Urban tribes Native Americans in the city

Review by Booklist Review

A total of 56 percent of Native Americans now live in urban settings, both in the U.S. and Canada. How do their lives differ from those who live on the Rez, and how connected are they to their roots? These are questions editors Charleyboy and Leatherdale address in their kaleidoscopic, if sometimes spotty, survey of urban Natives. Their answers are found in the interviews and profiles they feature of indigenous persons, 13 to 35, living and working in cities. Though urban Natives are no strangers to stereotyping and racism, the profiles included here work to demonstrate the happy truth of what one of the interviewees says: Being Aboriginal is so much more than being a victim. Occasionally the editors presume too much knowledge on the part of their readers. What, for example, is Idle No More? And what about #SpeakMikmaq? Or RBC? And the organization of the heavily illustrated material is not always obvious. Nevertheless, this is a useful survey of the lives and conditions of a wide variety of urban Natives.--Cart, Michael Copyright 2015 Booklist

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.

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Review by School Library Journal Review

Gr 7 Up-This sequel, of sorts, to Dreaming in Indian (Firefly, 2014) dispels stereotypes of what it means to be Indigenous in a postmillennial world. This compact book explodes with text and graphics that echo the lives of 40-plus Indigenous contributors, all of whom live in cities such as New York, Toronto, Los Angles, and Calgary and tell stories that are realistic, raw, and unique yet have a common theme: the undeniable connection to Indigenous ways of knowing, learning, and being. A variety of formats are presented, from prose, poetry, hashtags, and song lyrics to murals, mixed-media collages, and color and black-and-white photographs. The contributors are artists, actors, designers, innovators, scientists, researchers, writers, web surfers, hip-hop performers, teachers, parents, and middle, high school, and university students. All are activists who tell their amazing stories. Though the collection addresses difficult subjects, such as racism, stereotype, and suicide, a tone of hope runs through it. VERDICT A refreshingly authentic, edgy, and captivating work that will appeal to young people.-Naomi Caldwell, Alabama State University, Montgomery, AL © Copyright 2015. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

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Review by Kirkus Book Review

Dozens of young Native Americans who have made cities their homes offer glimpses of their lives, dreams, work, and attitudes toward themselves and others. It's a busy whirl of street art and portrait photos, testimonials, interviews, miniprofiles, tweets, poetry, statistics, pull quotes, and editorial commentary. There are some commonalities: nearly all of the contributors are Canadians, living (with a few exceptions) in Canadian cities, and many express a desire to live in the modern world without losing track of their tribal heritage and values. The relationship to that heritage varies. Russell Means' actor/activist son Tatanka writes of the importance of getting away from the rez, while two Saskatoon teenagers declare, "We hang out with both Native and Non-Native kids." Cree-Trinidadian Tasha Spillett embraces both "Ceremony" and elaborate ceremonial regalia, Din Roanna Shebala wryly offers the caustic lyric "Love You Some Indians," and, beyond issues of identity and assimilation, Cherokee doctor Adrienne Keene pens a passionate blog post in the wake of a Native student's suicide at Stanford. Whether or not the students, artists, professionals, and academics here are a true cross section of the rapidly growing Native American urban population, they are, as social organizer Jessica Balduc (Anishinaabe, Batchewana First Nation) puts it, "Edgewalkers," poised to work changes in the world. A stereotype-dispelling companion to Dreaming in Indian (2014). (bibliography) (Nonfiction. 12-18) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

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