The Handbook of Native American Literature is a unique, comprehensive, and authoritative guide to the oral and written literatures of Native Americans. It lays the perfect foundation for understanding the works of Native American writers.
Divided into three major sections, Native American Oral Literatures, The Historical Emergence of Native American Writing, and A Native American Renaissance: 1967 to the Present, it includes 22 lengthy essays, written by scholars of the Association for the Study of American Indian Literatures. The book features reports on the oral traditions of various tribes and topics such as the relation of the Bible, dreams, oratory, humor, autobiography, and federal land policies to Native American literature. Eight additional essays cover teaching Native American literature, new fiction, new theater, and other important topics, and there are bio-critical essays on more than 40 writers ranging from William Apes (who in the early 19th century denounced white society's treatment of his people) to contemporary poet Ray Young Bear.
Packed with information that was once scattered and scarce, the Handbook of Native American Literature -a valuable one-volume resource-is sure to appeal to everyone interested in Native American history, culture, and literature.
Previously published in cloth as The Dictionary of Native American Literature
Biography
Andrew Wiget Associate Professor of English at New Mexico University, resides in Las Cruces, New Mexico.
"Provides a fine selection of insights essential to any college-level study." -- The Bookwatch
"This work is an excellent orientation study for readers and students of Native American literature." -- Library Journal
"This will be a welcome addition to the collection. This is one of those must-have handbooks for all collections where research in American literature and units on native Americans are part of the curriculum." -- VOYA
"This handsome volume is an invaluable resource for scholars, teachers, and general readers of Native American literature."
"Provides a useful bridge to the tribal literatures. It enables readers to cross disciplinary borders and to reframe paths of knowledge so that they might acknowledge the complexity and importance of Native American literatures." -- Chronicles of Oklahoma
