November is here, and with it another chance to celebrate Native American Heritage Month. This month is dedicated to remembering the past, embracing the present, and thinking about how to improve the future of the generations of those that occupied these lands. These latest works take a look at these writers perspectives on their heritage and how we can try to make the world a better place for everyone.
My Life: Growing up Native in America is a collection of essays and poems written by individuals chronicling their own experiences as Native American children. All show a great understanding of how being a child and searching for identity is complicated by the world’s perception of native culture. They don’t shy away from intersectionality as well, how gender, sexuality, and additional racial identities impacted their upbringing. Each one shows a new perspective and shows how allowing varied voices to shine only adds to the dialog and does not take away from it.
Joseph Lee’s Nothing More of This Land: Community, Power, and the Search for Indigenous Identity is a book about where one finds home. The work recounts the history of the Wampanoag people who reside on the island known as Martha’s Vineyard. Lee spent his summers as a child on the island, attending camps focused on continuing cultural heritage and spending time with family. As the years pass, Lee wonders how this existence, being a part of a culture but not residing solely on cultural lands, affects one’s identity. Lee begins his contemplation, first through his own experiences, then his family’s, then his community’s. All of this in an attempt to understand how where you come from helps you to become who you are.
The incredibly hilarious Tiffany Midge is back with her latest work entitled The Dreamcatcher in the Wry. During the pandemic, when everything seemed frozen, Midge was not just observing the current state of our society, she was critiquing and tearing to shreds, literarily, of course. From animal attacks, to identity politics, to humans being unable to think of the greater good, Midge takes a look at it all and calls on us to reflect. The work is funny and timely and is a great perspective on the state of the world.
We Survived the Night by Julian Brave NoiseCat is not so much a memoir but a vulnerable reveal of the inner self. Working against the forced erasure of so much knowledge and history, NoiseCat traveled across the continent in order to reclaim what was lost. He highlights stories, myths, and the triumphs of a people that for so long were ignored. By reclaiming the narrative, NoiseCat is also able to strengthen his own voice and identity. Through his own personal struggles, he is able to gain insight into the strength of his community.
Visit your local library and give these books (and more) a read. Happy Native American Heritage Month!
–Ciara Lightner is a Library Specialist at A.K. Smiley Public Library.