Customer Reviews

Neither Wolf Nor Dog: American Indians, Environment, and Agrarian Change

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The review below actually refers to a different book which shares the same title. The author of this book is, I understand, a Native American historian. He is also the editor of the Western Historical Quarterly. His book is an illuminating investigation of U.S.-Indian policy and the conceit that pushing agricultural modernization on Indian reservations would lead to Indian assimilation and the eradication of the "Indian problem." Lewis allows us to see concretely what these policies meant, how they were received in Indian country, and how they were modified or resisted by Indians themselves.

I am usually suspicious of books by whites about natives that start out by criticizing other books by whites about natives, and then take the but-this-is-a-different-sort-of-book stance.

However, Nerburn is an engaging author with a genuine feel for American Indian issues, and the reader will feel this respect throughout. The book chronicles his adventures on the road with an Elder, during which he learns lessons as diverse as why there are rusting cars in front of a shack on the rez, and what the deepest significance of Wounded Knee is.

Well worth the read and the price.