Background

Several years ago I came upon the tragic history of the Sioux Indians while doing research for a book about Mount Rushmore. The Sioux were once the most powerful tribe in America. Today the Sioux Pine Ridge Reservation is among the nation's poorest communities.
How could this happen? Researching and reading about the Sioux led me to write biographies of Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull. A third biography naturally followed. Sacagawea, the young Shoshone woman who accompanied Lewis and Clark to the Pacific, had been my childhood heroine. Writing all three biographies from the Indians' point of view gave me the opportunity to describe their customs and practices in depth.
This Study Guide will help teachers broaden their students' understanding of Indian life, traditions, beliefs, and history. By raising pertinent questions, the Guide also will encourage discussion, as well as lead students on to further reading and discovery about our country's Native American heritage.

We must all stand together as a force of love. Be united NOW. There is only one way. Communication. Knowledge. Arm yourself with truth, love and perseverence. Extend your family. Join with others in giving. We are all related. People of the earth take back your heritage. I am not speaking of skin color or religion. Our heritage is this earth... Our heritage is also extended beyond this earth into the heavens where the spirit once lived before our birth into this world. You are bound to both.

Focal Points

This history of Native Americans, from the period of first contact to the present day, offers an important variation to existing studies by placing the lives and experiences of Native American communities at the center of the narrative.

• Presents an innovative approach to Native American history by placing individual native communities and their experiences at the center of the study
• Following a first chapter that deals with creation myths, the remainder of the narrative is structured chronologically, covering over 600 years from the point of first contact to the present day
• Illustrates the great diversity in American Indian culture and emphasizes the importance of Native Americans in the history of North America
• Provides an excellent survey for courses in Native American history
• Includes maps, photographs, a timeline, questions for discussion, and “A Closer Focus” textboxes that provide biographies of individuals and that elaborate on the text,  exposing students to issues of race, class, and gender