Quilts have become a part of American Indian culture, and they are mentioned and even highlighted in certain works of contemporary Native American literature. Certain questions can be posed in regard to the inclusion of quilt references in contemporary American Indian novels. Do the quilts and the making of quilts have some type of metaphorical…

These seven tales were collected in Davis Inlet, Labrador, during 1987-88 from the Naskapi, the most traditional of the Algonquin-speaking Indians. The tales describe origins or illuminate morals, several feature Tchakapesh, a hero-trickster. (SV)

In this essay, the author begins by acknowledging the necessity of teaching Native American and other indigenous literatures both alongside and independent of Western texts. Instructors should teach these works by listening to the Native authors' worldviews and literary traditions. However, when instructors try to teach Native literatures…

The Native American's daily life was a walk with supernatural happenings, directed by the power of the Great Spirit. An important experience for a young man was the vision-search. Fortunate youths had a personal encounter with the Great Spirit and received evidence of a special ally or spirit-brother. At the same time, the individual might receive…

Suggests an approach to teaching American Indian literatures that focuses on origins and authorship of Indian (and by extension, non-Indian) works. Discusses the collaboration of numerous historical and personal voices in contemporary Indian works and the influence of an oral performance context. Contains a bibliography of 55 works. (SV)

Beidler defends "The Crown of Columbus" against criticisms of its best-seller qualities and applauds its universality, playfulness, and thought-provoking qualities. Hoy views the novel as revisionist history contained within a seemingly frivolous narrative, a polyvocal protean voyage of discovery with humor and self-referentiality as its…

In the novel Ceremony, Tayo suffers from flawed psychological vision, mainly as a result of being contaminated by certain preconceptions that he, like most Americans, has acquired from the social environment. In the beginning of the novel, Tayo suffers from physiological eyestrain.

David Treuer's debut novel, "Little" (1995), is set on a Minnesota reservation, centering around a dilapidated housing tract that its small community of residents call "Poverty." Aptly named both for the condition and background of the housing, this name is the first pointer to the type of multifaceted reading that the novel…

The Cheyenne version of how bones appeared in High Plains country streams, is detailed in this legend of fifty young men, a turtle and death. (RTS)

Reviews life and literature of Zitkala Sa (Gertrude Simmons Bonnin), Sioux Indian born in 1876 on Yankton Reservation (South Dakota), educated at Quaker schools and Earlham College (Indiana), accomplished orator, author of autobiographical essays and short stories, worker for Indian reform, lecturer, and founder of National Council of American…

The origin of the Big Dipper is described in this Canadian Indian legend. (RTS)

This delightful American Indian legend describes a meeting between a mountain lion, numerous domesticated cats, and a small boy. (RTS)

Discusses academic arguments over definitions of "trickster," who intrinsically disrupts classifications of any kind. Focuses on trickster's reemergence (particularly as female) in contemporary native American literature, which merges verbal art and tribal traditions with Anglo text forms to create a liminal literary space ideal for…

Reviews a volume of 21 interviews with American Indian poets focusing on the issues of the new role of women in Native American poetry; the tension of two cultures, particularly for half-breeds; and cultural, national, and personal survival. The book includes a poem by each poet, with commentaries. (SV)

Describes the storytelling program at the Department of American Indian Studies, San Diego State University, which has involved Indian elders and storytellers, students, and both Indian and non-Indian children and adults from the local community. Includes a Wyandot tale that warns against jealousy, bitterness, and revenge. (SV)