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If You Lived With The Cherokee
The third in a series of books about Native American culture and language shows what it was like to grow up in a Cherokee family of the past, through full-color illustrations by a Cherokee artist and an engaging question-and-answer format. Original.
80 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 1998
6 people are currently reading
179 people want to read
About the author
Peter Roop
165 books12 followersPeter Roop is an award-winning author and educator who has written over one hundred children’s books including biographies, novels, humor, picture books, and science books. Seven of his books are Reading Rainbow books, including the Keep the Lights Burning, Abbie. In 2013, the Wisconsin Library Association recognized Peter and his wife, Connie Roop, as Notable Wisconsin Authors for their body of work, and Peter has been named a Wisconsin State Teacher of the Year. The Roops live in Appleton, Wisconsin.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
February 9, 2017
I really enjoyed reading this series about some of the Native American tribes. Here's a few facts about the Cherokee:
1. They lived in the Great Smoky Mountains. They were the tribe forced to walk the hideous "Trail of Tears" under Andrew Jackson. A revolting bit of U.S. History and why I find it disgusting that Andrew Jackson is memorialized on our currency.
2. To marry someone, elaborate gifts were exchanged. The men moved in with the woman's family. If a woman wanted to divorce a man she simply left all his possessions outside the home and he left. A very efficient system. You were forbidden to marry within your own clan. How interesting that the Native Americans understood the danger of marrying too close to family, unlike the white inhabitants of the Smoky Mountains.
3. They had summer and winter homes. Villages would have about 200-400 people and would share a cornfield outside the compound. Tall pointed posts were put up around the village.
4. There were two chiefs - the White/Peace Chief and the Red/War Chief. The White Chief was religious and led ceremonies, the Red Chief would take over in times of war.
5. The Red Chief would be counseled by the War Women, also known as the Beloved Women. (I really loved this.)
6. Naughty children would be punished through public humiliation. I noticed this was a common trend among all the tribes I read about. I love it.
7. Boys had to get proficient with blow guns before they could use bow and arrows.
8. There would be elaborate hunting ceremonies. They had to receive permission from the spirits before they could hunt.
9. The Great Warriors Path connected all the villages. I've never been to the Smoky Mountains, but I'm sure those trails are still in use today.
10. They did not believe in visiting graves. They thought it would bring bad luck to the spirits.
11. The first female chief was named Wilma Mankiller. Awesome.
1. They lived in the Great Smoky Mountains. They were the tribe forced to walk the hideous "Trail of Tears" under Andrew Jackson. A revolting bit of U.S. History and why I find it disgusting that Andrew Jackson is memorialized on our currency.
2. To marry someone, elaborate gifts were exchanged. The men moved in with the woman's family. If a woman wanted to divorce a man she simply left all his possessions outside the home and he left. A very efficient system. You were forbidden to marry within your own clan. How interesting that the Native Americans understood the danger of marrying too close to family, unlike the white inhabitants of the Smoky Mountains.
3. They had summer and winter homes. Villages would have about 200-400 people and would share a cornfield outside the compound. Tall pointed posts were put up around the village.
4. There were two chiefs - the White/Peace Chief and the Red/War Chief. The White Chief was religious and led ceremonies, the Red Chief would take over in times of war.
5. The Red Chief would be counseled by the War Women, also known as the Beloved Women. (I really loved this.)
6. Naughty children would be punished through public humiliation. I noticed this was a common trend among all the tribes I read about. I love it.
7. Boys had to get proficient with blow guns before they could use bow and arrows.
8. There would be elaborate hunting ceremonies. They had to receive permission from the spirits before they could hunt.
9. The Great Warriors Path connected all the villages. I've never been to the Smoky Mountains, but I'm sure those trails are still in use today.
10. They did not believe in visiting graves. They thought it would bring bad luck to the spirits.
11. The first female chief was named Wilma Mankiller. Awesome.
February 23, 2015
I liked this book. It is about what life was like for the Cherokees and how they were affected by the Europeans that came to their territories. It tells about the enemies they had, the weapons they used, the jobs you had, what you ate, type of houses that you used, and many other things. I would recommend this book to young readers and reader that like to learn about Indians. HG
I liked this book because it tells so much about what life was like for the Cherokee people. It also tells the difference between the tribes, how war was carried out, and how people lived out their daily lives. HHG
I liked this book because it tells so much about what life was like for the Cherokee people. It also tells the difference between the tribes, how war was carried out, and how people lived out their daily lives. HHG
April 23, 2012
A wonderful story about the life of Native American people. The books describes how the Cherokee people lived It provides information about their language and their contribution to medicine. This book can be used for a social studies lesson on Native Americans and their importance to the America. Grades 1-4.
January 6, 2017
Very nice book that really gives you a sense of what it was like to be a Cherokee Indian in the past with a bit of information about the current Cherokee tribes.
April 8, 2017
This book is an approachable introduction to the Cherokee people. I appreciate that it is focused on one tribe and doesn't try to be too many things at once. Some of the information feels speculative and I'm not sure if it's supposed to feel that way. I like the simple easy to interpret illustrations and I think they serve to help the reader understand the content. This is a technical picture book done right. Factual, interesting and easy to understand. I would use this in a study on the native people of the US. I also appreciate the fact that it doesn't gloss over the trail of tears and how the US government has broken treaties with native people's in the past.
April 2, 2014
This was a very interesting book that gave many facts about the Cherokee Indians. I felt that the cartoonish pictures took away from the story though. It made it seem like the book was historical fiction instead of being informational. I felt that having photographs, even if they were posed shots of modern people that are wearing costumes, would have given the book a better feel so the children would realize this was a true event in history.
November 1, 2020
Folklore: … If You Lived With the Cherokee
Lexile level: 800L
Age Level: 7 - 10
Grade Level: 3 – 5
Summary:
This book tells you what it would be like to grow up in a Cherokee family, in the great smoky mountains, right here in Cherokee North Carolina, about 200 years ago. The Cherokee call themselves “Aniyunwiya” which means “the principal people”. Long ago, the Cherokee came from the North East, when they migrated, they kept the language of their ancestors. Before, the English came to the shores of North Carolina, the Cherokee had already lived here for over 1000 years!
This book does a great job of describing what life was like for the Cherokee, and what changes they went through as they were greeted by the settlers. The book talks about what it would have been like to live in a Cherokee village about 200 years ago. From what you wore, to who was in your family, the book goes into detail about life for children as Cherokee.
This is a wonderful book to have in the classroom, it can be an individual reading book, a book for small group reading and a book for the entire class to read and discuss. This would also make a really great seasonal book, since November is the month of the indigenous people, it would be wonderful to study the folklore of the Cherokee, especially since they are right here in NC. I would read this book out loud with younger students, and have older students read it individually. We would then have several class discussions on our reading.
Another wonderful thing about this book is that it has some great vocabulary that can lead to discussion about history and culture, the differences and similarities we have among our own classmates today.
Lexile level: 800L
Age Level: 7 - 10
Grade Level: 3 – 5
Summary:
This book tells you what it would be like to grow up in a Cherokee family, in the great smoky mountains, right here in Cherokee North Carolina, about 200 years ago. The Cherokee call themselves “Aniyunwiya” which means “the principal people”. Long ago, the Cherokee came from the North East, when they migrated, they kept the language of their ancestors. Before, the English came to the shores of North Carolina, the Cherokee had already lived here for over 1000 years!
This book does a great job of describing what life was like for the Cherokee, and what changes they went through as they were greeted by the settlers. The book talks about what it would have been like to live in a Cherokee village about 200 years ago. From what you wore, to who was in your family, the book goes into detail about life for children as Cherokee.
This is a wonderful book to have in the classroom, it can be an individual reading book, a book for small group reading and a book for the entire class to read and discuss. This would also make a really great seasonal book, since November is the month of the indigenous people, it would be wonderful to study the folklore of the Cherokee, especially since they are right here in NC. I would read this book out loud with younger students, and have older students read it individually. We would then have several class discussions on our reading.
Another wonderful thing about this book is that it has some great vocabulary that can lead to discussion about history and culture, the differences and similarities we have among our own classmates today.
June 30, 2024
I'd like to say I fact-checked this and can vouch for the truth of what's presented. In fact, I only really felt like fact-checking the claim that, in fact, scalping was introduced by the Europeans rather than the other way around. Unfortunately, I'm not a sufficient historian enough to determine which is the more compelling evidence, so... exercise for the reader, I suppose.
The rest sounds fairly accurate, but I realise a lot of that is skepticism over my own PROBABLY SUSPICIOUS American History lessons from the highly conservative state where I grew up. (We did learn a significant amount of state history, but the various tribes kind of blended together in my head, as difficult as it was to pay attention in class, haha.)
Probably a good read, but I'm not invested in history enough to base my review on the book's accuracy (I'm already worried enough about current events!). Cool that the Booger Dance is a real thing, though, haha!
The rest sounds fairly accurate, but I realise a lot of that is skepticism over my own PROBABLY SUSPICIOUS American History lessons from the highly conservative state where I grew up. (We did learn a significant amount of state history, but the various tribes kind of blended together in my head, as difficult as it was to pay attention in class, haha.)
Probably a good read, but I'm not invested in history enough to base my review on the book's accuracy (I'm already worried enough about current events!). Cool that the Booger Dance is a real thing, though, haha!
November 22, 2019
Read this during morning time with our kids.
I didn’t like this one as much as the Iroquois book, because it mixed in a lot about the European settlers even in the early pages, when I really just wanted to hear about pre-colonization society. I also skipped the question about whether or not they scalped their enemies, because even though the answer was “no” I think that the question itself relies on a perception of native people as savages, a perception that my children don’t have.
I thought it handled the Trail of Tears decently though, and really liked how it talked about modern Cherokee society at the end, to show that these aren’t just a historical people but a current one.
I didn’t like this one as much as the Iroquois book, because it mixed in a lot about the European settlers even in the early pages, when I really just wanted to hear about pre-colonization society. I also skipped the question about whether or not they scalped their enemies, because even though the answer was “no” I think that the question itself relies on a perception of native people as savages, a perception that my children don’t have.
I thought it handled the Trail of Tears decently though, and really liked how it talked about modern Cherokee society at the end, to show that these aren’t just a historical people but a current one.
March 25, 2024
If You Lived with the Cherokee is an excellent resourse to use with upper elementary children to give them accurate history, show how the Cheorkee people lived and how their lives has changed since Eropean settlers came to their villages and land. It covers many aspects of the Cherokee culture, shows games, their leadership system and clan system, what they ate and how they constructed their homes.
The illustrations are pretty watercolors and match the text showing how the people lived and played.0
The illustrations are pretty watercolors and match the text showing how the people lived and played.0
August 15, 2019
Great children’s book about the Cherokee nation.
November 3, 2025
Gentle history lessons.
August 23, 2016
This was an enjoyable book about the Cherokee Indians and full of information I needed.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews