Young Adults Books

THE SOUL OF AN INDIAN, AND OTHER WRITINGS FROM OHIYESA (CHARLES ALEXANDER EASTMAN), edited by Kent Nerburn, Ph.D. New World Library, 58 Paul Drive, San Rafael, CA 94903, (800) 227-3900, (800) 632-2122 in California, (415) 472-6131 FAX. 128 pp., $12.95 cloth. 1-880032-23-6

"...the God of the civilized and the God of the primitive, is after all the same God; and that this God does not measure our differences, but embraces all who live rightly and humbly on the earth." -- Ohiyesa

This is also an adult book that covers topics many older teens are interested in.

Ohiyesa, a Santee Dakota, lived a frustrated life in both the Native and white worlds. As a child, Ohiyesa was educated in the traditional teachings. His father, however, saw the Native way of live being extinguished and sent him to Dartmouth and Boston University to learn medicine. The student changed his name to Charles Alexander Eastman. After experiencing the corruption of Indian agents upon his return to Pine Ridge, South Dakota, Eastman spent the rest of his life trying to bring Natives and whites to a greater understanding of each other. This small gift book contains short inspirational passages from Ohiyesa's writings, from the love of nature to the moral strength of women to the Indian sense of rightness and justice. This is an appropriate gift for an occasion where encouragement and strength are required. Reviewed by Steve Brock

You can download or read this on-line in the typo-laden large files of the University of Virginia's etext (for out-of-copyright) book project. I disagree with Brock's contention that Ohiyesa's life was frustrated in either world. He livd a life of great accomplishment, through his writings and his medical work. He was the only doctor available to the survivors of the Wounded Knee massacre in 1890, for example.

Add: Wigwam Evenings ($10)), Old Indian Days($9) both also available from AISES. All the books are available as on-line-readabl or downloadable etext. Memoris of an Indian Boyhood (Dover, $5). All but Memoirs of an Indian Boyhood are available from AISES.

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