Our Voices: Native Stories of Alaska and the Yukon [Paperback]

James Ruppert (Editor), John W. Bernet (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 2001

Storytelling is an important tradition among the native peoples of the Far North, especially in the Athabaskan communities of interior Alaska and the Yukon. This is an anthology of the stories that Athabaskan speakers tell about themselves, their communities, and the world of the Far North.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Editors Ruppert (English and Alaska Native studies, Univ. of Alaska) and Bernet (English, emeritus, Univ. of Alaska) have done a tremendous service to the presentation and preservation of Native American literary craft with their new book. Readers will immediately note its twofold importance: it contributes to the historical archive of Native American traditional stories from Alaska and the Yukon while presenting the most significant narratives as told by Athabaskan storytellers. But this is not an ethnography of Athabaskan groups (of which the Deg Hit'an, Koyukon, Gwich'in, Northern Tutchone, Kaska, Tagish, Southern Tutchone, Upper Tanana, Tanacross, Lower Tanana, Upper Kuskokwim, Dena'ina, Ahtna, and Eyak are represented here). Instead, the book serves to introduce readers to the wonderful variability of Athabaskan narration, presenting 20 storytellers altogether. Ethnographers, lay readers and researchers interested in Native American traditional storytelling, and readers with an academic interest in Native American groups from Alaska and the Yukon will find this book a significant resource. Suitable for public as well as academic libraries. John E. Dockall, Bernice P. Bishop Museum, Honolulu
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Review

"This outstanding collection of Athabaskan oral traditions contains stories of 14 cultural groups in Alaska and the Yukon. . . . A valuable resource for students, scholars, and general readers alike, this collection stands out as exceptional even among the excellent collections available." —Choice

(Choice )

"Editors [Ruppert and Bernet] have done a tremendous service to the presentation and preservation of Native American literary craft with their new book. Readers will immediately note its twofold importance: it contributes to the historical archive of Native American traditional stories from Alaska and the Yukon while presenting the most significant narratives as told by Athabaskan storytellers."—Library Journal

(Library Journal )

"Here the reader can experience the richness and diversity of an oral literature belonging to the northern interior of northwestern North America."—Robin Ridington, author of Trail to Heaven: Knowledge and Narrative in a Northern Native Community

(Robin Ridington ) --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 394 pages
• Publisher: Univ of Toronto Pr (September 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0802084672
• ISBN-13: 978-0802084675
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #10,556,404 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)