Native American Almanac

August 1, 2016

Originally planned as an update to Duane Champagne's Portrait of a People, this book is mostly new material written by Dennis (education director, Children's Cultural Ctr. of Native America; A Kid's Guide to Arab American History), author and editor Arlene Hirschfelder (with Dennis, Children of Native America Today), and Shannon Rothenberger Flynn (writing, Dutchess Community Coll.; English, Westchester Community Coll.), who has served as a Native American consultant on books for young readers. Organized by geographic areas, the chapters contain historical data, as well as social, economic, and political perspectives of the First Peoples. Each of the geographic area chapters includes facts about the peoples living in that region, their lives in relation to overall U.S. history, their languages, treaties with the United States, health, education, literature, arts, and biographies of famous people. The authors state in the introduction that this volume is "not meant to be scholarly work, although it is well researched." While there are suggestions for further reading, there are no in-text citations. There are errors as well (for instance, Abraham Lincoln did not visit Kansas during his presidency, and various dates for Meriwether Lewis and William Clark's expedition are referenced throughout the chapters. VERDICT This volume provides a solid beginning for students as well as general readers with no background in Native American studies.--Patricia Ann Owens, formerly with Illinois Eastern Community Colls., Mt. Carmel

Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 1, 2016
The authors forthrightly admit this work is not an unbiased reference source. They support the rights of First Peoples and believe the health of this country is determined by the health of indigenous people. Against this backdrop, the first chapter provides a lengthy overview of Indian-white relations in the U.S. Subsequent chapters address specific geographic areas, such as the Northern Plains or the Southwest, generally introducing the nations of First Peoples living there and chronicling their interactions with Europeans. All conclude with short biographies of selected individuals. The work does not limit itself to the continental U.S. Coverage extends to First Peoples in Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Greenland, though it is included as appendixes rather than chapters. Additional appendixes include a bibliography of suggested reading and a listing of geographic locations sacred to nations of First Peoples. This almanac is open to criticism on many fronts, but the temptation to do so needs to be avoided lest the point the work makes be missed. The volume succeeds simply by conveying the legitimacy and distinctiveness of hundreds of nations, their cultures, their languages, and more. Recommended for academic and public libraries.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)