North America Books

In this book, people who have read alot into Native American history will see the more famous Indian testimonials that have appeared in many other places, like those by heavily published persons like Black Elk, Tecumseh, and Charles Eastman (Sioux). You also get many anonymous accounts and the testimony from obscure persons who were only known to give their thoughts to a few white people. What sets this book above the rest, however, is that it doesn't just cover the time periods that are shown in most Native American histories, which would either be ancient pre-European times, or the famous era of the Indians' destruction and valiant efforts to maintain the old ways of life. This book also covers those areas, as it should, but continues into the modern reservation days, and even captures the thoughts of recent activists on the future of Native Americans. All people will be enlightened by the non-Western interpretations on history, religion, politics, and culture that are generously detailed in this book.

This book is a collection of interviews with and stories from everyday people as they lived out their lives. I first read this book several years ago, yet I find that there are interviews and stories that I go back and reread again and again. If you are a Native or a student of Native American History, this is a good book to have on your shelf.

Nabokov has done a superb job of collecting individual Native American memoirs from the last half millenium and weaving them together to paint the sad portrait of Indian-White relations. In between the tales from each successive time period in history is enlightening commentary, usually an historical overview of the period written by the editor. These commentaries help give a unity to this work. But this is not simply a bad guys vs. good guys book. Nabokov's stories reflect the complexity involved among Native Americans who frequently disagreed with each other about what would be the best path to trod for all concerned; and they also tell the stories of proud peoples who continued to survive and carry on. This book illuminates history in a way that most school textbooks do not.

For information on the cover art, chapter heading art, as well as other art by Parris Butler, give him a call at River of Dreams Fine Art (510) 527-5687, ex. 2.

Native American Voices may be the only volume that emits from "Native Country" encompassing the western hemisphere. From the Inuit and Athapascan near the Polar Rim to the Mapuche and Tierra Del Fuego, this volume winnows articulation from a variety of common dialogues. Often we are presented with great philosophy; sometimes we are greeted with prophacy. But, always there is the warning that the lives of the Native People have been assaulted and drastically altered, and if we, the Native Nations, do not reverse ourselves and adhere to the wisdom and the knowledge of our forefathers, we may, along with "civilization," perish. Perusing Native American Voices, we are presented with a scurry of tribal activity that cautions the Elders to guide the youth, and for the youth to listen and to employ that wisdom with respectful enthusiasm. From the British Domain down through California, piercing the Dakotas, entering the realm of the Iroquois Confederacy and southward, there is the cry of political injustice, and that taking the Tribal Laws of great Native Nations and using them for the benefit of the invading masses is not an act of righteousness. In Native Ameircan Voices we hear the weeping of women and children and the clash of swords as the invading hordes rush to attach a people armed only with kindness. WE are witness to the attack. We are also a spectator in the arena where native multitudes are marched in to be baptized in the name of God. Moments later, the baptized are beheaded. Native American Voices is often a requirement in my classes. The students wonder why there were never taught "this" in American and World History in high school. They, too, worry about the value of life in the future. But, thanks to the labors of special people likeLobo and Talbot, the Native People will not fade into the sunset. On page 477, Philip Deere succinctly states the determination of the Native Nations to continue, "We are a people that are made and placed here for a purpose. Through many struggles, through many years of struggle and sufferings we refuse to die." Highly recommended.

This reader is a great resource for teachers at all levels. It proved to be a great help in my curriculum planning.

Gabe Horn's Native Heart is written in the voice of a man who walks his path with clear eyes and a loving heart. He does not hesitate to speak the truth, but does so in a way that clearly respects our need as real human beings to accept past (and current) injustices, learn from them and move on to a brotherhood of working together for the good of the People and the Land. Plan to have a highlighting pen near when reading this book to capture the wisdom and burn it into your heart. Once having read the true history of our nation and the continuing bias against any culture which defers from the one in power, there is no excuse for inaction. My personal library of books regarding american indian history, culture and spirit is extensive, and Native Heart now holds a place on honor. I am privileged to be the first person to write a review for this inspired offering and plan to purchase additional copies for my loved ones. We are indeed all related. Walk in Balance. Marsha Anisoquili (Many Ponies) Raymond -

As a sociologist with a specialization in power relations and most particularly racial and ethnic relations in the United States, I should probably have been aware of Gabriel Horn's books a long time ago. That I wasn't is a testimony to the door our culture shuts in the face of its history and continued treatment of and attitude toward indigenous people, including the native nations of North America. That I came across Mr. Horn's work now-finally-is a function, I believe, of being in the right place at the right time thinking the right thoughts to put me in touch with an increasing level of important Truth. Native Heart is a story of survival, strength, and glory in the face of odds that have been truly insurmountable physically, but powerless spiritually. It is also a poem to and about Gabriel Horn's people. It holds back nothing, baring the core of his Being in a way that must have been painful, indeed. I am immensely grateful to have been allowed to walk the earth with Mr. Horn and those he introduces us to-past and present-in his books. If you're at all like me, you will be greatly saddened by Native Heart, but quieted, too, in the ultimate knowledge that where there is life, there is, in fact, hope for all who seek it. And if you, like I did, finish Native Heart with a yen for a second helping, Contemplations of a Primal Mind continues both the story and the reader's education.

'Native Heart' for me offered great depth of insight into Native Amercian spirituality, and the difficulties faced in modern US society preserving that culture. It also highlighted the bigotry Native peoples face here, and the misguided sterotypes other Americans may often work from when dealing with Native Americans.

Read after Gabriel Horn's second book - 'Contemplations of a Primal Mind (****), this was the perfect reading sequence for me, as one led directly into the other.

I would strongly recommend this book to ALL Americans (and non-Americans), as a way to dispel the 'John Wayne' type sterotypes created about Native Americans, and to really understand them as a people, their culture and enlightening spirituality.

Ayukii! ("Hello"! in my native language)

"Native Plants/ Native Healing" is a GREAT book, written by a wonderful and loving person: Tis Mal Crow. I knew Tis Mal personally since the 1980's. He was very knowledgeable about plants and herbs and their medicinal uses. He was also one of my closest friends, but we were more like brothers. There aren't many "root doctors" around - not like Tis Mal. He was one of the best.

I would like to thank Jerry Lee Hutchens, the "Native Voices" editor for the "Book Publishing Company" in helping Tis Mal's dream become a reality by helping him publish this great book.

Tis Mal and I danced at many Pow Wow's, and also made native regalia for many years. We used to sit for hours on end for months at a time to create beadwork. Tis Mal was well known for his bear claw necklaces, and his life-sized carved wooden dolls, dressed in traditional native american regalia.

Tis Mal Crow crossed over into the spirit world April, 2006. He had mentioned to me once that he "carried an old soul". To me, he was gentle, gifted, and wise beyond his years. He respected our Mother/Grandmother Earth, deeply loved her wonderful gifts, and respected all living things.

I miss him, and look forward to seeing him again in the spirit world.

Yootva. (Thank You.)

Jim

email: jimbeads@hotmail.com

I love this book. I dont know much about herbs but this book is very well written and informative. He gives a cure for almost every ailment and shows you how to look at a plant to determine its usage by its shape. My son that I homeschool loves to learn about all the usages of the plants, like cattails being used to make pancakes and clubhouses. I would purchase this book above any other, only because you can't find this information anywhere else. The only request I have of the author is to add more illustratoins of all plants discussed, so the ignorant (such as myself) know what to look for out in the wild.

When gathering plants out in the bush for medicine, it is useful to carry some kind of field guide. For the uninitiated, the most comprehensive field guides quickly overwhelm, frequently with "skull and crossbones" designations of toxicity.

Native healer Tis Mal Crow reigns it all in by describing only 22 or so widely available and ubiquitous plants. Without the distancing effect of the western botanist describing "traditional uses", Tis Mal Crow gets down to earth: This is what it is. This is what it looks like. This is what it's for. This is how to use it - with appropriate cautions. Most importantly of all, Tis Mal Crow outlines the spirit and intent with which you must go gathering, to bond with and elicit the cooperative spirit of the plant involved.

Native Plants, Native Healing is engaging. If you only ever work with these 22 plants, you will have learned much.

This nicely illustrated book provides an excellent introduction to the history and culture of the early Indian inhabitants of the New England region. Stretching back to 30,000BC, the book opens with descriptions of the first inhabitants of North America, the Paleo Indians, and continues up through the Archaic and later Woodland cultures, finally concluding with the early years of contact between the eastern Algonquians and Europeans in the region that would become Massachusetts. This book is filled with well researched information and detailed illustrations and depictions of everything from spear and arrow points, to flintknapping techniques, clothing, cookware, and religious rites.

This book is perfect for someone with little or no previous knowledge of pre-historic Indian culture in North Americ, but can be a nice addition to a collection of someone already familiar with the subject and is well worth the price. It should lead the interested reader to even more in-depth works on the subject.

C. Keith Wilbur's expertise on the fascinating subject of the daily lives of the New England Indians is stunning. Anyone who has wondered how they withstood the harsh winters, how they sheltered and clothed themselves, and how they raised their families, will have his questions answered. The topics are endless: firemaking, snares, stone tools and weapons, needles and thread, canoes, language, ornamentation, their Iroquois adversaries, and the first contact with European settlers; it's all here. Where the archaeological and historic record is equivocal, the author makes educated guesses, such as the probable way stone tools were hafted to their shafts. One exception stands out, and that is his guess as to the earliest dates for Indian habitation in New England. For some reason Wilbur states this date as 32,000 years ago. In fact, there is no evidence that humans inhabited New England earlier than 15,000 years ago, following the end of the Wisconsin Ice Age. With this minor (and unnecessary) error, the book constitutes a rich compendium of factual detail about New England Indian life.

This nicely illustrated book provides an excellent introduction to the history and culture of the early Indian inhabitants of the New England region. Stretching back to 30,000BC, the book opens with descriptions of the first inhabitants of North America, the Paleo Indians, and continues up through the Archaic and later Woodland cultures, finally concluding with the early years of contact between the eastern Algonquians and Europeans in the region that would become Massachusetts. This book is filled with well researched information and detailed illustrations and depictions of everything from spear and arrow points, to flintknapping techniques, clothing, cookware, and religious rites.

This book is perfect for someone with little or no previous knowledge of pre-historic Indian culture in North Americ, but can be a nice addition to a collection of someone already familiar with the subject and is well worth the price. It should lead the interested reader to even more in-depth works on the subject.

This book is excellent!

The introductory essay brilliantly connects the history of the city, the multiculturalism of the city, the reality of the city in a way that is warm and insightful. It smoothly flows from the actions of yesteryear that have lead to the great metropolis of today, all while maintaining an emphasis on the human side of the story. Its a great literary preparation for the visual feast your eyes will experience as it glances, absorbs, and inspects photos in the latter parts of the book.

The images themselvess are fantastic. The book is divided into six chapters: City of Islands (which is the well written introduction), Passage (random images of the city), Retreat (images of green areas, parks, and gardens), Connection (images of bridges and roadways), Structure (images of facades and interiors of a few important buildings), and Edge (images of places along the outer edge of the city such as Staten Island, Rockaway Beach, and Coney Island among other places). There is a certain human element through out the book. One of the nicest element is that the author places emphasis on showing pieces of all New York boroughs and avoids the Manhattan bias typical of other books about this city.

All in all, the book shows New York City as it is, a great multicultural metropolis worth saving!

I bought the book based on the coverphoto. Regarding that I in fact wanted a book on New York, I cannot say I regret it. The book is fully illustrated with beautiful photographs of New Yorks five boroughs. Though I`ve been to New York five times before I`ve only been to Manhattan and Queens, but I surely was tempted to see all five boroughs when I go back during fall -99. The photographs has a soul in a way and all represent a motion or a mood that I catched right away. I could actually feel the smells the sounds and the dynamic pulse New York stands for. Pete Hamill's text as an introduction to each borough gives the reader a fully good and poetic insight in New Yorks majestic soul.

I bought this book back in 1999. I am a New Yorker and I wanted a book that showcased all of my wonderful city. I never, in my wildest dreams, thought that I would have to look at this book in order to ever see the World Trade Center again. After the attack on New York City on Sept.11, 2001, my whole world as I knew it changed forever. This wonderful, beautiful book is my only reminder of the New York City that I have known and loved all my life. I know the Twin Towers will rise again! Until then I have my book!

I hope that Dr. Faris will not be put off by me considering this book a masterpiece. It is one of my favorites, the details I'll omit. Very few scholars have grasped the complexity and beauty of Navajo ceremonialism and creation stories as well as the author has in The Nightway (Haile, Matthews, Zolbrod, McNeley). There are small portions of the book which I think some Nightway singers (medicine men) could disagree with but overall it is an excellent resource of information on the most familiar of Navajo ceremonials among non-Navajos. Reading Dr. Faris's text reinforces my convention that good anthropolgoy still exists. His basic postulate that the "knowledges of living authorities of local history concerning the healing arts, that is, Navajo Medicine Men and Women, have knowledge which can be accepted as truths, and are as valid as material remains of the deceased, as interpreted by foreign histories," is refreshing, honest, respectful, and badly needed in so many areas of anthropology.

I hope that Dr. Faris will not be put off by me considering this book a masterpiece. It is one of my favorites, the details I'll omit. Very few scholars have grasped the complexity and beauty of Navajo ceremonialism and creation stories as well as the author has in The Nightway (Haile, Matthews, Zolbrod, McNeley). There are small portions of the book which I think some Nightway singers (medicine men) could disagree with but overall it is an excellent resource of information on the most familiar of Navajo ceremonials among non-Navajos. Reading Dr. Faris's text reinforces my convention that good anthropolgoy still exists. His basic postulate that the "knowledges of living authorities of local history concerning the healing arts, that is, Navajo Medicine Men and Women, have knowledge which can be accepted as truths, and are as valid as material remains of the deceased, as interpreted by foreign histories," is refreshing, honest, respectful, and badly needed in so many areas of anthropology.

I hope that Dr. Faris will not be put off by me considering this book a masterpiece. It is one of my favorites, the details I'll omit. Very few scholars have grasped the complexity and beauty of Navajo ceremonialism and creation stories as well as the author has in The Nightway (Haile, Matthews, Zolbrod, McNeley). There are small portions of the book which I think some Nightway singers (medicine men) could disagree with but overall it is an excellent resource of information on the most familiar of Navajo ceremonials among non-Navajos. Reading Dr. Faris's text reinforces my convention that good anthropolgoy still exists. His basic postulate that the knowledges of living authorities of local history concerning the healing arts, that is, Navajo Medicine Men and Women, have knowledge which can be accepted as truths, and are as valid as material remains of the deceased, as interpreted by foreign histories, is refreshing, honest, respectful, and badly needed in so many areas of anthropology.

DK Eyewitness books are great and informative. I am teaching ESOL students who are learning English and taking content courses at the same time. They are unfamiliar with American History and Native American history is an even greater enigma to them. This book which supplies graphics and photos, allows students to gather a lot of information visually at a time when they have troubling reading English.

Great pictures and lots of information throughout. This book captures my 1st grader's attention. Will be a good resource for homeschooling. For those concerned, this book acknowledges that archeologists do not agree when human beings "trekked across the Ice Age land bridge from Siberia". It states various theories as to who & when people were in the Americas. Love the organization of the book and so will be wonderful resource in our American studies.

THIS WAS THE MOST THE BEST DK BOOK I EVER READ
AND I JUST LOVE HISTORY

KYLE VENTURA
(...)

Fue el estalinismo -el contrario del comunismo- que cayó en 1989-90. Ahora es el capitalismo mundial que está en crisis. En este libro se explica el derrumbe de este obstáculo a la participación de la clase trabajadora en la politica en la URSS y en la Europa Oriental -la burocracia estalinista pequeñoburgués- y como las fundaciones económicas, sobre todo las relaciones sociales, de esos estados-obreros permanecen hasta hoy en día. Explica por que el único camino que tiene el imperialismo yanqui para restaura el capitalismo en esos países, más China, Corea del Norte, etc., es el camino de fuerza y violencia: es decir, el camino de la guerra mundial. Un dirigente del Partido Comunista Cubano plantea en este libro que la única alternativa humana a un futuro de esta barbarie capitalista llamada "globalizado" es tomar el poder estatal los trabajadores y los campesinos en alianza. Más que nada, aquí se ve como la experiencia de un núcleo proletario del partido revolucionario en los EE.UU. sirve para forjar el camino de ayudar a dirigir la resistencia de hoy y mañana contra la crisis del sistema de ganancias y del Sagrado Mercado hasta la victoria, hasta la construcción de un gobierno de los trabajadores y campesinos aquí en los EE.UU. llevado a la últimas consecuencias: la muerte de la bestia imperial.

He encontrado en las revistas de política y teoría marxista Nueva Internacional una fuente indispensable de información, análisis y orientación política. Como su título indica, las revistas de dedican a educar y forjar una nueva vanguardia de la clase obrera a nivel mundial. Bien vale el tiempo necesario para leer y estudiarlas y compartir los artículos con otros trabajadores.

Los documentos presentados aquí ofrecen un análisis detallado de grandes cuestiones de nuestros tiempos: raíces de la crisis capitalista y la consecuente decadencia y debilidad del imperio norteamericano; perspectivas para la construcción de una sociedad socialista, superando la opresión, la explotación y la miseria que nos imponen sociedades divididas en clases; los retos en la lucha para forjar una dirigencia combativa y de conciencia de clase de la clase obrera a nivel mundial.

Los argumentos comiencen con las conquistas políticas históricas del movimiento obrero, desde Marx y Engels hasta Lenin y los Bolcheviques -- y las hacen más ricas, más concretas en base de la experiencia de la revolución cubana, de la caída de los regimenes estalinistas de la URSS y Europa oriental, y de las luchas de trabajadores y campesinos a través de las últimos décadas.

Me gusta sobre todo el espíritu de optimismo de los autores, su confianza en la capacidad de trabajadores y campesinos para transformarse y transformar el mundo entero. ¡Sí se puede!

¿Era una victoria para el imperialismo estadounidense el derrumbe de la URSS? No. ¿Porqué? El fracaso del estalinismo comprobó que una capa parásita no es tan fuerte como las fundaciones del estado obrero. Pueda que en un momento dado el sistema basado en explotación no parece estar en crisis plena, no obstante estamos inmersos en una época generalizada de la caída permanente en la taza de ganancias, y la única manera que el capital tiene para revertir esta caída es destruir capital y quienes lo producen, es decir, llevar a cabo una nueva guerra mundial.

Editado en forma de tesis cuando el Bush mayor dio el primero grito de victoria frente la caída del Muro de Berlín, El imperialismo perdió la guerra fría representa la única corriente que ha entendido como ni los mismos capitalistas se sienten libres, porque son esclavos de su capital -un capital que encoja de forma permanente-.

El derrumbe del estalinismo nos representa para los trabajadores y campesinos la mejor oportunidad en más de setenta años a arrebatar de los superricos el poder estatal para construir su propio gobierno, y así acabar con el último imperio que pueda desgraciar la faz de la Tierra.

This is about the REAL Southwest, neither the Tex-Mexified version east of the Rockies, nor the touristy version of Santa Fe, nor the mythical version of the OK Corral.

Most of this book deals with the largest U.S. desert -- the Great Basin desert. A land of rugged climatic extremes and even more rugged geography, it has largely bent men to its will rather than the other way around.

Beginning with his own childhood reading and first trips to this area, Turner paints a portrait of the Southwest's natural and social history while also describing how he, too, has been shaped by this land.

A wonderful new edition of this lovely book has recently been done by Fulcrum Publishing. The ISBN is 1-55591-486-1. It includes new essays, including one on Gerogia O'Keefe that looks at the west from an artist's perspective that I thought was particularly special.

As of this writing, this well written collection of essays seems to be out of print, and it shouldn't be. Turner has a sharp eye for detail and an ability to craft personal experience and an encyclopedic scale of information into engaging reading on subjects as varied as saguaro cactuses, chili con carne (with a recipe for Basic Texas Red), management of wild horse herds, Billy the Kid, Basque sheepherders in the Great Basin, and a Czech festival each autum in Deming, New Mexico.

Especially interesting for this reader is his essay on the lives of two early 20th-century writers who turned their own frontier experiences into best-sellers that shaped American awareness of the West: James Willard Schultz ("My Life as an Indian," 1907) and Will James ("Lone Cowboy," 1930). Based in Santa Fe, Turner roams over the southern arid states where inhabitants set their clocks to Mountain Time. And his essays are fine examples of travel writing that appreciates both landscape and centuries of human history. This is an excellent addition to any bookshelf of nonfiction Western literature.