Woven Stone (Sun Tracks) [Hardcover]

Simon J. Ortiz (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 1992 | Series: Sun Tracks

"What I do as a writer, teacher, and storyteller is to demystify language," says Simon Ortiz. Widely regarded as one of the country's most important Native American poets, Ortiz has led a thirty-year career marked by a fascination with language—and by a love of his people. This omnibus of three previous works offers old and new readers an appreciation of the fruits of his dedication. Going for the Rain (1976) expresses closeness to a specific Native American way of life and its philosophy and is structured in the narrative form of a journey on the road of life. A Good Journey (1977), an evocation of Ortiz's constant awareness of his heritage, draws on the oral tradition of his Pueblo culture. Fight Back: For the Sake of the People, For the Sake of the Land (1980)—revised for this volume—has its origins in his work as a laborer in the uranium industry and is intended as a political observation and statement about that industry's effects on Native American lands and lives. In an introduction written for this volume, Ortiz tells of his boyhood in Acoma Pueblo, his early love for language, his education, and his exposure to the wider world. He traces his development as a writer, recalling his attraction to the Beats and his growing political awareness, especially a consciousness of his and other people's social struggle. "Native American writers must have an individual and communally unified commitment to their art and its relationship to their indigenous culture and people," writes Ortiz. "Through our poetry, prose, and other written works that evoke love, respect, and responsibility, Native Americans may be able to help the United States of America to go beyond survival."

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

This book combines three earlier books by Ortiz: Going for the Rain ( LJ 1/77), A Good Journey ( LJ 5/15/78), and Fight Back: For the Sake of the People, for the Sake of the Land (1980). In his introduction, Ortiz explains that one of his functions as a writer has been to demystify language. His poetry is a testament to the care he takes in saying what he has to say simply, precisely, and with regard for the intimacy between reader and poem. As a Native American (Acoma Pueblo) writer, Ortiz feels that he must be committed to both his art and its relationship to the social, cultural, and political issues affecting his people. His poems--whose titles, like "Apache Love" and "The Creation According to Coyote," reflect his themes--eloquently convey the sadness born of the suffering Native Americans have endured at the hands of their conquerors. But they also convey hope and the vision of a people whose traditions are the foundation of the soul of this land called America. Highly recommended.
- Francis Poole, Univ. of Delaware Lib., Newark
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"Simon Ortiz has given us indelible proof that the written word is indeed an effective weapon. And we are left with a sense of renewal and hope: 'to behold with passion and awe the wonders and bounty and bearty of creation and the world around us'." —Western American Literature

"It is a relief to read poems as beautiful as these." —Booklist

"Highly recommended." —Library Journal

"[A] wise and prophetic book. . . . the autobiography of the spirit of Simon J. Ortiz, who has advanced out of the mist of the reservation and into an affirmative and natural embracing of the world as it is." —El Palacio

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 367 pages
• Publisher: University of Arizona Press (September 1, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0816512949
• ISBN-13: 978-0816512942
• Product Dimensions: 367 x 9 x 6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 ounces
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,029,665 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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