Reference & Research Book News: The native peoples of North America; a history; 2v

E76

2004-028732

0-275-98159-2

The native peoples of North America; a history; 2v.

Johansen, Bruce E. (Native America)

Praeger, [c]2005

487 p.

$99.95

Johansen (communications, Native American studies, U. of Nebraska, Omaha) has done an admirable job in producing a thoughtful, though often wrenching, history of the Native peoples of North America from earliest times to the present in an accessible 2v. set designed for high school and university-level Native American studies courses. Drawing on archaeology, native texts and oral records, and current media and scholarship, Johansen chronicles the earliest civilizations in what is now the U.S., Mexico, and Mesoamerica; the initial contact with Europeans; Native American contributions to general society; the politics, people, and events of the westward expansion and American Indian policies; Native American adaptations to assimilation; and Native self-determination since the 1960s. The volumes conclude with a chapter describing the cultural borrowings from Native American people and culture and another on contemporary issues, including gambling, alcoholism, language revival, repatriation, land claims, environmental issues, and sports mascots. Some b & w images are included. Both volumes contain a bibliography and comprehensive index.