Native American Books

I have published an award-winning law review article on Federal Indian Law, worked for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (until I couldn't hold my nose any longer), and had the great good luck to learn Indian Law from Prof. Raymond Cross at The University of Montana School of Law. But Paul VanDevelder taught me new things about all three.

Mr. VanDevelder deftly explains some of the more arcane aspects of Federal Indian Law in a way that, at least for me, filled in more of the puzzle pieces - but while also making it easily accessible to even the non-professional. Mr. VanDevelder taught me that the Corps of Engineers can be even more insidious and arrogant than even I had suspected. And, given the good professor's reluctance to blow his own horn, Mr. VanDevelder taught me that merely having known Raymond Cross was far more an honor than I could have ever guessed.

If you have any curiosity about Indian legal rights, or seek understanding about the grave damage government administrators can do when they embody the worst kinds of ignorance, arrogance, and egomania, or merely hope to be inspired by a ripping good yarn about the undeniable perseverance of the human spirit, Coyote Warrior is your book.

At first glance this book would appear to be a rather standard documentary of the struggles faced by a particular Indian nation. That is true to a certain extent, as the book covers the Three Affiliated Tribes of North Dakota (Mandan, Hidatsa, Arikara), who until the 1950s were the most successful and self-sufficient Indians in the country, then saw their productive lands disappear under a Missouri River reservoir. After forced relocation and disenfranchisement, and political bullying from government agencies pushing through water reclamation projects that were probably a giant boondoggle, the tribes went instantly from success to destitution and dependence on the government. VanDevelder illustrates their long-term suffering through the decades-long travails and heartbreaks of the Cross family, whose father Martin led a valiant but hopeless struggle to save the tribes' livelihood and culture. The story continues through their traumatic uprooting and torn connections to their community, up to the current successes of son Raymond who has become one of the leading Indian attorneys in the nation.

VanDevelder's extensive coverage of the careers of Martin and Raymond Cross is what makes this book unique, and much more than your typical respectful but depressing expose on current Indian affairs. VanDevelder unveils the extremely complicated nature of Indian law in general, with issues of sovereignty and broken treaties from centuries ago still mucking up court cases to this day. He also gives in-depth (though occasionally over-detailed) coverage of the particular legal maneuvers and challenges faced by the Three Affiliated Tribes and the Cross family, which thanks to the legal brilliance of Raymond and some powerful allies, finally resulted in partial justice after several decades of suffering and cultural ruination at the hands of the U.S. Government. VanDevelder writes of legal maneuvering and governmental shenanigans with a surprising amount of suspense, and somehow even makes a Supreme Court exploratory hearing seem dramatic. A bonus is VanDevelder's unique descriptions of legal precedents going back to medieval Europe in the thirteenth century, and the far-reaching historical development of Indian law in America to the present day. [~doomsdayer520~]

Considering that very few people will witness Raymond Cross's dynamism in person or read his eloquent legal briefs and law review articles, Paul VanDevelder's "Coyote Warrior" provides a persuasive account of another Native community's fight for justice in America. The legal struggles of the Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara peoples for their land and sovereignty, as seen from their standpoint, provides valuable insights into the institutionalized bad faith of federal Indian policy. The author achieved his goal of making the compelling story of three tribe's contentious political relationship with the United States accessible to a wider audience.

This book is an eminently readable account of the disasters which befell the Arikara,Hidatsa and Mandan tribes when they were displaced by the damning of the Missouri.
It is also a disturbing revelation of the shenanigans of government, producing a sense of shame in those of us who look for"justice for all" from our representatives in DC.
It falls to bold Coyote Warriors,Martin Cross and later his brilliant son Raymond to combat in court,the injustices perpetrated on Native peoples.
As a piece of reporting VanDevelder's work is carefully phrased,occasionally lyrical, avoiding heavily loaded language.
It is also supplemented with an exhaustive bibliography(of which the author says there is more),one bound to satisfy demanding researchers.

An extraordinary look at the forces that disenfrnchised an Indian Nation from its heritage and its land. An insightful look into the destructive forces that rend family and community ties when frderal policies that de-humanize Native people are allowed to be implemented behind one man's ego, and a government's indifference. It is an all too familiar story -- well told -- of disenfranchisement of Indian people and governments. And finally, a story of the courage and incredible intellect of one families battle against irresistible forces.

Dr. Geary has created yet another winner! Regardless of your skill level, you'll find multiple projects within your reach. Each project is skill-level rated, but the directions are so clear that really persistence and patience are the only things separating the beginning projects from the advanced ones.

Dr. Geary gives a wonderful background on the cultural significance of each of the projects--if it has one. That's one of the really great things I love about this book. If the project is one directed primarily towards the tourist trade, she says so! There's not a thing wrong with making what sells and one should not feel the need to apologize for it. Handicrafts are one of the skills people the world over use to bring in extra income, so why should Native Americans be any different?

This is a very practical as well as enjoyable book. Little tricks to make the projects easier are generously scattered throughout the book. This book is a definite keeper and will remain as one of my favorite references. My only regret is that it sat on my "wish list" for so long before I finally purchased it!

I have both of Theresa's books and I have to say that they have to be the best books I've ever read; my daughter and I are constantly swapping these books back and forth. They are beautifully written, have wonderful illustrations and are very easy to follow. I love the history she inputs into every chapter and I have learned so much from these books. Please Theresa, write another one!

I own many beading books, but this one is a favorite I go back to over and over for the beauty and originality of the designs, as well as for the clear instructions. Projects are suitable for beginners who want to build their skills, as well as for the more advanced. The designs are Native American in theme, yet with just enough of a modern twist to be unique and a great jumping off place for one's own designs. I highly recommend it!

"Beadwork has an amazing history through the millennia. Even with so many brilliant examples of beadwork found on all continents except Antarctica, the Native American style of beading remains extremely popular worldwide. It is characterized by bright colors, bold designs, and extravagant beauty with natural themes. Embedded in the designs are symbols of spiritual significance to the native cultures originating them."

"People who do beadwork readily acknowledge that their beads 'speak' to them. Beads are like letters that are merely abstract symbols for composing words of human expression. They form a universal language that appears to cross all cultures."

from Native American Beadwork, Theresa Flores Geary

Theresa Flores Geary weaves tales and plant lore with drawings and patterns, as well as practical advice like how to finish your knots, in two lavishly illustrated books on Native American beading techniques and projects. She also nourishes a creative space with plenty of opportunity for improvisation and design on the part of the beader.

Much of a beader's time is spent looking closely at beads. Full-color photographs throughout the books breathe detail into the process of creating about three dozen beaded projects for beginners to advanced beadworkers. The photographs include finished beadwork pieces by many artists, as well as close-up shots of the bead projects at various stages of completion and diagrams which are easy to understand.

Of Tewa and Aztec ancestry, Geary started doing beadwork at 14, taught by her mother, Anna Flores, and later received advanced instruction from elders of the San Carlos Apache tribe while working as a clinical psychologist. For the past ten years she has devoted herself to full-time beadwork, writing books and teaching.

About a project with a traditional Thunderbird pattern, Geary writes: "A famous Kiowa poet, N. Scott Momaday, describes a different beast that roams the sky during a thunderstorm... Momaday's beast has a horse's head and a fish's tail. From its mouth lightning flashes, and its tail embodies the hot wind of a tornado. During a particularly violent monsoon-like season in southern Arizona, his description comes to life."

Geary's descriptions bring to life many projects, including a round peyote-stitched hatband for advanced beaders, Apache weave (or brick stitch) earrings, loom designs, Huichol lace, miniature ears of corn using a corn stitch, and eyeglass and badge holders. The range of designs makes the book useful to experienced beaders and to those just starting out. Lists of materials and instructions are clear, and most show ways that the patterns can be adapted to other projects.

Some of the stories Geary spins are old and pass on culture, and some are new, told in a clear and personal voice. The whole is a delightful how-to on beading techniques for any level of experience in a rich cultural context.

I have a Master's Degree in Museum Studies, and have devoted much of that study to the care and well-being of beadwork from all over the planet. I also interned at the Bead Museum in Glendale, AZ during the summer of 2000, where I learned much of this knowledge, but also I have worked for the Gerald R. Ford Conservation Center in Omaha, Nebraska, where I learned preventive conservation techniques. I, myself, am an accomplished beadworker, and have found this book to be filled with many great designs and techniques; ranging from very simple, to difficult. The average beader will find this work to be most rewarding, while beginners and advanced beaders alike will definately learn something new. It is one of the best technical books out there, with lots of helpful, clear photographs.

I am familiar with many of the projects in the book, however, I immediately sat down and began working on the Blue Violet Flower pattern and fell in love with the outcome! Many of the projects are pieces you will find for sale on some reservations today, as I also worked for the White Mountain Apache Tribal Museum and Cultural Center -- and have seen them there first hand. The purchaser of this book is getting the authentic thing, and that is rewarding in a time when beadwork is moving further and further away from its Native roots.

Good Work Theresa!

David Bingell

I am a sixth grade student and I read The Crying Rocks by Janet Taylor Lisle, its about a girl named Joelle, who was adopted when she was five years old by her adopted parents who she called Aunt Mary Louise and Vernon. In this book she looses a loved one though. She also makes friends with a boy named Carlos, who is in her Spanish class. They both spend most of their time together learning about these Indains who lived years before and where killed by a surprise attack by the English. Her and Carlos go into the woods to see an old Indian council place where she sees visions of what happened to the Indians in the land, and what they did for a living. She finds a painting in the library that she sees two girls on a hill watching the other Indians like they were out cast of the tribe but Joelle rembers them as if they meet before. When she goes to the Crying Rocks with Carlos she learns something about him that he hides from her even though see doesn't mind but she also finds something in the swamp that scares them and then to make things worse they hear a load moan. So now they are wondering what made that noise and where did it come from?

I loved this book so much it kept me reading late into the night wondering what would come next. My favorite part was when she goes to the Crying Rocks and when Carlos tells his secret . I think this was Janet's best books and I will read more of them too. So I hope you like this book as much is I did .

This was a wonderful, historically accurate fiction novel. It is easy enough for children to read and interesting enough for adults to enjoy. It covers subjects regarding adoption, abandonment, native americans and the idea of not knowing where you belong as a child. Highly recommend!

Fourteen-year-old Joelle, who is adopted and lives in Marshfield, Rhode Island, doesn't know much about her past. All she is aware of is that she was brought in from a train station when she was just five years old. "I can't remember anything so don't ask me!" she yells irritably to anyone who snoops, including Carlos, an eccentric kid in her Spanish class. But when Carlos, a collector of arrowheads and Native American lore, tells her that she resembles an Indian girl in an old mural of Narragansett Indians in their school library, she can't resist taking a look. She is dumbfounded by a spark of recognition.

When Joelle asks her adoptive parents, Uncle Vernon and Aunt Mary Louise, about her past, they tell her what happened but she doesn't believe them. Then, while on a hike, Carlos tells her about the Crying Rocks, where howls on windy days are thought to be the spirit voices of children who were flung from the boulders to an early death. Joelle doesn't believe that story either until one day, while at the Crying Rocks with Carlos, she hears crying and screaming. After her Aunt Mary Louise dies, she grows more and more curious about her past, not to mention the cries and screams. Will Joelle ever discover the truth behind the Crying Rocks and her past? Or will both stories be a secret forever?

THE CRYING ROCKS had an incredible ending, and I agree wholeheartedly with Joelle's attempts to learn the details of her past. If you enjoy reading touching books about friends and family, read this one to find out what happens to Joelle and her family.

--- Reviewed by Ashley Hartlaub

" 'So tell me about these Indians who were supposedly around here,' she says, as if she's never heard of Indians before. Which is laughable. Half the names of places in Rhode Island are Native American. There are statues of Indians in the parks and plaques that tell where this treaty was signed or that attack happened. Everyone has heard of the Indians, they just don't think about them that much. Indians are ancient history here, like three hundred years ago or more."

"One little, two little, three little Indians
Four little, five little, six little Indians
Seven little, eight little, nine little Indians
Ten little Indian boys."

I was a little kid on Long Island back in an era when in circle time songs you'd as easily count ten little Indians as you would count six little ducks or ten green and speckled frogs.

A few years further on, in the mid 1960s, I chose "The Indian Tribes of Paumanok" (a Native American name for Long Island) as the topic for a social studies report. And while this raised my 10 year-old state of consciousness a few notches, I still had a heck of a time envisioning the booming suburbs where I lived as having been a vast woodland sheltering those peoples.

In contrast, thirteen year old Joelle, the main character in THE CRYING ROCKS, has such an ability and inclination. In fact, she can sometimes imagine someone from the distant past following her. Joelle, who was adopted at five by "Aunt" Mary Louise and "Uncle" Vernon, has that hunger to know about her own roots. In sharp contrast to her "heavy and earthbound" adoptive parents, Joelle is such a tall and striking seventh grader that a group of little neighborhood girls worships her from a distance, imagines her to be royalty, and emulates her style. But it is clear to the reader that something awful must have happened to Joelle as a young child, since she cannot remember the mysterious and unspoken circumstances in which she came to be discovered at the railroad depot of the northwestern Rhode Island community where she has since lived.

" 'Back in the woods there's a place where they used to meet. A high council place. There are trails, too. You can tell they're old Indian paths because of how deep they're worn down. It would take hundreds of years of feet to wear down a path like that.'
" 'Hundreds of years of feet?' she says. 'Give me a break.'
" 'A thousand years, even. Some artifacts are that old and more. What's amazing is how their culture got wiped out when the white man came. Fifty years after the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock, the Narragansetts were all gone, thirty or forty-thousand people who lived right around here.'
" 'What happened?' Joelle asked in spite of herself.
" Carlos stares at her. 'Disease, first, then they were killed off. The last few were sold into slavery down in the West Indies. It's one of those histories people don't like to remember.'
" 'But you do?'
" 'I'm part Indian.'
" 'Really?'
"Carlos stands up straighter and looks at her defiantly, as if she might have a problem with this. She registers again his gray eyes, his brown hair, his long thin face. " 'You don't look--'
" 'Just a small part,' Carlos says quickly. 'Like about one sixteenth or something.' "

The innocent and tentative relationship that develops between Carlos and Joelle--that of close friends whom the reader imagines/hopes will later become boyfriend and girlfriend--is impeccably drawn. Sometimes as if a pair of bumper cars, sometimes utterly in tune, the connection between these two kids who are finding themselves winds its way through the tension of the story to an absolutely fun and joyous scene where the two are dueling each other with quotes from their research.

THE CRYING ROCKS asks hard questions about the values and behavior of the Europeans who came to America as well as that of the Narragansetts who were there when the ships arrived. The author skillfully ties these questions to treatment of arguably "less fortunate" groups in twenty-first century society. Janet Taylor Lisle has an ability for crafting a story that is taut and powerful while maintaining the limits which allow for this story to be used in middle school classrooms. THE CRYING ROCKS will find a home in those classrooms and is a tale that will surely have readers thinking and asking about their own roots.

Grades 7 and up will appreciate this warm story of Joelle, who discovers a likeness to Native Americans which will change her perceptions of who she is and Native history. Her new friend Carlos who has introduced her to this history has his own hard secret to reveal - one which involves a family loss and a hidden guilt. How they change each other's life makes for a moving saga.

This book is a wonderful for all who are inspired to serve their own churches, a biography of Bishop Harold Jones of South Dakota, the trials and trbulations of a man making a name for himself within the Episcopal church, still leaves a lasting impression on clergy that knew this wonderful man, a man who can wonderfully sing lakota hymns ( told to me by a priest i know, who knew him well) and preach the gospel with great reverence. Bishop Jones is still talk of the South Dakota Episcopal Diocese now and the future, a role model for all who takes compassion, people and God as a way of life.

I am an Episcopalian Christian and a native of the state of Montana. As such, I was unable to finish "Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee" (Dee Brown) because of what is sometimes called white guilt. I did finish Cochran's book,"Dakota Cross Bearer." In fact, I could hardly put it down.

Some may prefer "Bury My Heart" over Mary Cochran's book, because of Brown's righteous and radical anger, absent from Cochran's voice.

Like Brown's account, this story speaks sorrowfully of the shameful history of betrayal of Native Americans, even by the church. It touched me deeply because it recounts the the open-mindedness of many Lakotah people toward the god of the Europeans who were displacing, impoverishing, and trying to stamp out the cultures of tribes throughout the west. While many missionaries in this account had benevolent intentions, the fruit of their labors was a mixed blessing at best.

Mary and her husband, The Rt. Rev. David Cochran (former bishop in the Dakotas) were entrusted with the story of the Lakotah people and prejudice in the church from Bishop Harold Jones' point of view. His lack of rancor in living through many insults and challenges is a powerful witness to the best in the Christian faith tradition, and even more so, the best in his tribal traditions. The picture of life on the Lakotah reservations during the early 20th century was fascinating. For example, Lakota women took the lead consistently in raising the funds necessary to start new churches. They had almost no money and were phenomenally ingenious!

I will never stop grieving what happened to the native peoples of the west as my people invaded their homeland. Bishop Jones' spirit will help me live with it.

Dakota Cross-Bearer: The Life And World Of A Native American Bishop is the biography of Harold S. Jones, a Dakota Indian born in 1909, who joined the Episcopal Church and rose in its ranks to become the first Native American bishop of a Christian church. Offering key insights into twentieth-century missionary activity among Native American communities, revealing instances of dispute and discrimination amid the Episcopal Church, as well as the demands of clerical training and the relocation in service of the institution, Dakota Cross-Bearer offers a view like no other into the life of an unusual but no less dedicated man of the cloth and faith.

What a find this book is!!! Having spent time this summer working on the Pine Ridge Reservation among the Lakota, I was thrilled to read a book containing not only historical facts, but "real life" detail. The joy, humor, sorrow, endurance, and faithfulness of this man of God (and those whose lives entwined with his) truly touched me. This book may be sucessfully used for historical, theological, sociological, or devotional purposes. Make sure to read and reread Fr. Deloria's (Tipi Sapa) testimony concerning Jesus, several times. It is the most compelling witness I have ever heard. It is no wonder that the little one, who listened to this wise man speak, grew up to be a Bishop.

Mary E. Cochran presents the story of Harold S. Jones, who in 1921 became the first American Indian bishop of the Episcopal Church. While much of Jones's narrative is in the third person, whenever possible editor Cochran allowed Jones to present his story "in his own words." Raymond A. Bucko and Martin Brokenleg's introduction does a good job of contextualizing Jones's story. The volume sheds considerable light on missionary activities among American Indians in the 20th century and offers welcome documentation of the complex interactions between Christian missionaries and Native peoples of the Plains. Choice, vol 28, no. 7 (March 2001).

Some tiny mice are playing out in the field, late at night. They have a fire going and are dancing inside a buffalo skull. They are having too much fun to realize the danger they are in. Outside prowls a wildcat. Will the wildcat be successful in capturing the mice? Or, will they be able to escape? What lesson will this book teach your children? You've got to read this terrific book to find out the answer.

Author Zitkala-Ša (Red Bird), a Yankton Lakota Sioux woman, took this oral tribal history story and translated it into English in 1901. Brought vividly to life by Illustrator S. D. Nelson, a Lakota artist, I found this book to be totally awesome.

Zitkala-Ša was a very talented native author who brings this oral tale alive in a unique way. This story and others were listened to around the campfires of her youth as told by the tribe's storytellers. She sticks closely to the oral history despite the translation into the English language. This was one of many oral historical tales that she translated from Lakota to English without the help of an editor, interpreter, or ethnographer. Raised traditionally for the first 8 years of her life, Zitkala-Ša then attended boarding school and later graduated from high school and college.

I find it fascinating that this story was written and published by Zitkala-Ša, a prolific native American woman author and native civil rights activist, over 107 years ago; and that this oral tribal history story can still be relevant to children everywhere today. Amazing!

The very gifted S. D. Nelson makes this tale literally jump off the pages and give your child a real feel for the moral message of this story. The artwork is very colorful, appealing, detailed, and kid-friendly in a big way.

This is a must-have book for your child if you want them to know the wise and valuable stories that our First American children grew up with. This is a simple but fun tale that your child will want to read over and over.

This book is put out by the South Dakota State Historical Society Press and is the second book in the Society's Prairie Tale series. Dance In A Buffalo Skull just won the Mom's Choice Awards' Most Outstanding Children's Book of 2008. This is an honor well deserved. Bravo to the South Dakota State Historical Society Press for bringing back the fascinating writings of Zitkala-Ša, so that new generations of the world's children can learn from her and her tribe.
Reviewed by: Gayle Jacobson-Huset, Managing Editor

The first thing I noticed when I got the book was how beautiful the cover is. It just makes you want to open it and discover the story within. The introduction to the book gives parents a great understanding of the history behind the story. If you are the type of parent who wants to expose your child to different cultures, this book is an easy and fun way to introduce them to the Sioux Indian Oral Tradition.

The imagery in the story as well as the beautiful artwork make this story a delight to both the eyes and the imagination. The vocabulary of the story is a bit more challenging than is found in your typical children's book, but there is a glossary to help with those words, for the older children enjoying the story.

I don't personally have children, although I've always loved reading aloud to them. I lent my copy of this book to a good friend so she could 'test' it on a real child. Her son, 4yrs old, loved the story and asked for it to be read multiple times. She said he normally doesn't do that. So not only is this book a delight for an adult to read, it is a delight for a child to listen to.

Dance in a Buffalo Skull has been voted as the Most Outstanding Children's Book of 2008 by the Mom's Choice Awards.

The Mom's Choice Awards® honors excellence in family-friendly media, products and services. An esteemed panel of judges includes education, media and other experts as well as parents, children, librarians, performing artists, producers, medical and business professionals, authors, scientists and others. A sampling of the panel members includes: Dr. Twila C. Liggett, Ten-time Emmy-winner, professor and founder of Reading Rainbow; Julie Aigner-Clark, Creator of Baby Einstein and The Safe Side Project; Jodee Blanco, New York Times Best-Selling Author; LeAnn Thieman, Motivational speaker and coauthor of seven Chicken Soup For The Soul books; Tara Paterson, Certified Parent Coach, and founder of The Just For Mom Foundation(tm) and the Mom's Choice Awards®. Parents and educators look for the Mom's Choice Awards® seal in selecting quality materials and products for children and families. This book has been honored by this distinguished award.

Translated from the original Native American legend into English in 1901 by author Zitkala-Sa, and illustrated by award-winning Lakota artist S.D. Nelson, Dance in a Buffalo Skull is a picturebook tale of mice conducting a dance in old, dried-up buffalo skull, while a wildcat sneaks up on them. The art blends Lakota tradition and modern styles to match the tall tale and bring it to life. At the peak of the dance, the wildcat is spotted and the mice run away into the dark! An enjoyable story faithful to the original legend. Also highly recommended is the first picturebook in the Prairie Tale Series, "The Discontented Gopher".

In 1866, all the various clans of the Kiowa nation gather together at sacred Rainy Mountain to honor the chief of chiefs, the recently deceased Little Bluff, and to elect his replacement. However, the transition does not go smoothly when Cheyenne Robber, the nephew of one of the leading candidates, is accused of strangling to death Coyote Walking, the nephew of another aspirant. It appears that civil war is imminent. However, the ruling council allows Cheyenne Robber's relatives five days to prove he did not commit the crime during a jealous rage over a woman both showed interest.

Skywalker drafts Tay-bodal, a healer who belongs to no band, to prove that Cheyenne Robber is innocent. As Tay-bodal begins to investigate the crime, he knows that circumstantial evidence proves Cheyenne Robber had the motive, means, and opportunity to kill Coyote Walking. Still, he believes the man to be innocent because Cheyenne Robber planned to kidnap White Otter not kill his rival. As he digs deeper into uncovering the facts, Tay-bodal falls in love with a widow and has had several attempts made on his life. Tay-bodal continues to investigate because he knows only he can prevent the holocaust facing his people.

Death at Rainy Mountain is a who-done-it with a twist: the entire story revolves around a nineteenth century Native American tribe. The mystery is interesting and Tay-bodal is a great detective, but it is the glimpse at the Kiowa culture that makes this a top-notch reading experience.

HARRIET KLAUSNER

Kiowa author Scott Momaday has suggested that the humorless Indian is a ridiculous stereotype, and Cherokee author Mardi Medawar's Tay-bodal mysteries certainly confirm that view. Both Medawar and her hero have a great sense of fun, and this first novel in a series of four is notable for its refusal to take seriously the cliches of white attitudes toward Indians.

It is also an interesting and challenging mystery set in an important moment of American history, when the tribes of the southern plains were being subjugated by Civil War veterans with nothing better to do. Tay-bodal moves among the great heroes of that era--Satanta, Lone Wolf, Satank--who are for him not only great but uncles and cousins, and men with, if not feet of clay, dirty moccasins.

Read it for the mystery, read it for the history, read it for the fresh look at American Indians. But read it. Good book.

The Kiowa Nation has gathered to mourn the passing of principal chief Little Bluff, but the chief's funeral is soon overshadowed by the murder of Coyote Walking, the unpleasant nephew of sub-chief, Kicking Bird. As Kicking Bird and his fellow chieftains jockey for power, Tay-bodal, a non-traditional healer, is called upon to investigate the crime. Tay-bodal searches for the truth through a confused maze of tribal politics as an innocent man's life hangs in the balance and the Kiowa nation trembles on the brink of civil war.

Medawar has done an excellent job of re-creating the world of the 19th century Kiowa without allowing the narrative to get bogged down in historical detail. Her characters are well-drawn individuals--I could see them clearly in my mind's eye. The solution to the mystery remains mysterious until the end of the story, the pacing is excellent, and there is much humor throughout.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes good history and good mysteries. Death at Rainy Mountain is the first book in the Tay-bodal mystery series.

hey, if you aren't reading mardi oakley medawar's books, then what are you reading??? you can't find another author out there who's writing touches your soul in a way you wish your best friend/ partener/ family were able to. mardi oakley medawar understands people- all people; black, white, european, asian, and most notably the native american. but her true gift lies in the fact that she loves people so much you feel as if, not only her characters are talking directly to you as though you were their dearest friend, but that she is LISTENING to your own heart as only one who truly knows, understands, accepts and loves you, whoever you are. be prepared to laugh out loud, cry from your marrow, and ultimately feel freed by the knowledge that there is no color or creed, only the human soul, and but for our accidental birthrights, any of us could be a hero or an outcast, heathan or missionary, and we would still be blessed and cursed with all that comes with being human. if you aren't reading mardi oakley medawar, you are missing out on one of life's greatest treasures- understanding the timeless nature of the human spirit

Others before me have already conveyed the storyline, so I won't repeat it, but tell you only that if you enjoy reading about American Indian life, written from the viewpoint of an insider, who speaks of his people without self-conscious posturing, attempts to make his people better or worse than they are; if you enjoy a storyteller who finds humor in himself, his situation and in humanity; if you enjoy being immersed in another culture and open to understanding another people's ways, while slowly unraveling a mystery, then you will enjoy Mardi Oakley Medawar's "Death at Rainy Mountain."

This is not a Tony Hillerman style book, which is not to belittle Hillerman, for I love his books immenseley. It is merely to acknowledge that the treatment is very different...but if you enjoy Hillerman because he opens new vistas of understanding to you, then you will enjoy Medawar also.

This book is as much a story of a people,as it is a mystery, as it is a warm, wonderful romance in which Tay-bodal realizes "Being bound to someone you intensely love, somone you trust to love you back, is a man's only true freedom. And it's the one thing any of us ever really owns. Everything else, most especially power, is fleeting."

Tay-bodal is a most engaging and unlikely hero, and joins the ranks of other wonderful characters who have become more real to me with each re-reading than many people living and breathing today.

My only sorrow is that I do not live in his world so that I might one day have the pleasure of sitting across the fire from him; perhaps assist him in his doctoring; perhaps spy on him as he takes his toddler adopted son by the hand and walks him to an appropriate place with lots of scrub trees and as they stand there side by side peeing,instructs him saying "Women don't appreciate men peeing in the doorway." or laugh when he returns with the toddler to where his almost wife, and mother of his soon to be adopted son stands wringing her hands, worried about her son's whereabouts, and listen in on his response to her when she queations where he took the child and why, and how dared he without her permission to which he responds: "Woman, I don't need your permission to go off for a pee with my son."

This author has captured the wit and humor of a man who never lived, who was of a tribe that did, and through him, teaches us that for all our differences, we are all human.

Ms. Medawar is a writer whose talent is to bring laughter, joy and understanding through the medium of fiction, and make this life a more enjoyable experience.

When I started to read this book, I thought it would be just another coffee table book. But as I read on, it clearly was much more. Starting at about 2000 BC, this book tells the story of the rise and fall of numerous tribes and tribal regions in the Southwest. Each chapter is limited in size and is told in a pleasant newspaper style. The book as a whole is brief for a history of this scope. It continues through the upheavals created by the Spanish and later the American Settlers and on through the Civil War, Statehood, World War I, the Depression, World War II, and on to the Casinos of the present. Each chapter is illustrated with color photos and a large photo of the pottery of the era and geographical region. It was surprising how little I knew of the history of this region. If you have moved to the Southwest from some other part of the US, you owe it to yourself and your children to to read this book. I read it twice, and may have another go at it in order to come close to remembering it all. There is no more pleasant way to teach yourself the history of the American Southwest!

The book is excellent and quite lovely in its artwork, but I was looking something that had more pre-history. But it's still a good addition to my SW collection.

Was the movie Chinatown fact or fiction? In The Desert Southwest: Four Thousand Years of Life and Art, Allan and Carol Hayes tell you the real story behind the water deal that turned Los Angeles into what it is today -- and about the century after century of history that preceded it.

In school, you were told that the valleys of the Nile, the Tigris and the Euphrates were the "cradles of
civilization," but did anyone ever tell you that the southern Arizona desert is considered the cradle of civilization in the United States?

Recent excavations indicate that people began living an agriculture-based lifestyle in the Tuscon basin four thousand years ago. Why and how did the dry, hard-edged, hostile desert become the place where millions of Americans want to live today .. a place where, for centuries, talented artists, engineers and craftsmen have created everything from sophisticated irrigation systems to magnificent pottery.

Don't be misled -- this book would look terrific on your coffee table with its stunning photographs by John
Blom. But what's best about it is not what it shows you but what it tells you. This is much more than a coffee table book -- the words and pictures leap off the page and into your psyche.

Read it and you will never feel the same about the desert southwest again.

This is a treasure book for anyone living in Arizona or trying to know it better. What a great read: funny and studious. The authors present their opinions with joy and research and tell you why they ended up where they are.

A great keeper and a great gift.

This is not a coffee-table book, although it would look good on any coffee table. It's a meticiously researched
history-anthropology-archeology book that reads like a Tony Hillerman novel, only funnier. And it's filled with wonderful photographs (both historical and contemporary),some of which show things like things you could actually buy.

Many people think the history of the Desert Southwest began with the Pueblos and ended with Indian Gaming,
but this book traces its history, art and culture back for more than 4000 years. And it takes the reader far beyond New Mexico and Arizona to amazing sites in Utah, Nevada, Oklahoma, Texas, Southern California and Northern Mexico.

My husband and I lived in the Southwest for many years and thought we knew a lot about the area -- but this
book opened our eyes. We lent it to Hispanic and Native neighbors, who said the same thing. I reccommend it to anyone as a fresh, readable exploration of a fascinating subject. And as a terrific take-along travel guide
to anyone planning a trip to the Desert Southwest.

By the way, if you're already into Pueblo Pottery, check out the first Hayes-Blom book, Southwestern Pottery: Anasazi to Zuni.

I bought this book for homeschooling my 7 year old. Read half of it to her last night and didn't want to stop reading! (our eyes said otherwise.) I could read this to her in the same style as a fiction adventure book - the author did such a smooth wonderful job with her prose! I wish all history books were like this! This book is full of history and fun facts. It starts with why the Pilgrims wanted to go to the US, the hardships they faced, how they dealt with things (like bugs on food - eat in the dark), what they used, etc. The child is introduced to all the key terms (Pilgrims, Religion, Dutch, Mayflower, Mayflower Compact, Plymouth, etc.) and key people (Carver, Bradford, Squanto, Massasoit, (sp?) etc.) and is filled with ink drawings that supplement the child's own images. Although my daughter is a good listener, I did not expect her to be entralled with this book but she loved it! The book results in a lot of "cool" "ewwwww" and "i didn't know that" comments and easily leads to conversations comparing then and now....

Funny, I bought the book for fun to add to a cookbook collection and books on manners, restaurants, etc. (yes, there some cute recipes in the back) thinking I would only pick out some cute facts to share...very pleased and very surprised at the wealth of information in this book that is easily translated into a youngster's understanding in such a lively manner!

Excellent and highly recommended for homeschoolers!!!!!!!!

I bought this from our public library this summer at one of their book fairs per a friends
recommendation. I have not been dissapointed. My first grade daughter read a chapter
every night and we brought "Pilgrim food" to her school when it was her turn for snack.There
are recipes in the back of the book for you to try.
You haven't lived until you have seen 1st graders try "Swizler- a drink the Pilgrims
called "refreshing". Water, ginger, molassesa and vinegar. And yes, it tasted
as vile as it sounds. However, the kids talked about it all week. My daughter's
favorite chapter was one of the early ones which talked about the Pilgrims Mayflower
voyage where they would sometimes eat in the dark so as not to see the bugs in
their food! Captivating and a great information for all grade levels. And by the way
the book got it's title because some of the Pilgrims would make their dinner plates
out of bread (remember, they only had so much room to take things onto the Mayflower)
and then eat them. Then they didn't have to do the dishes. Of course sometimes they
would re-use them (no, they didn't wash bread plates, ugh!!!) and when they became
too hard, would feed them to the pigs. BUY THIS ONE!!!

I couldn't put this book down until I was done. Although it was a mere 107 pages long, it was full of fascinating tidbits. My 3 children (ages 3 to 9) begged me to read more from the book as a reward for getting ready for bed in record time! This will be a book that will be in our collection from now on! Never before have I had such a healthy respect for the brave Pilgrims of Plymouth. Eating the Plates will add a special dimension to our study of the Pilgrims.

If you are a teacher, if you home school your children or even if you're just a mom like me that loves history and wants to share it with her children---Eating The Plates is a great place to get started. I loved this book! Young and old alike will learn what it might have actually been like to have come across the ocean on the Mayflower. I have shared it with children from kindergarten age through junior high(and I myself as well as other adults have enjoyed it). They were all held spellbound and came away having learned a great deal of respect for the people who settled our country and whom we often take for granted--the Pilgrims. They were real people with hopes and dreams! Lucille Recht Penner makes them and their struggles come alive. The recipes at the end of the book were especially fun to try. I highly recommend this book

This puts that first Thanksgiving meal in context: it's a fascinating story of the Pilgrims, their voyage to what would be Plymouth, MA, and the first hard years there. My five and six year olds sat rapt and silent for the whole thing, and it's a long book. Early American Pilgrim life was cold, buggy, stinky, and the kids had to keep wolves away from the precious planted corn hills, using a pile of rocks to defend themselves and the corn. Great, great book. I'm so sick of the usual twaddle: this one earns its stars.

The heart-breaking story of the Kogi indians of Colombia, who believe that their divine purpose is safeguarding the planet from the ecological holocaust caused by modern civilization. The description of the elderly shaman and the young boy, secluded in a cave high in the Andes as they enact ancient rituals in a desperate attempt to save the world, is one of the most mind-blowing passages I have ever read. A gut-wrenching, haunting, and ultimately terrifying book, the message of the Kogi people could very well contain the key to our survival as a species.

Several years ago I saw the documentary "From the Heart Of the World." I never forgot it and thought about these wise and wonderful people, the "elder brothers," many times and wished always to know more. One day I googled in "Elder Brothers" and found to my joy that a few used volumes of a book I had never known about were listed on amazon.com. Now I own one slim book, worth its weight in gold with which I will never part.

The Elder brothers, the Kogis, are a tribe of South American Indians living high in the mountains of Columbia. Having avoided extinction by the early Spanish explorers, they found refuge where others could not follow. There they have survived for centuries, living in harmony with nature and resisting outside influences. It was only because they knew in their own unique way that the outside world was destroying the earth that they permitted Alan Ereira to travel to their sanctuaries and create the film as a warning to their "younger brothers." The book tells the story of Ereira's friendship with these highly intelligent and spiritually evolved people and how the film came to be made. Ereira shares with the reader glimpses into the Kogi way of life, their customs, their government and the spiritual philosophy they have lived by in peace and brotherhood for so many centuries. The book, currently out of print, should be republished and read by all who care anything about our ravaged earth for its message has never been more urgent.

The Elder Brothers are the last surviving high civilization of pre-conquest America. They live in Colombia's Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta...the highest coastal mountain in the world...19,000 feet above the sea and only 26 miles inland. The mountains gradually rise from the Caribbean beaches and burning desert at the base to eternal snows at the top. It is the land of the Kogi...the special Indian people who consider themselves the Elder Brothers of humanity.

From the start, author/film maker Alan Ereira did not want to make a film about the Kogi...he wanted to make a film with them. His willingness to allow the Kogi to tell their story rather than dictate to them...lead the Elder Brothers to break centuries of suspicion and secrecy. This wonderful book is about how Ereira managed to make his documentary film. The author is careful to explain that the Kogi Elder Brothers offer us a way of understanding our own past. The Elder Brothers believe that they are the guardians to life on earth. The Kogi are not a violent people but like all indigenous people of America who were hospitable...they have learned that hospitality is the most dangerous virtue on earth. Hence, now that they have given Ereira the message...they want to be left alone again.

The Kogi have a powerful message...true "words of wisdom" that can help mankind. The Elder Brothers look on us as children, dangerous, irrational and essentially helpless. They call us, the "Younger Brothers." They also see as moral idiots, greedy beyond all understanding. Over and over Ereira informs us that the Kogi speak of us sacking, looting the planet, tearing at is flesh without respect. If we fail to respond...the Elder Brothers say all life will be destroyed.

This book will certainly shake your soul. The Kogi are intelligent but an understanding of their world requires profound understanding and deep thought, according to the author. The Kogi are balanced...in harmony with mother nature and hope that we will listen to them and change our ways. They know that the "Younger Brother" has a butterfly mind which has paid no attention to mother nature's teaching. At the beginning the Kogi had a garden of Eden...but it was all destroyed with the arrival of the brutal Spanish conquistadors who sought gold and killed all who did not obey.

In order to understand the significance of the Elder Brothers I must borrow the words of one scholar in this marvelous book who documents his comments in the "Journal of Latin American Lore." The scholar states, "I truly believe that the Kogi can greatly contribute to a better understanding and handling of some of our modern dilemmas and that we should consider ourselves fortunate to be contemporaries of a people who perhaps can teach us to achieve a measure of balance...My appeal is to humanists, to psychologists and philosophers, to historians and to the community of international planning experts who, I am afraid, are far removed from the Magna Mater of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta." Highly, highly recommended.

Bert Ruiz

Very moving account of what is happening to the Kogi-Indians in Colombia. Makes you think about what the "white brothers" did to indigenous people in America.

This book should be required reading in order to qualify for participation in the human race. WHY IS IT OUT OF PRINT??? This book is an eye-opener to the tragic environmental destruction we all are causing to the Earth. I have no doubt that we could make miraculous healing changes to the world environment if everyone read a copy. It not only features an incredibly important environmental message, it is a great read! The reader is invited into the world of the Kogi of Colombia and blessed with the opportunity to perceive the world through their eyes. This book is a rare jewel, one does not often find a recounting this valuable and moving. After reading it, I gathered my children and talked about the impact we all make on the global environment every day. We went through our home to find ways to improve and change as much as one family can. This book will prove to be an epiphany to anyone fortunate enough to read it. It is startling that the "younger brothers" have gutted the Earth, burnt the sky, poisoned the sea and are now working on the extinction of human life.

I wish all the pieces in this book ended like the piece "Split Decision". "When the bell rang at the end of the fight
after Joe Frazier had floored Ali with a left hook
you must remember that Muhammad Ali was still standing

he stood up."

There was some hope in that ending, but not in a lot of the others. This book made me very sad and angry about the past and what we as a people continue to do today. How much we have destroyed and how much we have missed by always wanting to stick to who and what we know and surround ourselves with possessions.

Each essay or poem is sharp and clear and vivid. Each scene that is described can easily be pictured but the emotions can only be imagined. It would be wonderful if many, many readers were to be exposed to Sherman Alexie's work.

Sorry if that sounded gushy, but throughout the pathos and humor, I coulldn't help but marvel at this man's spirit-- and his literary skills. I've seen his interviews and featured bios on television and reading his work brings it all to life. I wish I had his ability to draw verbal pictures. Thank you for being you!

A very sad collection of pieces by Alexie, covering all manner of topics of res life. More impressive, however, is his use of style and technique in these works. Sometimes in traditional poem format, sometimes in prose writing, flirting with fiction storytelling. Around every page is a new experience. This is a great collection.

With a voice that begs contemplation and makes you want to find the everyday magic in your own life, Alexie gives us a heart-filled and heart-breaking collection of tale-like poems about Amerindian life in the 20th century and beyond.
Stunning.

Sherman Alexi is an in-your-face poet, there's no doubt about it. He has a voice that demands to be heard, and you will listen, even unwillingly. His style is unique, mixing short, terse lines of verse alternating with long lines of prose that carry contrasts of charged emotion against the calming voice of reason. It is not an easy read. There are harsh truths, but truths that need to be addressed and heeded. His voice is the voice of many and the voice of few, but all demand you hear them. Powerful and moving.When I finished reading it, I felt as if I'd been shot in the back with many arrows and was left carrying around holes in my heart.