Growing Up Native American: An Anthology

by Patricia Riley (Editor)

Native American writers recall childhood in their native land. Provocative pieces from Louise Erdrich, Michael Dorris, Anna Lee Walters and more bring childhood experiences into sharp focus and speak of pain, love, mischief, anger, betrayal and healing.

Genres: Native American, Nonfiction, Indigenous, History, Anthologies, Native American History, Essays

333 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1993

Reviews

[Whitney Atkinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

this collection was a good starting point into native american literature, which is my kind way of saying i think there's better out there. i wasn't a fan that so many of these stories were exerpts and lost a lot of context from the full story.

i did find several authors i'd like to read more from, though, and all of these for sure had great takeaways and things to learn about indigenous culture and the ways they are still marginalized and forgotten.

[Ruby Hollyberry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really amazing, five stars overall because the best deserved more than that. Those were from Joseph Bruchac, Geary Hobson, and Lee Maracle. Will be reading more by these authors!

[Bonnie · Rating 3 out of 5]

another edition of facetime audiobook with my bestie. this had some hits and misses. the book included some segments of novels, but i wish it had fully been a collection of short stories and essays, especially as the parts that were chosen of the novels often seemed to be something that wouldn't fully hit without reading the entirety. still, i see some of the stories sticking with me, especially the ones that recounted schooling. this is also an older collection, so i definitely plan to seek out more current native american fiction now that we have much more of it — this collection, for example, ended up including a few selections from works in progress, so i can assume there wasn't a wide array to choose from!

[Melissa Conner · Rating 3 out of 5]

Through the rubble of the questions left open by our history books comes a collection of 22 personal accounts from Native writers, both famous and not so famous, of what it was like to grow up “Native American”. These are tales about boarding school, family life, conflict of traditions, life, death, children, growing up, and letting go. These are stories by the people for the people. These are the tales passed down from generations of storytellers. These are the true stories.

Growing Up Native American is a collection of personal essays, broken down into four parts: the nineteenth and twentieth century make up two parts, while the other two are divided into moving forward by using the lessons of ages past and life in the Native educational system, whether that be at home with parents or away at boarding school.

Many of these accounts are truly awakening. “The Middle Five: Indian Schoolboys of the Omaha Tribe” by Francis La Flesche, for example, is as touching and beautiful as it is sorrowful and unfortunate. These stories will make you think. They will invoke familiar emotions and not so familiar ones. These stories will teach you, inspire you, captivate you, and stay with you for quite a while.

Contributors include Black Elk, Louise Erdrich, Linda Hogan, N. Scott Momaday, and Simon Ortiz.

Growing Up Native American is not just a book for natives, but for those of us who are inspired by their teachings. This is a book for people who love storytelling and tradition and a book for those of us who can appreciate the importance of culture and history.

Read more at: http://thehobbeehive.wordpress.com

[Michael Blackmore · Rating 3 out of 5]

Since it is mostly a collection of short stories and often excerpts from longer works, it can be somewhat hit or miss. Overall, it is a good collection at times thought provoking. I have to admit for the excerpts I tended to see if it was something I wanted to get the full work for rather than read them as deeply as I might.

The introduction is actually quite good and stands alone as a excellent essay.

[Claire Gosselin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this and have learned of several new authors whose works I would like to read. The collection includes 22 book excerpts or short stories from the 19th and 20th centuries. As the title suggests, the works focus on the experience of growing up and the authors approach this in a variety of ways. Highly recommended.

[Reiden · Rating 3 out of 5]

There were quite a few good stories in this collection. One of them was actually sad enough to make me start crying while I was reading it one the bus. Some of the others were harder for me to get into. The introduction was definitely my favorite part.

[Rose Klix · Rating 4 out of 5]

Poignant stories of Native Americans of various tribes growing up in America.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't actually finish the entire thing. It was overdue. It was a compilation of authors, so some were better than others.

[Ana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thanks to this anthology, I found some interesting authors and it also helped me create a portrait of how childhood has changed throughout the 19th and 20th century.

[Sarah Hui · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eye-opening book about Native Americans and Native American history, in their own words.

[Lorraine McCleary · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of stories written by Native Americans'; beginning with the 18th century with removal of lands and broken treaties, then the Indian boarding school experience and lastly the 20th century after layers of Native American abuse. Very enlightening.