Customer Reviews

The New York Public Library Amazing Native American History: A Book of Answers for Kids

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1 star:		(1)

 

 

Sonneborn's book is a compilation of very brief answers to questions assumed to interest kids. The book's organization, however leaves much to be desired. The attempt to divide the material into sections on ancient Americans, contemporary Indians, and various indigenous cultural and geographical regions was apparently ignored by the author and information seems to pop up in unexpected spots. One finds material both on the nineteenth century leader Tecumseh and on the contemporary leader Ada Deer under the Northeast Woodlands section. The ancient skeletal remains of Kennewick man is found under the Contemporary Native Americans section and both Wounded Knee 1 which occurred in 1890 and Wounded Knee 2 which resulted from the AIM takover in 1973 are in the historical section, with AIM barely mentioned in the section on contemporary Indians. One must constantly check the index to be sure that the scattered material one is seeking has been read.

There is not even a vague sense of continuity and the material is so superficial that it serves little purpose. The book might be helpful for a student to peruse in order to select a topic for further research. It will not help much once the focus of the research has been determined.

I have mixed emotions about this book. It does include interesting information, but- at least in the section about the Hopi and other Pueblo people- it acts as though they are a dead culture. Everything is in the past tense. Furthermore, the author described ceremonies which should NOT be discussed in a book intended for children. Especially inappropriate was their discussion of the katsinvaki, which is an initiation ceremony for children. What? Do they think Hopi kids cannot read??? I suggest that the author read the book "Appropriated Pasts" by McNiven & Russell. It is in interesting consideration of how anthropology has been used by dominant cultures. It's too bad. This book has some good points, but I would certainly not carry it in our shop, which is in northeastern Arizona (Hopi country)!

I bought this book for my ten year old, who's going through an "Indian" phase. He loved it--it's full of fun facts, and it got him even more interested in Indians and their culture. (He's getting to be a real buff on the Cherokee.) More surprising, though, the book got me hooked. I had a great time reading it with Jeremy. The Q&A format lets you flip around, and each entry is short enough to read quickly, but long enough to contain plenty of information. The illustrations are also good. All and all, it's a terrific book to read with your kids.