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Native American Heritage Month - Recommended Reading

How can one celebrate native American heritage month? A great way is simply by reading. With all the books out there about American Indians figuring out the best ones is no small task. There are many academic books written by professors getting their doctorates,that are very dry as a result. Skip those, that focus on how Indians have fared being under United States stewardship over the centuries rather than exploring the rich heritage. The books that are most interesting are written about native American history and their way of life in the past and even their modern-day life.

If you want a good overview of how all the nations, both North and South America used to live ,the book by Charles C Mann entitled” New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus” and” Uncovering the New World Columbus Created”. These books will give you an overview of the many Indian cultures that coexisted on Turtle Island. These books are some of the best nonfiction books which recount the birth of a global ecosphere struggling to find new equilibrium.

Another book,” This Day in North American Indian History: Important Dates in the History of North America’s Native Peoples for Every Calendar Day” by Phil Konstantin also details more than 5000 events important to North America’s native peoples.

There are books that remind us not of what was lost during this time but what survived such as, “Rethinking Columbus The 500 Year's by Bill Bigelow. This book turns the notions of life at Columbus's arrival on their head. It is also among the books banned in Arizona schools after they voted to eliminate so-called ethnic education.

The rich history of American Indians has long been overlooked and forgotten yet their contributions that these indigenous people have made to the history of the United States is immeasurable. The book,” Indian Givers: How the Indians of the Americas Transformed the World” by Jack Weatherford is a volume of work there reminds us of all the things we take for granted that are actually Native American inventions. The book” Forgotten Founders: How the American Indian Helped Shape Democracy” by Bruce Johansen details the Great Law of Peace and the role it played in forming the U.S. Constitution.

A final book regarding Indian heritage is a book which dispels the stereotypes that still exist today.” Everything You Wanted to Know About Indians But Were Afraid to Ask” by Anton Treuer, a question and answer style book that sets the record straight.” Do All Indians Live in Tepees?” is another myth buster.

The perfect juxtaposition of how Indians are living in two worlds, the old and the new is found in the book ”Rez Life: An Indians Journey Through Reservation Life”. All these books are a perfect way to understand what Native American heritage is all about. All this fine books can be found online at half.com. Currently they have $10 discount.

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