30 Books by Native/Indigenous Authors
What happens when you read 30 books by indigenous/native authors? You want more.
That was my goal for this year, and although I just completed the challenge, my Goodreads queue is still going so I’m going to keep bulk requesting books from the library.
I read many genres by native writers: memoirs, poetry, history, fiction, fantasy. The authors ranged in ages and genders and no two books were quite alike.
This challenge made me revaluate my owner attitude. I’m not entitled to anything. Including the delusion that reading these books might have made me any type of expert.
A pattern I picked up on is that these books embraced a spirit of collective responsibility. They inspired me to be a better contributor to my community.
Reading 30 books by native authors also reinforced that words like powwow, chief, and tribe are not mine to use.
In this reading challenge I was exposed to American history that wasn’t covered in public schools, such as the very recent termination policy dismantling tribal sovereignty, and Alcatraz being occupied by Native Americans for 19 months from 1969-71. I also learned that the American Indian Movement (AIM) should be studied alongside the Civil Rights Movement.
It’s a travesty that indigenous fantasy isn’t more prominent amongst fantasy audiences because native folk tales go hand-in-hand with epic and magical world-building. Indigenous authors need to be winning more Hugo and Nebula Awards.
Here is the list of works that I read by native authors this year. I’ll be adding to this list for the rest of 2023.
Firekeeper’s Daughter - Angeline Boulley
Apple: Skin to the Core - Eric Gansworth
Winter Counts - David Heska Wanbli Weiden
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian - Sherman Alexie
Indian Horse: A Novel - Richard Wagamese
A History of My Brief Body - Billy-Ray Belcourt
Hunting by Stars - Cherie Dimaline
A Snake Falls to Earth - Darcie Little Badger
Feed - Tommy Pico
The Marrow Thieves - Cherie Dimaline
Noopiming - Leanne Betasamosake Simpson
Girl Gone Missing - Marcie R. Rendon
A Girl Called Echo Vol. 2 - Katherena Vermette
A Girl Called Echo Vol. 1 - Katherena Vermette
Sinister Graves - Marcie R. Rendon
Where The Dead Sit Talking - Brandon Hobson
The Road Back to Sweetgrass - Linda LeGarde Grover
Winter in the Blood - James Welch
Bad Cree - Jessica Johns
Son of a Trickster - Eden Robinson
Almanac of the Dead - Leslie Marmon Silko
Once Were Warriors - Alan Duff
Murder on the Red River - Marcie R. Rendon
White Horse - Erika T. Wurth
The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee - David Treuer
Too Much Lip - Melissa Lucashenko
Trail of Lightning - Rebecca Roanhorse
The Things She’s Seen - Ambelin Kwaymullina
The Only Good Indians - Stephen Graham Jones
Elatsoe - Darcie Little Badger (this was my favorite!!!)
