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bookreviewswithkb's review
informative
fast-paced
3.0
i think this is an important educational book for learning more about Native people from one person’s perspective AND that we must review many sources and types of information for a broader perspective
morrisimo's review against another edition
informative
medium-paced
3.25
An insightful and concise informational book. I originally started reading this because I was going to start working with Native youth and I wanted a baseline of information and in this aim I think it succeeded. I appreciated how it was split into different topic sections (ie cultural, political, economic). I also think it was very fairly presented, keeping both natives and non-natives accountable. Very informative and interesting. If you're looking for a book on Native culture in a Q&A form, I'd definitely recommend this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Genocide and Racism
Moderate: Classism, Cultural appropriation, Infertility, Addiction, Murder, Alcoholism, Kidnapping, Police brutality, and Racial slurs
stevia333k's review against another edition
5.0
I've been needing to learn about indigenous americans, so while I chose this audiobook off scribd thru their recommendations & listened to it on a whim because it's only about 5 hours, it helped inform me about what kind of information the previous generation of my family likely had access to, but then not only updated that information, but also gave me perspective about what conservatism might be around in the Native American community, AKA it informed me not only about the political diversity, but also how things can be implemented differently & therefore have different impacts. So from a disability politics perspective, that was super interesting too.
lrcartee's review against another edition
2.0
I read this after I read the young adult version of the same. I wanted to see the differences I. The two volumes, whether the questions were the same, if the answers were more in depth and offered more explanation than the YA version.
What I found was that the differences were few. Both books read more like a reference book that may be easier to browse than to read page for page. I found it informational but there were aspects I didn’t like. Often, I found, that the author spoke blankety about the experiences of Native Americans. In the question about why reservations were important to the tribes, he responded by stating that the reservations were the tribes traditional native homelands. I felt this didn’t take into account the forced removal of so many tribes who ended up thousands of miles away from their traditional native homelands. I also found some of the questions offensive and perpetuating stereotypes he is trying to dispel. For example, a question about why, if the Indians are such caretakers of the land, is there an abundance of trash in their yards?
Another issue I had was his defense against some “pretendians” advocating for them to have federally recognized status. He cited the Lumbee Cherokee as an example and it has been proven time and again that the Lumbee are not a legitimate tribe. He also stated the Elizabeth Warren was a Cherokee. She is not. One cannot base native heritage on here say and family legend. She has never proven her claim to have Cherokee blood so should not be recognized as such.
So, my issues with this books are many. The biggest being that I felt in some areas it continued to perpetual misinformation while the author is described as an authority on Indian culture and history. This is a dangerous misappropriation of his scholarship on his tribal experience. He shouldn’t speak with authority for the experience and culture of all tribes.
What I found was that the differences were few. Both books read more like a reference book that may be easier to browse than to read page for page. I found it informational but there were aspects I didn’t like. Often, I found, that the author spoke blankety about the experiences of Native Americans. In the question about why reservations were important to the tribes, he responded by stating that the reservations were the tribes traditional native homelands. I felt this didn’t take into account the forced removal of so many tribes who ended up thousands of miles away from their traditional native homelands. I also found some of the questions offensive and perpetuating stereotypes he is trying to dispel. For example, a question about why, if the Indians are such caretakers of the land, is there an abundance of trash in their yards?
Another issue I had was his defense against some “pretendians” advocating for them to have federally recognized status. He cited the Lumbee Cherokee as an example and it has been proven time and again that the Lumbee are not a legitimate tribe. He also stated the Elizabeth Warren was a Cherokee. She is not. One cannot base native heritage on here say and family legend. She has never proven her claim to have Cherokee blood so should not be recognized as such.
So, my issues with this books are many. The biggest being that I felt in some areas it continued to perpetual misinformation while the author is described as an authority on Indian culture and history. This is a dangerous misappropriation of his scholarship on his tribal experience. He shouldn’t speak with authority for the experience and culture of all tribes.
notwaverly's review against another edition
4.0
Really informative, easy to follow, great introduction to the culture and answers the “uncomfortable questions” someone might feel they should already know. These kinds of cultural guides are so important and should be a guiding part of the common curriculum. Super interested to find books like this about other cultures as well as read more about Indigenous peoples. Def recommend, a quick read