Customer Reviews

Waskahikanowiyiniw-Acimowina: Stories of the House People

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This remarkable book contains the transcript of a storytelling session held at the Saskatchewan Indian Cultural College in Saskatoon, Canada in 1982. The two speakers were Peter Vandall and Joe Douquette, elders of the Cree Indian people. "Stories of the House People" is a record of these two men, their community, and their language.

Vandall and Douquette, who took turns speaking, delivered their oration in the Cree language. The book contains three versions of the complete text. The first version is written in the Cree language using the distinctive Cree writing system--a syllabary composed of almost mathematical-looking characters. The second version has the Cree language transliterated into the Roman alphabet, and the third version is editor Freda Ahenakew's translation into English. The book also contains an informative introduction, a Cree-English glossary, and several other scholarly aids.

I was greatly intrigued the first time I encountered this wonderful book. It is a glimpse into the language and culture of an ethnic group which has survived centuries of encroachment by "Europeanizing" forces on the North American continent. Moreover, the presentation of texts in the Cree syllabary adds a stunning visual element to the book's overall cultural significance.

This book is a moving tribute to two community elders who retain both a fierce pride in their heritage and a desire to preserve that heritage. The men both share their own opinions and recall stories which they had heard previously via oral transmission. A colorful tale of a dance contest, a gory trapper's story, and a meditation on that quality known as "Creeness" are some of the orations shared by the pair.

This book offers rewarding reading for those interested in Native American studies. And it will also interest those, regardless of cultural heritage, who are interested in preserving the oral traditions of their own community. Perhaps "Stories of the House People" will inspire some young people to take an audiotape recorder or video recorder and preserve the wit and wisdom of their own tribal elders.