It may be hard for some of you to imagine, but long before the Mayflower sailed from Europe to the New World, Native Americans had already been living in the vast wilderness we now know as the United States. Different tribes and clans, each with their own traditions and beliefs, had established communities stretching from what is now Alaska, through Canada, the U.S. mainland and Mexico. You may be familiar with such tribe names as Cherokee, Navajo, Sioux, Iroquois and Inuit.

As more white people began to explore and settle the United States, the Native Americans were forced to give up their land and, in many cases, their way of life. Sadly, many people of that time (the mid-to-late 1800s) were not as sensitive as they should have been to the Native Americans. Today many Native Americans live on reservations where they strive to preserve their culture.

November has officially been declared American Indian Heritage Month, and so in celebration we put together a HUGE round-up of books by and about Native Americans. Now you can take a closer look at what these native peoples were (and are) like in our round-up of Native American books. From fiction to poetry and traditional folklore to contemporary photo essays, you'll read about Native American beliefs, celebrations, art forms, food and day-to-day life.

But no matter which books you choose, we hope you'll enjoy visiting this beautiful, important culture.

   --- Shannon Maughan

MY HEART IS ON THE GROUND: The Diary of Nannie Little Rose, a Sioux Girl, Carlisle Indiana School, Pennsylvania, 1880
by Ann Rinaldi
Scholastic
ISBN: 0590149229
Ages 9-12
205 pages

TOUCHING SPIRIT BEAR
by Ben Mikaelsen
HarperCollins
ISBN: 0380977443
Ages 10-up
241 pages

RAIN IS NOT MY INDIAN NAME
by Cynthia Leitich Smith
HarperCollins
ISBN: 0688173977
Ages 10-14
144 pages

THE GIRL WHO CHASED AWAY SORROW: The Diary of Sarah Nita, a Navajo Girl, New Mexico
by Ann Warren Turner
Scholastic
ISBN: 0590972162
Ages 9-12

THE JOURNAL OF JESSE SMOKE: A Cherokee Boy, The Trail of Tears, 1838
by Joseph Bruchac
Scholastic Trade
ISBN: 0439121973
Ages 9-12

Check out even more great book on Native Americans!

• THE BEADED MOCCASINS: The Story of Mary Campbell by Lynda Durrant
  
  
• BETWEEN EARTH & SKY: Legends of Native American Sacred Places by Joseph Bruchac
  
  
• THE BIRCHBARK HOUSE by Louise Erdrich
  
  
• CROW CHIEF: A Plains Indian Tale by Paul Goble
  
  
• DAILY LIFE IN A PLAINS INDIAN VILLAGE 1868 by Michael Bad Hand Terry
  
  
• DANCING TEEPEES: Poems of American Indian Youth by Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve
  
  
• ENCHANTED RUNNER by Kimberley Griffiths Little
  
  
• GIFT HORSE: A Lakota Story by S.D. Nelson
  
  
• GIRL OF THE SHINING MOUNTAINS: Sacagawea's Story by Peter and Connie Roop
  
  
• HOW RABBIT TRICKED OTTER: And Other Cherokee Animal Stories (Audio) performed by Gayle Ross
  
  
• I'M IN CHARGE OF CELEBRATIONS by Byrd Baylor
  
  
• INDIAN CAPTIVE: The Story of Mary Jemison by Lois Lenski
  
  
• INDIAN CHIEFS by Russell Freedman
  
  
• THE INDIAN SCHOOL by Gloria Whelan
  
  
• INDIAN SCHOOL: Teaching the White Man's Way by Michael L. Cooper
  
  
• A JOURNEY TO THE NEW WORLD: The Diary Of Remember Patience Whipple by Kathryn Lasky
  
  
• JULIE OF THE WOLVES by Jean Craighead George
  
  
• KNOTS ON A COUNTING ROPE by Bill Martin and John Archembault
  
  
• LIGHTNING INSIDE YOU: And Other Native American Riddles edited by John Bierhorst
  
  
• MY LAND SINGS: Stories from the Rio Grande by Rudolfo Anaya
  
  
• SPIRIT OF THE WEST by Jahnna M. Malcolm
  
  

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