coiling; Bone, antler and horn - implements, tools, pins, fishhooks; Decorative arts - beadwork, porcupine quillwork; Featherwork - bonnets and headdresses; Metalwork - copper, silver, iron, gold; Pottery; Shellwork; Skinwork - rawhide, leather, furs; Stonework - arrowheads, pipes, art; Textiles - spinning, weaving; Woodwork - totems, figures, masks, utensils, working with bark. Arts & Crafts of the Native American Tribes is destined to be a primary reference used by ethnographers, historians and collectors for years to come. It is essential for any library serving academic patrons. AUTHOR: Michael G. Johnson has published a number of books, including Encyclopedia of Native Tribes of North America, the second edition of which won the Denali Press Award. He is a former associate editor of Pow-Wow Trails and American Indian Crafts and Culture, a contributing editor to Whispering Winds magazine and an advisor to Indian Artifact magazine. Bill Yenne is the author of over three dozen books on historical topics, including The Encyclopedia of North American Indian Tribes and Sitting Bull, which was number 14 on Amazon's 100 Best Books of 2008. He has appeared on the National Geographic Channel and served as a consultant for the History Channel's Command Decision program covering the Battle of the Little Bighorn. ILLUSTRATIONS: Full colour photos and drawings Maps

They are still the forgotten people of America, their victories little noticed, their problems overshadowed by the larger groups around them. But the Native American tribes of the South and the East are writing new chapters in their people's history, and in that history every tribe is different. Each has its own story, its own intermingling of triumph and struggle and difficult problems that remain to be solved. This book is a collection of these stories, a record of a great coming together, ancient enemies who are finding common ground. The Cherokees, Catawbas, Choctaws, Creeks, Narragansetts, Wampanoags, Seminoles, Oneidas, Mohawks, Penobscots, Tuscaroras, Pequots, Coushatas, Pamunkeys, Chippewas, and Tunica-Biloxi are just some of the tribes whose histories, current status, and future aspirations are covered in As Long As the Waters Flow.

This fully updated reference explores more than 200 North American tribes, prehistoric peoples, and civilizations. Arranged alphabetically by tribe or group, this comprehensive work offers 60 new entries on tribes not covered in the previous editions. The accessible text summarizes the historical record and includes present-day tribal affairs and issues. The book also covers diet, housing, tools, clothing, art, rituals, and more.

In Indian Voices, Alison Owings takes readers on a fresh journey across America, east to west, north to south, and around again. Owings's most recent oral history--engagingly written in a style that entertains and informs--documents what Native Americans say about themselves, their daily lives, and the world around them. Young and old from many tribal nations speak with candor, insight, and (unknown to many non-Natives) humor about what it is like to be a Native American in the twenty-first century. Through intimate interviews many also express their thoughts about the sometimes staggeringly ignorant, if often well-meaning, non-Natives they encounter--some who do not realize Native Americans still exist, much less that they speak English, have cell phones, use the Internet, and might attend powwows and power lunches. Indian Voices, an inspiring and important contribution to the literature about the original Americans, will make every reader rethink the past--and present--of the United States.

Native American art has a timeless appeal that fascinates anyone who appreciates quality craft and design. The projects selected here are modern interpretations of traditional Native American patterns and techniques--they adopt methods, supplies, and tools that are accessible to any crafter, while encouraging an appreciation for the historical significance of this unique culture. Leather working principles are demonstrated step-by-step and used to make moccasins, pouches, and vests, and patterns are also included for more complex garments such as a Southwest Rosette Shirt and a Chippewa Inspired Beaded Jacket. Many jewelry items are also featured--from a Turtle Fetish Necklace to a Zig-Zag Ankle Bracelet. While the inspiration for these designs may be centuries old, they still remain hugely fashionable!

The earliest Native American writers wrote tribal histories or autobiographical accounts. Today, Native American writing is steeped in the oral traditions of many peoples and reflects a facility with language that is equally at home in prose or poetry. Native American Literatures is a sourcebook that can enhance any reader's appreciation of both the writers and their works. Cross referencing allows readers to move easily among the listings, guiding them to other examples of an author's works and from character to character within a given novel. Cross referencing allows readers to move easily among the listings, guiding them to other examples of an author's work and from character to character within a given novel

This book of hauntingly beautiful Native American portraits reflects the tragic history of the Cheyenne, Sioux, Pawnee, Cherokee, and other groups whose leaders traveled to Washington in the mid-nineteenth-century to negotiate treaties with the US government. As compelling as the famous photographs of Indians by Edward S. Curtis, these unique images provide a close-up, unromanticized record of Native American life at a critical time in the history of relations between the US government and Native Americans, just after the Civil War and at the beginning of the great westward expansion of US territories. The images form the core of the Smithsonian's extensive collection of Native American photographs and of important collections in many other major museums around the world. Paula Fleming recounts the history of this collection, which was the Smithsonian's--and perhaps the country's--first photographic exhibit. A succint biography of A. Zeno Shindler, the photographer, is followed by a thoughtful examination of the key events surrounding the Indian delegations in Washington, providing for the first time a comprehensive picture of a poignant moment in history.

The first comprehensive biography of the legendary figure who defined excellence in American sports: Jim Thorpe, arguably the greatest all-around athlete the United States has ever seen. With clarity and a fine eye for detail, Kate Buford traces the pivotal moments of Thorpe’s incomparable career: growing up in the tumultuous Indian Territory of Oklahoma; leading the Carlisle Indian Industrial School football team, coached by the renowned “Pop” Warner, to victories against the country’s finest college teams; winning gold medals in the 1912 Olympics pentathlon and decathlon; defining the burgeoning sport of professional football and helping to create what would become the National Football League; and playing long, often successful—and previously unexamined—years in professional baseball. But, at the same time, Buford vividly depicts the difficulties Thorpe faced as a Native American—and a Native American celebrity at that—early in the twentieth century. We also see the infamous loss of his Olympic medals, stripped from him because he had previously played professional baseball, an event that would haunt Thorpe for the rest of his life. We see his struggles with alcoholism and personal misfortune, losing his first child and moving from one failed marriage to the next, coming to distrust many of the hands extended to him. Finally, we learn the details of his vigorous advocacy for Native American rights while he chased a Hollywood career, and the truth behind the supposed reinstatement of his Olympic record in 1982. Here is the story—long overdue and brilliantly told—of a complex, iconoclastic, profoundly talented man whose life encompassed both tragic limitations and truly extraordinary achievements.

From the author of How the World Moves--the classic collection of more than 500 years of Native American History In a series of powerful and moving documents, anthropologist Peter Nabokov presents a history of Native American and white relations as seen though Indian eyes and told through Indian voices. Beginning with the Indians' first encounters with European explorers, traders, missionaries, settlers, and soldiers to the challenges confronting Native American culture today, Native American Testimony spans five hundred years of interchange between the two peoples. Drawing from a wide range of sources--traditional narratives, Indian autobiographies, government transcripts, firsthand interviews, and more--Nabokov has assembled a remarkably rich and vivid collection, representing nothing less than an alternate history of North America.

The most authoritative anthology of Native American wisdom published in years! Native American peoples share a love and reverence for nature, as well as a belief in both a supreme being and a spirit world that interacts with humanity. This engaging collection contains moving quotations from leading American Indians, including chiefs and medicine men, along with poems, songs, prose, speeches, and stories past and present. Organized alphabetically, the spiritual insights gathered here are grouped by the main Native American Nations, from Apache to Zuni--including the Sioux, Eskimo, Cherokee, and many more.  

In this collection of illuminating conversations, renowned historian of world religions Huston Smith invites ten influential American Indian spiritual and political leaders to talk about their five-hundred-year struggle for religious freedom. Their intimate, impassioned dialogues yield profound insights into one of the most striking cases of tragic irony in history: the country that prides itself on religious freedom has resolutely denied those same rights to its own indigenous people. With remarkable erudition and curiosity--and respectfully framing his questions in light of the revelation that his discovery of Native American religion helped him round out his views of the world's religions--Smith skillfully helps reveal the depth of the speakers' knowledge and experience. American Indian leaders Vine Deloria, Jr. (Standing Rock Sioux), Winona LaDuke (Anishshinaabeg), Walter Echo-Hawk (Pawnee), Frank Dayish, Jr. (Navajo), Charlotte Black Elk (Oglala Lakota), Douglas George-Kanentiio (Mohawk-Iroquois), Lenny Foster (Dine/Navajo), Tonya Gonnella Frichner (Onondaga), Anthony Guy Lopez (Lakota-Sioux), and Oren Lyons (Onondaga) provide an impressive overview of the critical issues facing the Native American community today. Their ideas about spirituality, politics, relations with the U.S. government, their place in American society, and the continuing vitality of their communities give voice to a population that is all too often ignored in contemporary discourse. The culture they describe is not a relic of the past, nor a historical curiosity, but a living tradition that continues to shape Native American lives.

A chronicle of 22,000 years of Native American history and culture. Hundreds of informative sidebars lend more detail-from short biographies to individual tribal histories and customs, to writings, speeches, treaties, and folk stories.