Smithsonian
About Smithsonian  |  Websites A-Z

Art and Design History and Culture Science and Technology
Home › Encyclopedia SmithsonianHistory and Culture
Explore and Learn: History and Culture
  Recommended Publications for Children on Native American Subjects
 
 

Your school and public libraries may have some of the books listed here. Your local public library may be able to get books for you from other libraries. Those books that are in print (most are) may be purchased through bookstores, or ordered directly from the publishers, whose addresses are supplied. (Note: many of these publishers have other books on Native Americans.) This book list is arranged in the following categories:

Newspapers, Magazines, Maps

Book Series

Coloring Books

Books: Crafts, Activities, Projects, Sign Language

Books: Religion, Spirituality, Legends, Poetry, Fiction

Books, Map: Houses

Books: History & Culture; General

Books: History & Culture; Specific Peoples

Real Child Books

Newspapers, Magazines, Maps

RedSun Institute, P.O. Box 122, Creston, CO 81131. Publishes Native Monthly Reader (eight issues per school year). Aimed at students in grades 6 -12, this newspaper includes articles on Native American culture and current events.

Cobblestone Publishing, 30 Grove Street, Peterborough, NH 03458. Publishes several magazines, including Cobblestone and Faces. A number of all-Indian back issues are available. Issue topics include the Iroquois, Sioux, Cherokee, Maya, and Inca; Indians of the Plains, Northwest Coast, and Northeast Coast; there are also issues on such subjects as the Indian and the buffalo and first encounters between Native Americans and Europeans. Ages 8 - 14.

Historic Indian Publishers, 1404 Sunset Drive, P.O. Box 16074, Salt Lake City, UT 84116. Publishes maps, charts, and posters on Native American subjects. The maps are large, detailed, black and white. The charts and posters cover a wide variety of topics; many of them are in color.

Book Series

Chelsea House Publishers, P.O. Box 914, Broomall, PA 19008. Three series, as follows:

  • Baird, W. David, general editor, North American Indians of Achievement Series. When complete, this series will include over twenty biographies of Native American leaders: men and women, past and present. Ages 12 up.

  • Papalle, Richard S., general editor, The Junior Library of American Indians. When complete, this series will include well-illustrated books on twenty-five Indian peoples. Ages 8 - 12.

  • Porter, Frank W., general editor, Indians of North America Series. The series includes fifty-three books. All are well illustrated with photographs. Five of the books are on topics (archaeology, Federal Indian policy, literature, urban Indians, and women in Indian society); each of the other forty-eight covers a specific people. Ages 12 up.

Children's Book Press, 1461 Ninth Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94122. Publishes Fifth World Tales, a series of bilingual books of myths and legends from different Spanish-speaking cultures; series includes myths from several native peoples of Central and South America, and of the West Indies. Ages 4 up.

Childrens Press, 5440 North Cumberland Avenue, Chicago, IL 60656. Publishes the True Book series, with a general book on Indians, books on a number of specific peoples, and books on Indian families, festivals, foods, and games. Ages 6 - 10.

Courage Books, Running Press, 125 South 22nd Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103. Publishes Native Americans, a series of books on the traditions, history, legends, and lives of the Native Peoples of various regions of North America. Most authored by Lisa Sita of New York=s American Museum of Natural History. Ages 10 up.

Facts on File, Inc., 460 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10016. Publishes American Indian Lives. Each volume includes biographies of about ten to twenty prominent Native Americans. The series includes volumes on spiritual leaders, athletes, artists and craftspeople, and scholars, writers, and professionals. Ages 12 up.

Franklin Watts, Inc., 95 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016. Publishes the First Book series, which includes several volumes by Karen Liptak on North American Indian life: survival skills, sign language, medicine people, and other topics. Ages 10 up.

Fulcrum Inc., 350 Indiana Street, Golden, CO 80401. Publishes The Keepers Series, by Michael J. Caduto & Joseph Bruchac. The series includes Keepers of the Earth, Keepers of the Animals, Keepers of Life, and Keepers of the Night. Each book is a collection of North American Indian stories and related hands-on activities for children ages 5 - 12. Teacher's guides and audio cassettes are also available.

Silver Burdett Press, P.O. Box 1226, Westwood, NJ 07675. Publishes the Biography Series of American Indians; Alvin M. Josephy, series editor. Biographies of a number of well-known Native Americans, including Hiawatha, Sitting Bull, Geronimo. Ages 10 up.

Troll Associates, 100 Corporate Drive, Mahwah, NJ 07430. This publisher has books on Indian homes, crafts, and festivals, also several books on the Indians of various regions of North America. Ages 6 - 10.

Coloring Books

Bellerophon Books, 36 Anacapa Street, Santa Barbara, CA 9310l. Coloring books on the Indians of a number of regions; also on such topics as totem poles, myths and legends, and Indian leaders.

Dover Publications, 180 Varick Street, New York, NY 10014. Coloring books based on Indian designs of North America, of the Plains Indians, and of several specific peoples.

Fun Publishing Co., P.O. Box 2049, Scottsdale, AZ 85252. Coloring books on Navajo Indians, Navajo designs, Plains Indians, and Hopi Kachina dolls.

Middle Atlantic Press, 714 Interchange Boulevard, Newark, DE 19711. A Coloring Book of the First Americans, on the Lenape or Delaware people. (Publications for teachers are also available.)

Minnesota Historical Society, St. Paul, MN 55101. Ojibway Indians Coloring Book, on Ojibway culture.

Treasure Chest Publications, 1850 West Grant Road, Suite 101, P.O. Box 5250, Tucson, AZ 85703. Paper doll/coloring books on several southwestern cultures.

Books: Crafts, Activities, Projects, Sign Language

Bernstein, Bonnie, & Leigh Blair, Native American Crafts Workshop, Fearon Teacher Aids, 1204 Buchannan Street, P.O. Box 280, Carthage, IL 62321. Includes projects with a range of difficulty levels. Can be very useful for school-assigned craft projects. Ages 10 up.

Carlson, Laurie, More Than Moccasins, Chicago Review Press, 814 North Franklin Street, Chicago, IL 60610. Includes over 100 craft projects and activities for children. Ages 3 - 9.

Fronval, George, & Daniel Dubois, Indian Signals & Sign Language, Crown Publishers (Bonanza Books division), 225 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10003. A well-illustrated book on sign language, picture writing, and related topics. Ages 10 up.

Howard, Nancy Shroyer, Helen Cordero & the Storytellers of Cochiti Pueblo, Davis Publications, 50 Portland Street, Worcester, MA 01608. A lively activity book based on the pottery storyteller figures of Helen Cordero. Ages 10 up.

Books: Religion, Spirituality, Legends, Poetry, Fiction

Echo-Hawk, Roger C., & Walter R. Echo-Hawk, Battlefields & Burial Grounds: The Indian Struggle to Protect Ancestral Graves in the United States, Lerner Publications Company, 241 First Avenue North, Minneapolis, MN 55401. The authors, both Pawnee, describe the efforts of Native Americans to reclaim and rebury ancestral remains held by museums and historical societies. Ages 12 up.

Henry, Jeannette, & Rupert Costo, A Thousand Years of American Indian Storytelling, Indian Historian Press, 1493 Masonic Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94117. Includes over forty stories from a wide variety of times and places, plus a discussion of the importance of storytelling in Indian culture. Ages 10 up.

Hirschfelder, Arlene, Rising Voices: Writings of Young Native Americans, Charles Scribner's Sons, 866 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10022. An anthology of poems and essays by young Native Americans of today. Any age. (Also available in soft cover from Ballentine Books, 201 East 50th Street, New York, NY 10022.)

Sherrow, Victoria, Native American Culture: Spiritual Life, Rourke Publications, Vero Beach, FL 32964. Includes a chapter on ancient traditions, plus chapters on each North American culture area. Ages 12 up.

Tehanetorens, Tales of the Iroquois, Akwesasne Notes, Mohawk Nation, P.O. Box 196, Rooseveltown, NY 13683. Also available from Iroqrafts, R.R. 2, Ohsweken, Ontario N0A 1M0, Canada. A collection of Iroquois legends, illustrated with line drawings by Kahionhes and pictographs by the author. The author and illustrator are Mohawk. Any age.

Books, Map: Houses

Schemie, Bonnie, Houses of Bark; Houses of Hide & Earth; Houses of Wood; Houses of Snow, Skin, & Bone; and Moundes of Earth & Shell, all from Tundra Books, University of Toronto Press, 340 Nagel Drive, Buffalo, NY 14225. Four detailed, well-illustrated books on Native dwellings and one on prehistoric mounds and mound-builders. Available in English and French. Ages 8 up.

Yue, Charlotte & David, The Pueblo, Houghton-Mifflin, Wayside Road, Burlington, MA 01803, and The Tipi: A Center of Native American Life, Random House, 400 Hahn Road, Westminster, MD 21157. The first book provides information on Pueblo homes, history, and traditional life. The second book describes the advantages of a tipi for life on the Plains, and tells how one is raised, furnished, and lived in. Ages 8 - 12.

Typical Indian Dwellings Map, Historic Indian Publishers, 1404 Sunset Drive, P.O. Box 16074, Salt Lake City, UT 84116. A map of the U.S. with line drawings of traditional native houses.

Books: History & Culture; General

Freedman, Russell, Indian Chiefs, Holiday House, 425 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10017. Includes Red Cloud, Satanta, Quanah Parker, Washakie, Joseph, and Sitting Bull. Ages 12 up.

Hakim, Joy, The First Americans, Oxford University Press, 200 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016. A survey of North American Indian history and culture, written in a lively style. Emphasizes the periods before and just after European contact. Ages 12 up.

Harvey, Karen D., & Lisa D. Harjo, Indian Country: A History of Native People in America, Fulcrum Publishing, 350 Indiana Street, Suite 350, Golden, CO 80401. A survey of Native North American history, with lesson plans. Features excerpts from the writings of a number of contemporary Native American authors, including Ada Deer and N. Scott Momaday. Ages 12 up.

Hirschfelder, Arlene, Happily May I Walk: American Indians & Alaska Natives Today, Charles Scribner's Sons, 866 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10022. A well-illustrated account of native peoples today; serves to combat stereotypes. Ages 10 up.

Jones, Jayne Clark, The American Indian in America, two volumes, Lerner Publishing Co., 241 First Avenue North, Minneapolis, MN 55401. The first volume covers the period from prehistoric times to the late 18th century; the second volume covers the early 19th century to the present. Ages 12 up.

Katz, William Loren, Black Indians: A Hidden Heritage, Charles Scribner's Sons, 866 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10022. A history of the interaction between African Americans and American Indians. Ages 12 up.

Katz, William Loren, and Paula A. Franklin, Proudly Red & Black: Stories of African & Native Americans, Macmillan Publishing Co., Atheneum division, 866 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10022. Brief biographies of six diverse people who had both African American and Native American heritage. Ages 12 up.

Kerber, Jordan E., Native American Culture: Tribal Law, Rourke Publications, Inc., Vero Beach, FL 32964. Describes the traditional tribal legal systems in each culture area of North America. Ages 12 up.

Konig, Hans, Columbus: His Enterprise, and The Conquest of America: How the Indian Nations Lost Their Continent, both from Monthly Review Press, 122 West 17th Street, NY, NY 10001. The first book serves to counteract the popular myths about Columbus and his voyages. It describes the fate of the native peoples he encountered. The 1991 edition includes an afterword for teachers by social studies teacher Bill Bigelow. The second book provides an account of the ongoing war waged by Europeans against the native peoples of the Americas in the five centuries after Columbus arrived. Has a useful bibliography. Ages 12 up.

McCall, Barbara, Native American Culture: The European Invasion, Rourke Publications, Inc., Vero Beach, FL 32964. An account of the European invasion of North America. Ages 12 up.

Ortiz, Simon J., The People Shall Continue, Children's Book Press, 1461 Ninth Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94122. A brief account of Native North American history seen from a native perspective. Ages 6 up.

Rand McNally Children's Atlas of Native Americans, Rand McNally & Co., P.O. Box 7600, Chicago, IL 60680. Includes native peoples of North, Central, and South America; many maps and illustrations, most in color. Ages 10 up.

St. John, Jetty, Native American Scientists, Capstone Press, 818 North Willow Street, Mankato, MN 56001. Brief biographies of five Native American scientists of today. Ages 8 - 12.

Viola, Herman J., After Columbus: The Horse's Return to America, Trudy Management Corp., Soundprints division, 165 Water Street, Norwalk, CT 06856. Describes the importance of horses in Indian life after their reintroduction to America. Ages 6 - 12.

Waldman, Carl, Timelines of Native American History, illustrated by Molly Braun, Prentice Hall General Reference, 15 Columbus Circle, New York, NY 10023. A well-illustrated fold-out timeline including important events in native history from 1492 to 1990. Includes maps of the culture areas of North America. Any age.

Wood, Leigh, Native American Culture: Child Rearing, Rourke Publications, Inc., Vero Beach, FL 32964. Describes traditional Native North American child rearing methods. Ages 12 up.

Books: History & Culture; Specific Peoples

Benton-Benai, Edward, The Mishomis Book: The Voice of the Ojibway, The Red School House, 643 Virginia Street, St. Paul, MN 55102. Ojibway life and beliefs, described by an Ojibway. Ages 12 up.

Blood, Charles, & Martin Link, The Goat in the Rug, by Geraldine, illustrated by Nancy Winslow Parker, Macmillan Publishing Co., 866 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10022. Geraldine, a goat, describes each step as she and her Navajo friend make a rug. Ages 4 - 8.

Cornelius, Carol, The Six Nations Series: Student's Guide, American Indian Program, Cornell University, 300 Caldwell, Ithaca, NY 14853. Includes sections on each of the Six Nations. Ages 12 up. Teacher's guide available.

Defrates, Joanna, What Do We Know About the Aztecs?, Peter Bedrick Books, distributed by Publishers Group West, 4065 Hollis Avenue, Emeryville, CA 94608. A well-illustrated introduction to Aztec life and culture. Ages 8 up.

Dennee, JoAnne, with Jack Peduzzi & Julia Hand, In the Three Sisters Garden, illustrated by Carolyn Peduzzi, Common Roots Press, Food Works, 64 Main Street, Montpelier, VT 05602. Stories & projects based on the traditional gardening methods of the Abenaki and Six Nations (Iroquois) peoples. Ages 5 - 9.

Eames-Sheavly, Marcia, The Three Sisters: Exploring an Iroquois Garden, Cornell Cooperative Extension, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853. A wealth of information on Six Nations food and agriculture. Ages 12 up.

Finley, Carol, Art of the Far North: Inuit Sculpture, Drawing, & Printmaking, Lerner Publications Company, 241 First Avenue North, Minneapolis, MN 55401. Uses the arts of the people to focus on their traditional life and worldview. Ages 10 and up.

Harrington, M.R., The Indians of New Jersey: Dickon Among the Lenapes, and The Iroquois Trail, both from Rutgers University Press, 30 College Avenue, New Brunswick, NJ 08903. In the first book, traditional Lenape life is described by a fictional shipwrecked English boy of the early 17th Century. In the sequel, the same boy learns about the Iroquois. Ages 12 up.

Kraft, Herbert C., The Lenape Indians of New Jersey, and The Indians of Lenapehoking, both from Seton Hall University Museum, South Orange, NJ 07079. Two accounts of the culture and history of the Lenape or Delaware people, both well illustrated with line drawings. The first book is aimed at ages 8 - 12; the second, 12 up.

Kroeber, Theodora, Ishi, Last of his Tribe, Bantam Books, 666 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10019. The story of Ishi, the last surviving member of the Yahi tribe of California. Ages l0 up. (The author also wrote the adult book Ishi in Two Worlds, University of California Press, Berkeley.)

Pitkänen, Matti A., with Ritva Lehtinen & Kari E. Nurmi, The Grandchildren of the Incas, Carolhoda Books/First Avenue Editions, 241 First Avenue North, Minneapolis, MN 55401. Describes the present-day life of the Quechua people of Peru and Bolivia. Well illustrated with color photographs. Ages 10 up.

Sandoz, Mari, These Were the Sioux, University of Nebraska Press, 312 North 14th Street, Lincoln, NE 68588. Provides an excellent glimpse into Sioux life and worldviews. Suitable for adults and older children.

Sekaquaptewa, Emory & Barbara Pepper, translators and editors, Coyote & Little Turtle by Herschel Talashoema, and Coyote & the Winnowing Birds by Eugene Sekaquaptewa, Clear Light Publishers, 823 Don Diego, Santa Fe, NM 87501. Two traditional Hopi stories with the text in Hopi as well as English. The books are illustrated with art by Hopi children. Developed by IPOLA, the Institute for the Preservation of the Original Languages of the Americas.

Senungetuk, Vivian, Wise Words of Paul Tiulana: An Inupiat Alaskan’s Life, Franklin Watts, Inc., 95 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016. An excellent picture of traditional Inupiat life is provided by Paul Tiulana’s story of his life. He lived from 1921 to 1994, and told his story at age 65. Ages 10 and up.

Wesche, Alice M., Runs Far: Son of the Chichimecs, Museum of New Mexico Press, P.O. Box 2087, Santa Fe, NM 87501. This adventure story provides an accurate picture of life among the Chichimec Indians in northern Mexico, circa 1200 A.D. Ages 9 up.

Real Child Books

All of these books are about real, present-day Native American people (each book focuses on a child or children, unless otherwise noted). All of them are well illustrated with color photographs.

Ancona, George, Earth Daugther: Alicia of Acoma Pueblo, Simon & Schuster, 1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020, and Powwow, Harcourt Brace & Co. 1250 Sixth Avenue, San Diego, CA 92101. Also Pablo Remembers: The Fiesta of the Day of the Dead, Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books, 1350 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10019.

Brown, Tricia, Children of the Midnight Sun: Young Native Voices of Alaska, Alaska Northwest Books, Graphic Arts Center Publishing Co., P.O. Box 10306, Portland, OR 97296. Photos by Roy Corral.

Crum, Robert, Eagle Drum: On the Powwow Trail with a Young Grass Dancer, Four Winds Press, Macmillan Publishing Co., 866 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10022.

Dennis, Yvonne Wakim, & Arlene Hirschfelder, Children of Native America Today, SHAKTI for Children, The Global Fund for Children, 1101 14th Street NW, Suite 910, Washington, DC. Forward by Buffy Sainte-Marie.

Hazen-Hammond, Susan, Thunder Bear & Ko: The Buffalo Nation & Nambe Pueblo, Dutton Children's Books, 345 Hudson Street, New York, NY 10014.

Hoyt-Goldsmith, Diane, Apache Rodeo, Pueblo Storyteller, Arctic Hunter, and Totem Pole, with photographs by Lawrence Migdale. All four are from Holiday House, 425 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10017.

Hucko, Bruce, Where There Is No Name for Art: The Art of Tewa Pueblo Children, School of American Research Press, P.O. Box 2188, Santa Fe, NM 87504. Presents the art and voices of the children of Santa Clara, San Ildefonso, San Juan, Pojoaque, and Nambé Pueblos.

Keegan, Marcia, Pueblo Boy: Growing Up in Two Worlds, Cobblehill Books/Dutton, 375 Hudson Street, New York, NY 10014, and Pueblo Girls: Growing Up in Two Worlds, Clear Light Publishers, 823 Don Diego, Santa Fe, NM 87501.

Krull, Kathleen, One Nation, Many Tribes: How Kids Live in Milwaukee's Indian Community, with photographs by David Hautzig, Lodestar Books/Dutton, 375 Hudson Street, New York, NY 10014.

Rendon, Marcie R., Powwow Summer: A Family Celebrates the Circle of Life, with photographs by Cheryl Walsh Bellville, Carolrhoda Books, The Learner Group, 241 Fifth Avenue North, Minneapolis, MN 55401.

Secakuku, Susan, Meet Mindy: A Native Girl of the Southwest, with photographs by John Harrington. National Museum of the American Indian / Smithsonian Institution with Beyond Words Publishing, 20827 NW Cornell Road, Suite 500, Hillsboro, OR 97124.

Solá, Michele, Angela Weaves a Dream: The Story of a Young Maya Artist, with photographs by Jeffrey Jay Fox. Hyperion Press,114 5th Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10011.

Tayac, Gabrielle, Meet Naiche: A Native Boy from the Chesapeake Bay Area, with photographs by John Harrington. National Museum of the American Indian / Smithsonian Institution with Beyond Words Publishing, 20827 NW Cornell Road, Suite 500, Hillsboro, OR 97124.

Thompson, Peggy, Katie Henio: Navajo Sheepherder, with photographs by Paul Conklin, Cobblehill Books/Dutton, 374 Hudson Street, New York, NY 10014. This one's about a grownup.

Wood, Ted, with Wanbli Numpa Afraid of Hawk, A Boy Becomes a Man at Wounded Knee (about a young Oglala boy's experiences on the 1990 Big Foot Memorial Ride), and Spirit of the Maya: A Boy Explores His People's Mysterious Past, both from Walker & Co., 720 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10019

We Are Still Here: Native Americans Today, a series from Lerner Publications Co., 241 First Avenue North, Minneapolis, MN 55401.

    Children of Clay: A Family of Pueblo Potters

    Clambake: A Wampanoag Tradition

    Ininatig's Gift of Sugar: Traditional Native Sugar-making

    Kinaaldá: A Navajo Girl Grows Up (About a Navajo girl's coming-of-age ceremony.)

    The Sacred Harvest: Ojibway Wild Rice Gathering

    Shannon: An Ojibway Dancer

    Songs from the Loom: A Navajo Girl Learns to Weave.

Tales of the People Series

Tales of the People, a series of books for children written and illustrated by Native Americans. National Museum of the American Indian / Smithsonian Institution with Abbeville Press, 22 Cortland Street, New York, NY 10007. Each book includes information about the Indian nation the legend is from. Ages 4 and up.  <http://www.nmai.si.edu/subpage.cfm?subpage=shop&second=books>

Dawavendewa, Gerald (story and illustrations), The Butterfly Dance. Sihumana, a Hopi girl whose name means Flower Maiden, tells the reader about the Butterfly Dance.

Medicine Crow, Joe, Brave Wolf & the Thunderbird, illustrated by Linda R. Martin. How Brave Wolf saved Thunderbird's chicks from a monster.

de Montaño, Marty Kreipe, Coyote in Love with a Star, illustrated by Tom Coffin. In this story, Coyote the trickster comes to New York City to look for a good job. One night, on top of the World Trade Center, he notices a star more beautiful then all the others.

Williams, Maria, How Raven Stole the Sun, illustrated by Felix Vigil. A traditional Tlingit story in which the trickster Raven sets out to steal the sun.

 

Prepared by the Resource Center, National Museum of the American Indian,
in cooperation with the Public Inquiry Mail and Telephone Information Services,
Smithsonian Institution

02/04

 

 
 


NOTE: This publication can be made available in Braille or audio cassette. To obtain a copy in one of these formats, please call or write :
Smithsonian Information
PO Box 37012
SI Building, Room 153, MRC 010
Washington, DC 20013-7012
202.633.1000 (voice); 202.633.5285 (TTY)
e-mail: info@si.edu
(Please provide postal address.)

 
Contacts | FAQ | Press Room | Privacy | Terms of Use
Top  Top