Mourning Dove: A Salishan Autobiography (American Indian Lives) [Paperback]

Mourning Dove (Author), Jay Miller (Editor)

Book Description

Series: American Indian Lives | Publication Date: February 1, 1994

Mourning Dove was the pen name of Christine Quintasket, a member of the Colville Federated Tribes of eastern Washington State. She was the author of Cogewea, The Half-Blood (one of the first novels to be published by a Native American woman) and Coyote Stories, both reprinted as Bison Books. Jay Miller, formerly assistant director and editor at the D'Arcy McNickle Center for the History of the American Indian, Newberry Library, Chicago, now is an independent scholar and writer in Seattle. He is the compiler of Earthmaker: Tribal Stories from Native North America.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Mourning Dove (Christine Quintasket) spent her adult years justifying the ways of Native Americans to whites. Born into Colville Confederated Tribes in 1885 or 1888, she became an ethnographer, orator, pamphleteer, teacher, and novelist, believing that her description and analysis of Native American ways would ensure better treatment for her people. In the scholarly introduction to her unfinished autobiography, editor Miller describes his work with the Colvilles and his acquisition of Mourning Dove's manuscripts and notes, which he arranges according to important customs and cyclical/seasonal activities. Mourning Dove's evocation of the complexities of tribal life is irresistible, full of acutely remembered conversations, ceremonies, and events. "What kept us going," she says, "was the knowledge that everything on earth has its purpose, every disease an herb to cure it, and every person a mission. That is the Indian theory of existence." Notes, references, and photographs provide additional perspectives. Recommended for academic libraries and Native American collections.
- Rhoda Carroll, Vermont Coll., Montpelier
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"An exciting story that transports the reader to another time and place... Anyone interested in American Indian history, culture, religion, and literature should read this informative volume that was produced at such great cost. Mourning Dove literally gave her life to do this work, and Jay Miller has painstakingly edited it to share the words and wisdom of Humishuma with the non-Salish world."oAmerican Indian Culture and Research Journal. "Mourning Dove's evocation of the complexities of tribal life is irresistible, full of acutely remembered conversations, ceremonies, and events."oLibrary Journal. "The accounts of guardian spirit quest, of seeking medicinal power, of winter dancing, seancind rite, and the sweatlodge unite cultural knowledge and personal experience in a compelling way. The perspective on history through the experience of her family is immensely valuable as well."oDell Hymes, Canadian Journal of Native Studies. "[This] autobiography artfully weaves tribal history, Salishan traditions, and a wealth of information of the female life cycle with the story of [Christine] Quintasket's own childhood and coming of age on the Colville Reservation in Washington. Mourning Dove is a rare and important study of the Interior Salish people during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Miller, by providing thoughtful editing and constructive footnotes, have given new life to Mourning Dove's narrative."oWestern Historical Quarterly.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 267 pages
• Publisher: Bison Books (February 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0803282079
• ISBN-13: 978-0803282070
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.3 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.3 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #374,202 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting and Informative, October 22, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Mourning Dove: A Salishan Autobiography (American Indian Lives) (Paperback)

I found this book to be a good source of information about Native American life at the turn of the century. Every aspect of life was covered, at times through stories about the author's life and at other times through her descriptions and explanations. The book is not written in chronological order, so it was confusing to follow in certain sections. Overall, Mourning Dove's experience of living both the traditional nomadic and then the settled Indian life is a fascinating one, well worth reading about by anyone interested in these subjects. As a feminist, I also found her description of the role of women in her culture to be revelatory.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Legend Who's Story is Told, April 21, 2004

By 

M. Drake "sk65" (California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mourning Dove: A Salishan Autobiography (American Indian Lives) (Paperback)

After knowing OF Mourning Dove for over 20 years in my school life.It was not till the internet,that I fully got to know MORE about her.Library books,were only so limited.But thanx to the internet,doing research on herwas well worth it.Her books"Morning Dove" a Salishan Biography,and "Cogewea" are both very well written.So as not to have favorites,I love both of her works.I highly reccomend them.You will gain a better appreciate the Native American Culture after reading about her,her life and her struggles.

5.0 out of 5 stars fantastic, November 28, 2010

By 

MO "mm" (Eastern Seaboard) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Mourning Dove: A Salishan Autobiography (American Indian Lives) (Paperback)

I have been looking for books like Pretty-shield (Second Edition): Medicine Woman of the Crows (Second Edition) and Nisa: The Life and Words of a !Kung Woman for a while, and this book is in the same ilk. The books The Original Instructions: Reflections of an Elder on the Teachings of the Elders, Adapting Ancient Wisdom to the Twenty-First Century, RETURN TO CREATION, and Journey to the Ancestral Self: The Native Lifeway Guide to Living in Harmony With Earth Mother, Book 1 (Bk.1) got me started on seeking to understand indigenous lifeways, and I've read a lot, and lived the skills as possible. Well worth the read. Perhaps other reviewers might suggest similar books?