Flint Public Library - Native American Resources

Native American Resources

A list of selected resources honoring Native American Heritage and Culture,
compiled by Flint Public Library staff.

Books | Children's Books | Music | Movies | Websites

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Books: Adult Nonfiction

	Native American Clothing: An illustrated History by Ted J. Brasser Reference 391 Br A collection of photographs from museums, collectors, and private dealers that documents five centuries of Native American artistry.
	Bury my heart at wounded knee by Dee Alexander Brown 970.1 Br The classic book that documents the systematic destruction of the American Indian during the second half of the nineteenth century.
	The art of American Indian cooking by Yeffe Kimball and Jean Anderson 641.5973 Ki Discover some of the best loved traditional dishes our continent has to offer.
	Earth shall weep: A history of Native America by James Wilson 970.1 Wi A groundbreaking, critically acclaimed history of the Native American peoples that combines traditional historical sources with insights from ethnography, archaeology, Indian oral tradition, and years of Wilson’s original research.

Books: Adult fiction

Several authors feature Native American sleuths, including :

Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee series by Tony Hillerman

Hillerman's series of contemporary mysteries is set on a New Mexico Navajo reservation and focuses on Navajo Tribal Policemen Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee and their contrasting skills and styles. Extensively researched, the series features the life of Native Americans, past and present, in the isolated rural Southwest, and explores Native American customs and rituals.

--The blessing way UNC/PBK Hillerman

--Skeleton man Mystery Hillerman

--The shape shifter Mystery Hillerman

Cork O’Conner Mystery series by William Kent Krueger

Cork O’Connor is a part Irish and Ojibwe private investigator who solves mysteries set in Minnesota’s great north woods. Krueger adds in elements of life in and around American reservations.

--Heaven’s keep Mystery Krueger

--Red knife Mystery Krueger

--Iron lake Mystery Krueger

Kate Shugak series by Dana Stabenow.

Kate, a former investigator for the Anchorage District Attorney Office’s turned private eye, is an Aleut who lives with Mutt, a wolf dog, on a 160 acre homestead in a fictional national park. Stabenow’s books are well-rendered and a finely nuanced depiction of the stark but beautiful Alaskan environment and its Aleut culture.

--A Night too Dark Mystery Stabenow

--Whisper to the blood Mystery Stabenow

--Killing grounds Mystery Stabenow

Children's Books

	Sequoyah: Inventor of written Cherokee by Robert Basel J B/Sequoyah, Ba In 1821, Sequoyah, a Cherokee Indian, invented a system of writing for the Cherokee language after more than a decade of work. The new written language was easy to learn and helped boost ethnic pride.
	How Chipmunk got his stripes by Joseph Bruchac & James Bruchac J 398.2 Br When Bear and Brown Squirrel have a disagreement about whether Bear can stop the sun from rising, Brown Squirrel ends up with claw marks on his back and becomes Chipmunk, the striped one.
	Bearwalker by Joseph Bruchac J Bruchac 13 year old Baron Braun calls upon the strength and wisdom of his Mohawk ancestors to face both man and beast when he tries to get help for his classmates who are being terrorized during a school field trip.
	Shi-shi-etko by Nicola I. Campbell EASY Campbell In four days, young Shi-shi-etko will be separated from her Canadian Native American family to attend school in order to learn the English language and culture. She spends her last days canoeing with her father, visiting her favorite creek with her mother, and attending a family party held in her honor.
	Ojibwe Indians (Native Americans series) by Suzanne Morgan Williams J 970.1 Wi Learn all about the Ojibwe Indians.

Music

Get involved! Experience Native American culture through music! Here's some suggested CDs:

	The promised land: American Indian songs of lament and protest by Periwinkle Oversize Music CDs 781.62 InPeP Singer Periwinkle performs 14 powerful songs of sorrow and dissent that communicate the plight of Native Americans.
	Along the way round dance songs by Algin Scabby Robe Musical CDs 781.62 InScA Algin Scabby Robe (Black Lodge Singers), one of today's leading pow-wow singers and songmakers, presents his own collection of impressively recorded contemporary round dance songs.
	Sacred Place by Mary Youngblood Musical CDs 781.62 InYoSa Youngblood is the first Native American to have received two Grammy’s, the music industry’s highest award of accomplishment. Youngblood takes the artistry of Native American flute music to its highest level to create sweet, haunting melodies.
	Sacred Ground: A tribute to Mother Earth Musical CDs 781.62 InSaG Top contemporary stars of Native American music create new recordings of soul stirring songs that honor Mother Earth and the Sacred Ground on which we live. .

Movies

Celebrate Native American Heritage with these films:

	Black Indians: An American story DVD 970.1 Bl Explores the issue of racial identity among Native and African Americans and examines the coalescence of these two groups in American history.
	Broken rainbow DVD 979.1 Br Academy award winning documentary about the relocation of 12,000 Navajos from their ancestral homeland in Arizona.
	True whisperers: The story of the Navajo code talkers DVD 940.54 Tr Explores the complex story of the role that the Native American code talkers and the Navajo language played in secret communications during World War II.
	Incident at Oglala: The Leonard Peltier story DVD 364.15 Peltier, L In Examines the 1975 incident where armed FBI agents illegally entered the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, resulting in the deaths of a Native American and two FBI agents. Leonard Peltier was the only person to be convicted and sentenced to life in prison.
	Native American life J DVDs 970.1 Na Learn about Native Americans and their heritage and culture, including Pochahontas, Tecumseh and the Trail of Tears, and Stewards of the Earth.
	Sacagawea J DVDS JA Sacagawea Sa Discover Sacagawea, the young woman who joined America’s legendary explorers Lewis and Clark on a world-famous expedition.

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Websites

Learn about Native American history and culture from these websites:

Native American Authors:

http://www.ipl.org/div/natam/

Provides information on mostly contemporary Native North American authors with bibliographies of their published works, biographical information, and links to online resources including interviews, online texts, and tribal websites

Native American Heritage Month

http://nativeamericanheritagemonth.gov/

Several United States government agencies join in celebrating the rich ancestry and tradition of the Native Americans.

NativeTech: Indigenous food and traditional recipes

http://www.nativetech.org/recipes/index.php

An extensive collection of Native American/First Nation foods using traditional ingredients. Recipes are categorized by course, region, contemporary, and traditional.

University of Washington Libraries: Native American History

http://guides.lib.washington.edu/content.php?pid=87308&sid=649463

A comprehensive research guide to primary and secondary sources for Native American history.

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