There’s an unfortunate lack of books that a) comprehensively cover Native American history, b) do so in a way that is respectful of Native people, c) illustrate why Native American history is important, and d) are actually readable and accessible by the general public. But I’ve attempted to cobble together some kind of list of recommendation, aimed at people who are interested in learning more about Native history but don’t really know where to start, with a heavy emphasis on why and how Native American history is important on a world scale, since that seems to be something many people need clarified.
1491 by Charles Mann. I would pretty much call this the number one must-read book on Native American history for the non-specialist. This book does a lot of things all in one: it directly addresses the assumptions that are made about Native history, it covers the history of the study of Native history and how it’s impacted those assumptions, and it covers an incredible range of indigenous history itself. There’s a great analysis of the political situation of Tisquantum and the northeastern communities, there’s Maya history, there’s Inka history, there’s a great section on the Amazon that was entirely new to me. It’s not a perfect book, but it’s probably the best out there right now for a general overview.
1493 by Charles Mann. Okay, I have not actually finished reading this yet–in fact I really only just started. But I’ve heard good things. Whereas 1491’s main focus is precolumbian history, 1493 is mostly about the world-altering effects that occurred as a result of the Western hemisphere and Eastern hemisphere coming into contact. Based on what I’ve read so far, I’m not as big a fan of it as 1491, but it’s still probably worth a read.
Lies My Teacher Told Me by James Loewen. This focuses specifically on the failures of textbooks and grade school education about United States history, focusing on treatment of Native American and African American history in particular. Your mileage may vary on the textbooks cited; my experience in school was better than a lot of them but it doesn’t change the fact that they are all textbook that were and are in use. The thrust of his argument is that the way the narrative of American history is taught in most schools is not just damaging, but that it is also boring. In addition to this critique though, there’s just a plain lot of really great historical details on various eras of US history that most people don’t know about because they’re not deemed fitting for the narrative. Highly recommended.
Encyclopedia of American Indian Contributions to the World. This isn’t exactly something you can sit down and read start to finish, but I would definitely recommend checking it out and flipping through it if you can find a copy. It’s an incredible answer to the idea that Native Americans lacked technology, and although it’s necessarily a brief overview, there are sources provided at the end of each entry if you want to look into a particular topic further.
Indian Givers: How the Indians of the Americas Transformed the World by Jack Weatherford. I have a lot more reservations about this than the other books listed here, and I’m still not convinced that there isn’t a better book out there that does the same kind of stuff this one does. But I haven’t found it yet, and I just read this one, so it’s going on the list. This book is really frustrating in that it does a bad job of treating Native people as people with full-fledged agency and motivation, but it is a pretty good overview for the unfamiliar of the extent to which Native Americans shaped the course of world history. I include it because a lot of people commenting seem to be of the opinion that Native American history isn’t as important because it had no impact other than being dominated. This book says otherwise.
The Earth Shall Weep by James Wilson. It’s been a while since I read this, but it’s a general overview of indigenous history in the territory of the modern United States from about 1500 to 1900. It does a nice job of showing how archaeology, written records, and oral traditions can be combined to tell a story, and it’s a very good place to start getting a general grounding in Native history in the United States, as it covers most regions of the country at least briefly.
You should note that none of these are by Native authors. This frustrates me, but I can’t think of any books by indigenous authors that cover this kind of broad territory off the top of my head, though I’ll definitely do some digging. There are a variety of reasons, such as the fact that Native historians tend to either focus on their specific nation’s history or to be engaged in very theoretical work on indigenous history, the fact that much of Native-written history is intended for Native audiences rather than non-Natives, and the depressing fact that non-Natives are very, very frequently taken as authorities on Native history over Native people themselves. Not to mention how the academic system discourages Native people from getting involved in history. If anyone can think of something along these lines, please let me know, and of course do put other recommendations in the comments if you know them. Hopefully this can be of use to some people who don’t know where to start!
Thanks for posting these book titles!
Hi,
I love your blog! And I really appreciate your reading lists. By the way, for anyone who reads French, I would also add, as a complement to Richard White’s Middle Ground, Gilles Havard’s “Empire et Métissage”.
By the way,should you ever make a list of top websites regarding native history, I will certainly try to add some to my own website. I’m currently hoping to add a section strictly dedicated to native history on http://www.novafrancia.org. Electronic New France is a compilation of links to sites talking about French colonialism and by extension, hopefully, of French native allies.
Thanks for your blog,
-Joseph Gagné
I’m reading “Where the Tall Grass Grows” by Bobby Bridger and wonder what you think of it if you are familiar with it. It analyzes how indigenous people are represented in “popular culture” such as novels, movies and TV. It seems to be a well-researched and even-handed approach to the subject, from a non-Native writer.
Along this same line, the documentary “Reel Injun” is a fascinating look at the representation of natives through the years in cinema.
Hello Kai, a recently released (2012) book by Thomas King called The Inconvenient Indian: A Curious Account of Native People in North America would be a good addition to your list. It’s immensely readable, and Mr. King is, as it says on the dust jacket, “one of Canada’s premier Native public intellectuals.” I would also recommend his 2003 book. The Truth About Stories, which was a Massey lecture. Thanks for your other recommendations as well!
An outstanding book on contemporary reservation life is David Treuer’s “Rez Life.” Betty Reid and Ben Winton have also done a nice little book about “what is sovereignty and other questions about Indian Country” in “Keeping Promises” (published by the Western National Parks Association).
For books by Native authors, my friend recommends “conquest: sexual violence and american indian genocide” by Andrea Smith, which looks amazing–INCITE is a great organization from what I know.
Also, I once took a class on Native history, where we read Red Earth, White Lies by Vine Deloria Jr., and that was very good for exposing misconceptions about Native Americans and how their histories are understood.
I’m putting the Inconvenient Indian on my to-read list thanks to Pat’s comment.
Jack D Forbes “Columbus and Other Cannibals.” His view as a native american view after decades of teaching and researching the history and it’s relevance. His introduction of the concept of wetiko showed me the key to understand why the world is upside down.
Reblogged this on Only The Smart Survive.
One of the first, most accurate, and admiring portraits of Northeastern Native Americans is Thomas Morton of Merrymount’s “New English Canaan” published in 1637. Morton, a skilled and confident English outdoorsman, attorney and man of letters, lived closely with Massachusetts Native people and made his 10 chapters about them the first part of his 3-part book on the America he observed. Because Morton shared none of the Pilgrims’ and Puritans’ racism and contempt for Native Americans, and because his plantation’s success had everything to do with his Native relations (and he recommended same as a formula for success here), he was burned out of the country and hoisted aboard a ship of exile in a cow’s harness, shaking his fist at the Christian idiots who—10 years to the month after Morton’s May 1627 May Day Revels round the Maypole—initiated a war of extermination against the Pequots. You can see/learn a lot more about Native New England, Morton and the Pequot War fiasco at ANCIENT LIGHTS dot o-r-g.
Great article, I’m curious, what are your thoughts on Daniel Richter’s “Facing East from Indian Country”? I’m a big fan of that book, and it seems like it could fit into the kind of history that you are providing here.
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Terrific blog. I am a student of American Indian history, traditions, and beliefs. I own roughly a dozen books about and/or by Native Americans. It’s amazing what you can learn.
Reblogged this on ACRAH.
Migwetch and thank you to all for the article and the suggestions. I will be searching for these for our homeschool studies!
Americana Redux is a good and broad review of global and North American Indigenous/Colonial History…..https://talkingpipe.com/book, it can be found at this link, or you can find a free downloadable version at this link…..http://kuscholarworks.ku.edu/dspace/handle/1808/10400
Thank you! I will check it out!
Forked Tongues. By David Murray
“One of the main aims of this book is to demonstrate the complex and various ways in which the process of translation , cultural as well as linguistic is obscured or effaced in a wide variety of texts which claim to be representing or describing Indians, and what cultural and ideological assumptions underlie such effacement .
I really disagree that there is a lack of information on indigenous history. This is but a small, token list from a vast resource of work from many indigenous and non-indigenous historians. My first thought was One Vast Winter Count by Colin Calloway, and the works of Theda Perdue.
A People’s History of The United States by Howard Zinn
Any book recommendations for elementary-aged children (first through 5th grade)? I love the suggestions you have given and will delve into them, but I also think it’s important to start to teach children about our American history and Native Americans in particular in a more accurate (and less condescending) manner than they are taught in school. It’s abysmal what my children are taught there. If there were books on this topic that were accessible to children and their reading levels, it would help a lot to teach them right from the beginning. I’d like to give my children that.
Hello, Lisa, a wonderful retired teacher that I met through a circle of students of Anishinabeg Medicine Woman Keewaydinoquay Peschel (who has some wonderful books out in limited print editions) recommended The Earthshapers by Karen Speerstra – we had visited the Effigy Mounds in Iowa, and that book was wonderful. We have also read the Birchbark House series, by Louise Erdrich, but please pre-read because the books are incredible – but they may be devastating for the youngest readers. The Bruchac family are a treasure trove of books, performances, etc. They have an almost endless number of titles to peruse! And, some great teaching guides with stories and activities for children.oyate.org “is a Native organization working to see that our lives and histories are portrayed with honesty and integrity, and that all people know that our stories belong to us.” I look for reviews and recommendations here. Enjoy every moment of your journey!
Anything by Colin Calloway, but especially “One Vast Winter Count,” on the Indian West before Lewis and Clark. Also, Daniel Richter’s “Facing East From Indian Country”; Andrew Fisher’s excellent “Shadow Tribe,” on Columbia River Indians; and Joseph Marshall’s “The Journey of Crazy Horse” is an excellent attempt to combine both modern historical methods and oral accounts from Lakota people (Marshall is Lakota).
Thank you!
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