Anton TreuerBesprekingen

This book was written as a resource for both Indians and non-Indians to use as an informational text while being entertained. It is filled with questions regarding Native American people and their lives which stem from stereotyping, lack of knowledge, historical misconceptions, and lack of truthful representation of Native American people. Treuer answers the questions throughout the book using Native humor to explain why while showing respect to fellow Natives and other Native nations. He uses his expertise and experience to aid understanding in an engaging way. I highly recommend this book to young adolescents and adults in every ethnic groups and in all professionals.

Glad I picked this up. It ended up being sort of a collateral read when I was researching book titles to focus on for a class project. I didn’t end up going with this title, but having it at home, and reading There There got me curious.
The author makes it clear from the beginning that he doesn’t speak for all Indians (American Indians). A lot of history he provides encompasses the experiences of more than one nation, and it provides a good intro/overview of important topics. I appreciated what he had to say and how he said it. This book was eye-opening and educational, and it’s given me a lot to think about. I’ve seen complaints in other reviews that it’s repetitive, but I was glad that he re-emphasized things and referred back to previous passages. As I get older, I worry about retaining the nonfiction I read, so his style worked well for me.
There’s a long list of recommended reading and viewing in the back of the book for those who want to dig deeper into individual issues. I think this would be great required reading for high schools across the country.

Extensively researched and explained

This book is such an impressive and complete documentation of the lives of Hole in the Day the Elder and the Younger. Franzoni (who wrote and produced “The Gladiator” and “Amistad”) will be making it into a major motion picture movie next year.

The book begins by telling about Hole in the Day, the father, and how he slowly came to power without having hereditary rights to do so. He was a charismatic speaker and a warrior. His death is concisely told. The next part of the book tells about how Hole in the Day the Younger quickly assumed his father’s role to help his people. The last part of the book, after his assassination, explains how difficult life became for those left behind — and why. It explains why the assassination was such a mystery for so long. Treuer pieces it all together for the reader.

I saw Dr. Treuer speak in Grand Marais, MN. I wanted to read this book after meeting him.
He is an excellent speaker and writer.
A quote from the book:
"Many tribal languages were never written. Why do they write them now? At one point in time, white people never used cars, so why do they use them now?"
He says we need to confront our collective past, historical trauma, and inequities.
The format of giving answers to commonly stated questions makes the reading clear and meaningful. Very informative.

The ins and outs of establishing Native language programs

Half of the Native kids in America do not even finish high school. Half. The system is not working. Dr. Anton Treuer has vast experience and advice for those wishing to improve education for this population of children by explaining how learning their own native languages can improve the situation. The students and their communities find better mental, physical, and spiritual health when language is used as a tool and is immersed in all subject areas. According to Treuer,

“Bilingualism in particular predictably enhances academic achievement and cognitive function. Kids develop faster in both languages if they are bilingual.”

He seeks to transform the nature of Native power entirely. Treuer takes groups to Hawaii to study how the Maori and Hawaiians have revitalized their languages. It began with day-care and early childhood programs, and is a decades long plan. Treuer understands the educational system well and has included many helpful resources and agencies.

RGG: More of a reference text. Use the Table of Contents more than the index.

In Native American Ojibwe language with English translation.

Does what it says on the tin, really, with the book set up with frequently asked questions (asked of Treuer at his speaking engagements, I gather) and his considered answers, grouped into chapters by theme. Very occasionally a little dry, but mostly fascinating, well-written, and wonderfully educational. My only quibble would be that sometimes I knew so little that I didn't even understand the questions, and I think in almost every instance Treuer could have eliminated resulting confusions with one or two sentences of simple explanation before going into his lengthier, detailed answers. Recommended.

This book is a primer of sorts, aimed at helping white Americans to "understand, rather than imagine" their native fellow citizens. Presented in a Q & A format, based on the author's public appearances with the same goal, it is easy to take it in small bites for better processing. Although it did not really tell me everything I'd like to know about Native American culture and history (there are at least 50 books in my catalog tagged "Native American" and reading ALL of those would not fulfill that need), it is a good jumping off place for further reading. It covers a lot of ground in a generalized way, from the arrival of Europeans on the North American Continent to the politics of the reservation in the 21st century, and offers a suggested reading list for deeper exploration of what it means to be Indian.

This book attempts to begin dismantling our society's misunderstandings and stereotypes of Native American people and their culture by addressing questions that are common, controversial and unexpected. One can read the book straight through or skip around to find questions and responses that interest them. The questions are divided into sections such as culture, politics, powwow and social activism. The author addresses concerns and history of both Native Americans and Canada's First Nations, including the differing ways their federal governments have treated them. He discusses more about the tribes of Wisconsin and Minnesota (he lives and teaches in Minnesota) and larger, better-known tribes such as the Pueblo and Navajo. But no matter what traditional lands you live on, you will be schooled and hopefully inspired to pursue more knowledge about indigenous people as presented by indigenous people. Sample questions to draw you in: Is there something wrong with saying that my great-grandmother was a Cherokee princess? Why is there such a fuss about non-Native people wearing Indian costumes for Halloween? Where are the real Indians?

This is a very interesting book set up in a question and answer format, with major chapter headings of topics. I found the voice of Treuer to be persuasive and generally non-combative, although the Indians as a whole have quite a bit to complain and be angry about. I believe that Treuer's vision is one of mutual understanding, respect, and growth. There were some topics that Treuer persuaded me on, such as the retention of cultural customs, especially tribal language. I also was persuaded about naming, how it is important to consider and respect what a group prefers to be called. I also am thinking about the custom of sports teams that have Indian mascots and such. This is a complex situation, especially when there is divergence of opinion in the local tribes (for example, I understand that the Ute tribe is comfortable with the University of Utah using the Utes as their mascot).

It's a rare day when I get a review copy that hadn't even made it into the Goodreads database yet. I received access from the publisher Minnesota Historical Society Press through Edelweiss.

Dr. Treuer has written histories of the Ojibwe and this is a localized history of the efforts to revitalize and preserve the Ojibwe language (and culture.) He explains how he learned the language from first speakers and then purposed to pass it on. And, he explains in detail how he and others established an Ojibwe primary language environment. He also writes extensively on the lessons learned, hurdles to overcome (and how to do so), weaving in lessons from other language restoration efforts (Hawaiian being a prime example.)

Unfortunately, right after I finished this, I lost my iPad with all my notes. The book is well composed and well-written. I recommend this to anyone interested in First People languages (it's not a dictionary), First People, or even just language preservation.

Despite the 2013 release date, the author mentions multiple migrations from Asia once, but the graphic map on page 11 shows only 1 overland migration route from Asia. It doesn't mention coastal faring sailors as others have, even in the subsections on California or the Pacific Northwest.
The tribe by tribe breakdown is too little to be useful. Most are just 4 or 5 paragraphs. The 1st paragraph details language family and general region, the second relations with other Native groups and a sentence on some aspect and the last 2 or 3 whatever tragedies at the hands of Europeans. 12000 + years of history can be defined by the last 200.
There will be brief mentions of "unique clan structure" or "marvelous basket weaving" but there will be NOTHING else describing that clan structure or the basket techniques and materials. Was it women, men, or both who wove those baskets? Some tribes had a class structure or aristocracy. Very little will be learned except that it was present. You can read the whole California chapter and not encounter the words "chert" or "tule", or the concept of shell currency and only 1 (minor, passing) mention of "acorn" despite it being a foundation food.

His accounting of the Spanish Mission system is the most biased I have ever read. In this account, the missions existed solely to control and enslave the Natives despite volumes of documents showing concern for their well being from the Padres and the crown. It fails to mention how the Padres often stood up to secular authorities and fails to account how the secularization under the ranchos more than the missions enslaved and deprived Natives of their land and livelihoods. It also passes over the Indians' transition to cattle ranching and their contributions to American Western culture, folklore, and mythology.

I just finished 2 other books on California Indians and was "wowed" by what I read; both far more balanced in their narratives. I picked this up at a library sale and will probably donate it to another.

This whole book is informed by Marxist conflict theory sociology. Natives are always victims and whites always oppressors. Natives never violated a treaty unless they had a valid justification; whites never kept an agreement. Every white acted from evil moral impulses, every Native was noble.

This book is only useful as a reference for tribal locations and language families and a broad listing of the tribes by region. As a history, you'll learn only bits from the time of European colonization on.

Presented more or less as an FAQ, Treuer fills this slim volume with the genuinely curious, ignorant but well-meaning, and downright insulting questions he and other American Indians are asked constantly. From the most basic queries about preferred terminology and definitions to political and cultural inquiries requiring more complex responses, Treuer responds with honestly and with feeling. Having read a fair amount on the topic of Native Americans recently, including Treuer's own brother David's Rez Life, much of the content felt already familiar, though no less engaging or important.

Anton Treuer takes on a variety of questions that people outside of the American Indian / Native American community may be wondering but don't want to ask. He breaks it down by topic (terminology, politics, education, etc.) and in question-and-answer format takes on a variety of topics from "What terms are most appropriate in talking about North America's first people?" to "What's the real story about Columbus?" to casinos and language/culture.

As I think almost any book in a Q&A format will be, this is a mixed bag. Some questions and their answers were perfect - I was most interested in the terminology and history sections - some were things I already knew, and others were questions that I never would have thought to ask, or at least wouldn't have phrased in the way he does ("Do all Indians have drinking problems?" or "Why do Indians have so many kids?"). He states in the Introduction that, of course, he cannot speak for all Indians, some answers would be heavily influenced by the fact that he is most familiar with Ojibwe culture, and he sometimes will give his opinion. It was obvious when it was opinion, and it's obvious that keeping language and culture alive is really important to him. Which brings me to the next difficulty with the format, and that is the repetitive nature of it. Sometimes to fully answer a question - especially if a reader is picking up and reading only the sections most pressing to him/her - he had to repeat what he'd said in another one, and when he does so it's often verbatim or close to it.

Lastly, though he did a thorough job or including books and other resources to check out for more information and really good end notes, I was completely flummoxed by one issue. On page 138, he quotes the superintendent of a Pennsylvania boarding school for native children, Captain Richard Henry Pratt, as saying: "Our goal is to kill the Indian in order to save the man." Appalled by such a statement, I looked up the end note to find "Captain Richard Henry Pratt, as cited on Wikipedia." As a reference librarian who, admittedly, uses Wikipedia as a starting point, this really bothers me to see as the end note in a published text. I tested to see if I could get a more reputable source, and it's not hard: the Wikipedia entry now (I do want to note that the book was published in 2012 and looking at the Wikipedia entry today, the source is noted as accessed in 2014, so the entry has changed from when he looked) has a link to NPR that has a more thorough quote, with context, that is in fact worded "A great general has said that the only good Indian is a dead one, and that high sanction of his destruction has been an enormous factor in promoting Indian massacres. In a sense, I agree with the sentiment, but only in this: that all the Indian there is in the race should be dead. Kill the Indian in him, and save the man." This is from a speech in 1892, and it bothers me to know that with a little quick research I could find a better source than he did. Granted, it doesn't change the meaning behind it, but to include it in direct quotes and have it slightly off and cited by Wikipedia makes me just a little uneasy about taking his word for other answers, and giving this book a wholehearted recommendation without a caveat. Perhaps Everything You Wanted to Know about Indians But Were Afraid to Ask should be more of a starting point and introduction to the topic, but if you're really interested in more detail follow it up with more research and check his facts. It certainly covers a lot of topics broadly, and leaves you the resources to continue learning.½

The author did a fairly good job of answering questions about Indians. As someone who spends a lot of time around Navajos, it was interesting to read the perspective of these issues from someone from another tribe.