Notebooks of Elizabeth Cook-Lynn (Sun Tracks) [Paperback]

Elizabeth Cook-Lynn (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 23, 2007 | ISBN-10: 0816525838 | ISBN-13: 978-0816525836

An eclectic collection of poetry, prose, and politics, Notebooks of Elizabeth Cook-Lynn is a text, a narrative, a song, a story, a history, a testimony, a witnessing. Above all, it is a fiercely intelligent, brave, and sobering work that re-examines and interrogates our nation’s past and the distorted way that its history has been written.In topics including recent debates over issues of environmental justice, the contradictions surrounding the Crazy Horse Monument, and the contemporary portrayal of the Lewis and Clark Expedition as one of the great American epic odysseys, Elizabeth Cook-Lynn stitches together a patchwork of observations of racially charged cultural materials, personal experiences, and contemporary characterizations of this country’s history and social climate. Through each example, she challenges the status quo and piques the reader’s awareness of persistent abuses of indigenous communities. The voices that Cook-Lynn brings to the texts are as varied as the genres in which she writes. They are astute and lyrical, fierce and heartbreaking. Through these intonations, she maintains a balance between her roles as a scholar and a poet, a popular teacher and a woman who has experienced deep personal loss. A unique blend of form and content that traverses time, space, and purpose, this collection is a thoroughly original contribution to modern American Indian literature. Moreover, it presents an alternative narrative of the nation’s history and opens an important window into the political challenges that Natives continue to face.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“This collection is at times lyrical and sharp, fierce and heartbreaking. Elizabeth Cook-Lynn is a powerful and very important voice not just in Native writing or the writing of people of color but in American writing. A strong, radical voice speaking out honestly.” —Lisa D. Chávez, author of In an Angry Season “Cook-Lynn is a Native American truthteller who defends her imaginative and physical territory with intensity, heart, and integrity. Notebooks of Elizabeth Cook-Lynn brings us closer to the inner life of this important artist and social critic.” —Gregory L. Morris, author of Talking Up a Storm: Voices of the New West “An absolute gem! In addition to probing aspects of her professional and personal life, Cook-Lynn tackles such complex issues facing Indian peoples today as genocide, racism, sovereignty, colonialism, and empowerment. It is a must-read for anyone who cares about Indians and American Indian studies.” —James Riding In, Arizona State University

About the Author

ELIZABETH COOK-LYNN is a professor emerita of English and American Indian studies at Eastern Washington University. She is the author of many books, including Why I Can’t Read Wallace Stegner and Other Essays: A Tribal Voice, and cofounder of Wicazo Sa Review. She is a member of the Crow Creek Sioux Tribe, Fort Thompson, and lives in the Black Hills of South Dakota.

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: University of Arizona Press (February 23, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0816525838
• ISBN-13: 978-0816525836
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,314,929 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A biting critique of national self-aggrandizement, April 6, 2007

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Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Notebooks of Elizabeth Cook-Lynn (Sun Tracks) (Paperback)

Notebooks of Elizabeth Cook-Lynn is a diverse collection of poetry, prose, and political views. that questions the all-too-common bias and distortion that permeates retellings of American history. "...the Image of The White American Male as Fearless Explorer and Conqueror, intrepid, strong and brave Seeker of New Vistas going out fearlessly into the Unknown, is well established in story and legend. Why else was Star Trek the most popular television show in the history of the small screen?" A biting critique of national self-aggrandizement, written with intelligent passion and a keen sense for pointing out misdirections and half-truths. Cook-Lynn is especially fearsome in her denouncement of human atrocities, subversions of the democratic process, and cover-ups. "Democracy in 2002 and the Free Press": A disputed election / a pretender president // press coverage / like a flood shrouds circumstances / of political theft, journals stride past in fear / and darkness, faded shawls about their shoulders // but, the FCC changes its regulations / so news organizations / can become conglomerates / ravenous, sanctimonious abusers / of the rights of mankind.