Here are some popular books and monographs on a number of different topics involving archeology and anthropology that may be of interest to the public. We've organized the list by appropriate reading level and subject for your convenience. Check with your local library for more information. You may also want to check with your state archeologist or State Historic Preservation Officer for information on state or regional publications.

For Young Audiences
Ancient America by Marion Wood. Checkmark Books, New York. 1990. A well-illustrated introduction to the sites in North and Latin America where ancient peoples once lived. For ages 9-12.

Archaeologists: Explorers if the Human Past by Brian Fagan. Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2003.

The Archaeology of North America by Dean Snow. Chelsea House Publishers, New York. 1990. An introduction to prehistoric archeological sites and ancient cultures. For ages 10 and up.

Dig this! How Archaeologists Uncover Our Past by Michael Avi-Yonah. Runestone Press, Minneapolis. 1993. An introduction to archeology for young readers, focusing on the history of the discipline, excavation methods, and an overview of several ancient civilizations.

Diving to the Past: Recovering Ancient Wrecks by W. John Hackwell. Charles Scribner's Sons, New York. 1988. In introduction to marine or underwater archeology. For elementary school readers.

I Can Be an Archeologist by Robert B. Pickering. Children's Press, Chicago. 1987. A short introduction to the activities of archeologists and physical anthropologists. For beginning readers.

Motel of the Mysteries by David Macaulay. Houghton Mifflin, Boston. 1979. A wonderfully illustrated story about an archeological excavation in the future that points to the methodological care associated with doing archeology.

Stones, Bones, and Petroglyphs: Digging into Southwest Archaeology: An Ultimate Field Trip by Susan E. Goodman. Atheneum Books for Young Readers, New York. 1998. A scrapbook chronicle of prehistoric archeology excavations in the American Southwest. Great for younger readers.

The Young Oxford Book of Archaeology by Norah Moloney. Oxford University Press, Oxford. 1995. A well-illustrated book, which describes some of the world's most famous archeological sites along with some typical archeological methods.

The Young Scientist Book of Archaeology by Barbara Cook and Sturand Reid. EDC Publishing, Tulsa, OK. 1987. A lively, well-illustrated introduction to archeological methods for upper elementary and junior high school grades.

For General Audiences

Archeology-General
Archaeology & You by George E. Stuart and Francis P. McManamon. Society for American Archaeology, Washington, D.C. 1995. A brief introduction of the kinds of work done by contemporary archeologists and the issues faced in modern archeology with a list of readings, videos, and opportunities to take part in scientific archeological investigations.

Eyewitness to Discovery: First-Person Accounts of More than Fifty of the World's Greatest Archaeological Discoveries, edited by Brian M. Fagan. Oxford University Press, Oxford. 1998. An innovative book that explores the lives, achievements, and discoverers of some of archeology's most exciting discoveries.

Time Detectives: How Archaeologists Use Technology to Recapture the Past by Brian M. Fagan. Simon and Schuster, New York.. 1995. Summaries of a dozen modern archeological investigations illustrating how contemporary archeologists reconstruct what happened in the past.

Archeology of the Recent Past
Invisible America: Unearthing Our Hidden History, edited by Mark P. Leone and Neil Asher Silberman. Henry Holt and Company. 1995. A unique book that uses a series of vignettes to explore socially relevant historical and cultural events in American history.

In Small Things Forgotten: The Archeology of Early American Life, 2nd edition, by James Deetz. Anchor Press/Doubleday, Garden City, New York. 1996. Archeological methods revealed through historic archeological projects and sites.

Archeology of the Ancient Past
Exploring Ancient Native America: An Archaeological Guide by David Hurst Thomas. Routledge, New York. 1999. An introduction to prehistoric Native American cultures, detailing historical events and archeological excavations.

Hidden Cities: The Discovery and Loss of Ancient North American Civilization by Roger G. Kennedy. The Free Press, New York. 1994. The author, an historian and former Director of the National Park Service, summarizes early historical interpretations of the ancient Indian mounds of the Ohio and Mississippi River valleys and provides a contemporary interpretation of these sites and their value to modern Americans.

Cultural Anthropology and Ethnography
Call to Home: African Americans Reclaim the Rural South by Carol B. Stack. Basic Books, New York. 1996. Stack's book sheds light on social, economic, and political reasons for the migration of African-American families to the rural south.

Ethnography: A Way of Seeing by Harry F. Walcott. Altamira Press, Walnut Creek, CA. 1999. An engaging book that introduces both the development and contemporary practice of ethnography.

Keeping Slug Woman Alive: A Holistic Approach to American Indian Texts by Greg Sarris. University of California Press. 1993. Sarris' book artfully relates the many subtleties and contradictions of being a Pomo Indian within contemporary society.

For More Detailed Exploration

Archeology
Historical Archaeology by Charles Orser and Brian M. Fagan. Harper Collins College Publishers, New York. 1995. A concise introduction to historical archeology.

Historical Perspectives on Midsouth Archeology, edited by Martha Ann Rolingson. Arkansas Archeological Survey Publications. 2001.

Uncommon Ground: Archaeology and Early African America, 1650-1800 by Leland Ferguson. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C. 1992. A groundbreaking archeological perspective on the many African influences and contributions to early American culture.

Lines That Divide: Historical Archaeologies of Race, Class, and Gender, edited by James A. Delle, Stephen A. Mrozowski, and Robert Paynter. University of Tennessee Press, Knoxville. 2000. An accessible account of complex social issues, interpreted by some of the field's leading scholars.

What This Awl Means: Feminist Archaeology at a Wahpeton Dakota Village by Janet D. Spector. Minnesota Historical Society. 1993. An innovative blurring of literary genres that combines a rich archaeological interpretation with elements of historical fiction, ethnography, and autobiographical sketches.

Skull Wars: Kennewick man, Archaeology, and the Battle for Native American Identity, by David Hurst Thomas. Basic Books, New York. 2000. An overview of the evolution of the relationship between American archeologists and Native Americans.

The Settlement of the Americas: A New Prehistory by Tom D. Dillehay. Basic Books, New York. 2000. A fascinating analysis of some of earliest known archeological sites in the Americas.

Cultural Anthropology and Ethnography
Down by the Riverside: A South Carolina Slave Community by Charles Joyner. University of Illinois Press. 1986. An influential book that crosses the border between history and historical ethnography, using a series of ex-slave narratives collected in the early 20th century.

The New History in an Old Museum: Creating the Past at Colonial Williamsburg, by Richard Handler and Eric Gable. Duke University Press, Durham. 1997. An inside look at the presentation of history at a respected American historical institution.

The Professional Stranger: An Informal Introduction to Ethnography, 2nd edition, by Michael H. Agar. Academic Press. 1996. An updated version of Agar's classic book that illuminates the processes by which ethnography is done.

Vinyl Leaves: Walt Disney World and America, by Stephen M. Fjellman. Westview Press, Boulder, CO. 1992. A critical look at consumerism in one of America's cornerstones of popular culture.

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