"Who is Indian? Who is a Native American? What are Indian self-determination and sovereignty? What defines an Indian tribe? These and more than one hundred other questions are asked and answered in this text."
"Linda LeGarde Grover portrays an Ojibwe community struggling to follow traditional ways of life in the face of a relentlessly changing world. In the title story an aunt recounts the harsh legacy of Indian boarding schools that tried to break the indigenous culture. In doing so she passes on to her niece the Ojibwe tradition of honoring elders through their stories. With its attention to the Ojibwe language, customs, and history, this unique collection of riveting stories illuminates the very nature of storytelling."
"As a young Lakota Sioux boy, Slow was given his childhood name because he was deliberate and thoughtful in most of what he undertook. Slow yearns for the special vision or manly deed that will inspire his permanent, adult name. Encouraged by splendid stories of his father's bravery, wisdom and leadership, Slow focuses his energy on becoming a warrior. Friends gradually begin to associate his name with careful deliberation. From then on, his courage and determination were recognized and he became known as Sitting Bull, a Native American Chief whose name and deeds are well known. Bruchac s sensitively told history of Sitting Bull's coming-of-age reassures young chldren that success comes through effort, not birth."
"In this collection of more than 200 stunning and storied photographs, ranging from daguerreotypes to studio portraits to snapshots, historian Bruce White explores historical images taken of Ojibwe people through 1950. From the mid-19th to the mid-20th century, photographers, most of them white, took thousands of pictures of the Ojibwe people of northern Minnesota. Anthropologist White's book reproduces hundreds of these photographs and describes the circumstances under which they were taken and the background and approach of the photographers. White people, he argues, while not ill-intentioned, photographed the Ojibwe in a way that reinforced the photographer's cultural view of Indians as exotic others, while Ojibwe photographing their own people provided a more accurate cultural context."
"The music of these talented artists transcends borders and cultures to speak directly to the hearts and minds of listeners. But it was not always easy for them to reach their goals. From the melodic notes of a classical guitar or the wailing of an electric guitar to country tunes and punk rock, these musicians deliver. They offer a wide selection of musical styles as diverse as the music industry itself. Read about the lives of these outstanding performers who represent the fresh new sounds from Native America today."
"This book profiles ten outstanding women leaders in the Native community. All of these successful, trailblazing women are stellar role models who have raised the profile of indigenous culture in North America. From heroines of the past to women making history today, this work of non-fiction reminds readers of the extraordinary contributions of Native American women to our daily lives and to our country's social fabric."
"While Kimmy's parents look for a house close to Daddy's job, Kimmy stays with her Chippewa grandmother. The bad dreams she has had still bother her. Grandmother knows just what to do; she and Kimmy craft a dreamcatcher of bent wood, sinew, feathers, and beads, while Grandmother tells Kimmy the legend of the first about dreamcatchers which allows the sleeper to have only sweet dreams."
A retelling of Cinderella from an Ojibwe tale. "Older sisters made their youngest sister do all the work. When the flames from the cooking fire singed her hair or burned her skin, they laughed and called her Sootface.
"This contemporary story about two Lakota girls and their Laotian friend illuminates for children and adults the Lakota meaning of family, friendship, life, and death. In the Lakota way, Lana and her cousin Lori are like sisters, growing up together under the caring eyes of an extended family of parents and grandparents. Also like sisters, they have their share of squabbles and fights, but when they meet a new girl at school who has recently arrived from Laos, they are drawn closer by their shared friendship, their discoveries about cultural differences, and their experience with loss. Throughout the book, the grandparents teach the "sisters" Lakota traditions (click here to see MN history of Lakota) and beliefs while explaining the meaning of them to the reader."
Describes how Indians have relied on the sugar maple tree for food and tells how an Anishinabe Indian in Minnesota continues his people's traditions by teaching students to tap the trees and make maple sugar.
"Through more than 60 poems and essays, contemporary Native American children and young adults share their feelings about themselves, their people and their land. While some selections in this anthology are reverent in tone, revealing a deep respect for nature, family and tradition, other writings emerge as protests against prejudice and oppression." These poems, stories, songs, and essays cover a span of over 100 years--1887-1990
Introduction by Wilma Mankiller -"As the title implies, many Americans are still surprisingly misinformed with regard to Native American cultures. This highly accessible and informative book aims to dispel some of the major myths and stereotypes still surrounding Native people in the United States and Canada. By no means claiming to be comprehensive, the straightforward questions were compiled from actual phone calls, emails, letters, and in-person visits to a major branch of the National Museum of the American Indian. The Native American writers who answered them did so concisely with hints of humor and an abundance of research and experience."
"This text includes some fiction and a few essays, the majority of this collection presents poetry. All of the contributions are written by Native American women and in some way reflect on the relations of women to their community. The writings reflect on transformation in the female experience, the theme of inner strength, reactions to stereotypes and simplified images, or love."
"Based on interviews Treuer conducted with ten elders - this anthology presents the elders' stories transcribed in Ojibwe with English translation on facing pages. These stories contain a wealth of information, including oral histories of the Anishinaabe people, personal reminiscences, educational tales, and humorous anecdotes. Treuer's translations of these stories preserve the speakers' personalities, allowing their voices to emerge from the page."
"This moving narrative recounts Wilson's attempt to trace her Dakota heritage, sparked by her usually reticent mother's story of having been left for two years at a mission boarding school on the Pine Ridge Reservation. Though her own family stories have been forgotten or repressed, Wilson relies on carefully researched historical accounts and her own imagination to depict how her Native American ancestors survived the Dakota War of 1862."
"In Honor the Grandmothers: Dakota and Lakota Women Tell Their Stories, editor Sarah Penman, a journalist who reports on the experiences of Native Americans, preserves four oral histories that contribute to our understanding of Indian life past and present. According to tradition, it is the responsibility of Dakota and Lakota grandmothers to teach tribal history. During the course of their long lives, the four women witnessed tremendous change in the circumstances of their peoples."
"Boarding School Seasons offers a revealing look at the strong emotional history of Indian boarding school experiences in the first half of the twentieth century. At the heart of this book are the hundreds of letters written by parents, children, and school officials at Haskell Institute in Kansas and the Flandreau School in South Dakota. These revealing letters show how profoundly entire families were affected by their experiences."
This anthology makes available a range of Native American writings from the early nineteenth century to the present. Genres covered include fiction, poetry, auotobiography, and drama.
"Maude Kegg's memories build a bridge to a time when building birch-bark wigwams and harvesting turtles were still part of the everyday life of a native girl in the mid-west. In this bilingual book, this elder of the Minnesota Anishinaabe reminisces about her childhood. An English translation of each story appears on pages facing the original Ojibwe text, and has a beautiful full Ojibwe-English glossary with study aids"
"Best known as a leader of the Indian takeover of Alcatraz Island in 1969, Adam Fortunate Eagle now offers an unforgettable memoir of his years as a young student at Pipestone Indian Boarding School in Minnesota.
"Omakayas, or Little Frog, lives on an island in Lake Superior. It is 1850 and the lives of the Ojibwe have returned to a familiar rhythm: they build their birchbark houses in the summer, go to the ricing camps in the fall to harvest and feast, and move to their cozy cedar log cabins near the town of LaPointe before the first snows.
"John Beargrease (1862–1910), the son of an Anishinabe chief, hauled the mail by dogsled between pioneer communities along Minnesota’s tempestuous Lake Superior shore line. The annual John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon is named in his honor.
"Introductory chapters explore the history of the fur trade, tracing the main routes the voyageurs (which included some MN Native peoples and those of mixed heritage) and traders followed as they headed westward (including Grand Portage, Pine City, Voyageurs National Park, and various sites along the Superior). Several sections have been written by avid canoeists. Generously illustrated with color photographs. Maps and detailed driving directions guide present-day travelers"
This books describes in detail the traditional tribal ways of the Ojibwa (Chippewa) of the Great Lakes region. This book includes: Maple Sugar making, Wild Rice harvesting, Birch Bark work, Tanning, Quill and bead work, Native dyes, and information on everyday neccessities such as shelter, foods, clothing and ceremonials.
"Following the Native American belief that many voices are needed to tell a story, Glancy employs a multitude of narrators in this historical fictional piece about the Trail of Tears. There are the voices of Cherokee of all ages and clans, of white soldiers and preachers, and snatches from actual historical records. The central narrator, Maritole, emerges to tell her personal story of "pushing the bear," a dark heavy burden of anger, impending madness, physical distress and, above all, doubt in herself and her heritage as she perseveres in the grueling walk".
This is a book which alternate betwee short stories and poems featuring Luke Warmwater as a main character. Luke, who is a
"Ignatia Broker recounts the life of her great-great-grandmother, Night Flying Woman, who was born in the mid-19th century and lived during a chaotic time of enormous change, uprootings, and loss for the Minnesota Ojibway. But this story also tells of her people's great strength and continuity. This popular book is also available on audiotape read by Debra Smith. An enrolled member of the Red Lake Band of Chippewa, she has performed her own poetry on a syndicated radio series on Native writers.