Myths of the North American Indians [Hardcover]

LEWIS SPENCE (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1994

Rich anthology of the myths and legends of the Algonquins, Iroquois, Pawnees, and Sioux, prefaced by an extensive historical and ethnological commentary. Simply written tales of warrior rivalries, steadfast love, and victory over powerful forces are suitable reading for youngsters and entertaining enough for adults. 36 illustrations.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Gramercy; 1 edition (April 1994)
• ISBN-10: 0527852007
• ISBN-13: 978-0527852009
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 5.8 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,506,241 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting and full of stories, but I do not trust it, November 27, 2011

By 

Kurt A. Johnson (North-Central Illinois, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The myths of the North American Indians (Paperback)

This book was first published in 1914, and is one of the works of the eminent Scottish folklorist, Lewis Spence (1874-1955). In this book, Mr. Spence attempts to give the reader an understanding of the customs and religious thoughts of the North American Indians, presenting them as a unified system, but with variations among the various "nations," including the Algonquians, Iroquois, Sioux, Pawnee, and Northern and Northwestern Indians. The book is broad in its reach, discussing everything from shamanism, through the various stories of gods and heroes.

Now, I must admit to being of two minds about this book. On the positive side, it does discuss a lot of interesting stories, and puts them in an easy-to-understand style. On the negative side, in attempting to make the North American stories easily understood, he often makes references to European myths. The problem with this is that, with his numerous references to such things as "faerie women," I could not help but wonder if I was getting a good understand of how the North American natives themselves understood these stories, or if I was getting a distorted view of how they understood them. Indeed, on page 75, he reports one female spirit as saying, "Look at me, Indian." Would an Indian really have said that, or would he have said, "Look at me, young man," or something similar? The difference is a matter of trust in the material.

So, while this book is interested, and crammed full of stories from the North American natives, I do not feel like I really trust it. As such, I cannot bring myself to recommend it.