Native American Authors
November is National Native American Heritage Month, and there's no better time to get acquainted with some of our nation's many accomplished Native American authors. Kick off your reading today with one of these library titles!
Fiction:
"The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian" by Sherman Alexie
This National Book Award-winning young adult novel by one of today's best-loved Native American authors tells the story of Junior, an aspiring cartoonist and resident of Washington's Spokane Indian Reservation who decides to master his own destiny by transferring to an off-reservation high school in a nearby small town. Alexie's frank, funny style is perfectly suited to his subject matter, and he deftly captures a teenage experience that is equal parts universal and unique.
(If you like Alexie's fiction, be sure to check out his new memoir, "You Don't Have To Say You Love Me," as well.)
"The Round House" by Louise Erdrich
Louise Erdrich's National Book Award-winning 2012 novel, set in North Dakota in the 1980s, tells the story of a brutal attack on an Ojibwe woman named Geraldine Coutts and the subsequent quest for justice undertaken by her tribal judge husband and adolescent son, Joe. Over the course of the book Joe encounters an eclectic range of characters and worldviews, both humorous and heartbreaking, and must come to terms with the complex web of experiences and influences that make up Native American life today.
(Louise Erdrich fans may also be interested in her newest novel, "Future Home of the Living God," released earlier this month.)
"House Made of Dawn" by N. Scott Momaday
N. Scott Momaday's Pulitzer Prize-winning 1968 novel is widely regarded as having kickstarted the literary movement known now as the "Native American Renaissance." Set on and around a New Mexico reservation in the days following World War II, "House Made of Dawn" tells the story of a young man torn between his love for the traditional "longhair" lifestyle exemplified by his grandfather and the temptations of a fast-paced 20th-century world. 
"Ceremony" by Leslie Marmon Silko
This tale of a young Laguna veteran's efforts to overcome the trauma of war by connecting with the rituals of his people is a classic of Native American literature and another foundational work of the Native American Renaissance. Silko writes in a style both mythical and contemplative, seamlessly fusing ancient legend with the concrete experiences of Native people in the 20th century.
"Prudence" by David Treuer
David Treuer's 2015 novel centers on a single hot day in August 1942, when a misaimed act of violence on a Minnesota summer resort forever alters the lives of those who witness it. "Prudence" is an ambitious historical work, tackling themes as varied as racial and sexual identity, family discord, the interplay between memory and regret, and the effects of war on the people who must live through it.
Nonfiction:
"The Sacred Hoop: Recovering the Feminine in American Indian Traditions" by Paula Gunn Allen
This groundbreaking study by one of the 20th century's foremost Native American scholars examines the prominent role of women in much Native history and lore and seeks to promote a model of feminism rooted in indigenous tradition. "The Sacred Hoop" is an academic but rewarding book, no less relevant today than when it was first published in 1986.
"Black Elk Speaks" by Black Elk and John G. Neihardt
This classic account tells the life story of a Lakota medicine man, Black Elk, as translated by his son and transcribed into book form by the poet John G. Neihardt. Black Elk's testimony, which includes encounters with Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull as well as Black Elk's involvement in now-(in)famous events such as the Battle of the Little Bighorn and the Wounded Knee Massacre, provides an unparalleled glimpse into Lakota life in a tumultuous and tragic period of American history.
"The World We Used to Live In: Remembering the Powers of the Medicine Men" by Vine Deloria, Jr.
This collection by the noteworthy Native American academic and activist Vine Deloria, Jr. compiles a number of firsthand accounts of medicine men and their rituals from the early days of European/Native contact. In examining these documents from a bygone time, Deloria is able to reconstruct certain elements of traditional Native spiritual life and to convince his readers of the power and importance of indigenous religious customs.
"Crazy Brave: A Memoir" by Joy Harjo
This short, lyrical autobiography by award-winning poet and musician Joy Harjo takes readers through a life both tough and triumphant. From childhood abuse to an art school education to single motherhood to literary and musical success, Harjo draws strength and guidance from her Native heritage and continues to follow the "knowing" that connects her to something beyond herself.
"The Inconvenient Indian: A Curious Account of Native People in North America" by Thomas King
This unconventional history of America from an indigenous perspective draws from King's career as a fiction-writer to lend color, emotion, and even humor to a subject often treated with dry detachment. "The Inconvenient Indian" is a fast-paced, biting, and ultimately convicting work that doesn't shy away from the ugly elements of our country's collective history.
Find this article at