Navajo Long Walk : Tragic Story Of A Proud Peoples Forced March From Homeland - Hardcover

Bruchac, Joseph

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0792270584 ISBN 13: 9780792270584

Publisher: National Geographic Kids, 2002

Synopsis

Powerfully written from the perspective of the Navajos and illustrated with deeply personal interpretations of historic events, this book sheds fresh light on a shameful episode of American history.

About this title

About the Author

Joseph Bruchac is a writer and storyteller of Abenaki heritage who feels that his life’s work is sharing stories told to him by elders of various Native American peoples. Bruchac has been awarded Rockefeller Humanities and NEA Poetry fellowships and the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Native Writers Circle of the Americas. His more than 70 children’s books include Sacajawea: The Journal of Jesse Smoke, A Cherokee Boy on the Trail of Tears; and Native American Games and Stories, which he co-authored with his son, Jim. Bruchac lives in Greenfield Center, New York.

Reviews

Grade 5-7 As Bruchac states, this story is one of tragedy and triumph that all Americans should know. Here, he and Begay offer an introduction to it. The book opens in 1864 with the peaceful Navajo world shattered by events beyond its control. The author then explains the circumstances leading up to the forced relocation of Navajo people, and their eventual return to their homes and way of life in 1868. Both the full-color acrylic paintings and duotone watercolor pictures evoke a sense of hopelessness and doom. Ultimately, they show the strength of the Navajo nation. Throughout, Begay comments on his illustrations. Beside one depiction, he states, "I can feel the cold chill in the bones of these battered and subdued people living on the brink of nonexistence." While Native words such as Dook'o'oosl"d are explained in the text, there is no pronunciation guide. With large type and larger illustrations, this title has a picture-book look about it, but it is aimed at an audience with some knowledge of Navajo history. -Anne Chapman Callaghan, Racine Public Library, WI
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

"We were given two ears so that we may hear both sides of every story," notes Bruchac at the start of this detailed, sobering account of the Navajo people's forced relocationon footfrom their homelands in what is now Arizona to the Bosque Redondo Reservation in the New Mexico Territory between 1863 and 1865. Writing initially in the present tense, Bruchac imagines a group of Navajos gathered around an elder. Their "circle of peace" is shattered by the arrival of American soldiers and their allies, the Utes, who will force the Navajos to abandon their lands and the "path of balance and beauty" to embark instead on "a trail of suffering and loss." He then chronicles the events leading up to the Navajos' displacement, beginning with their embattled relationship with the Spanish settlers in the 16th century, and he describes the horrors of the so-called Long Walks (the people walked over 470 miles) and of the makeshift reservation. The author examines the roles of U.S. leaders, such as General Carleton, who "did not listen to the native side of the story," and explores the conditions that led to the closing of the reservation in 1868 and the signing of "the first fair treaty" between the Navajo people and the U.S. government. Begay's (The Magic of Spider Woman) paintings, rendered with acrylics on clay board in swirling brushstrokes, convey urgency and emotion. His art reaches a new level of accomplishment and his captions, explaining his use of symbols, will help youngsters interpret the cryptic moments in his work. Ages 8-12.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Gr. 4-8. In this large picture book for older children, Abenaki author Bruchac and Navajo artist Begay tell the story of the forced removal of the Navajo in the 1860s, when the U.S. government made them leave their homeland and walk 470 miles to a desolate reservation. The writing style is dull at times, but the facts are fascinating, and Bruchac does a fine job of filling in the history from the Navajos' viewpoint, not only the deadly marches but also the circumstances surrounding the uprooting, including the racism of the whites. Begay's pictures are stunning, and his eloquent captions will challenge readers to look closely. Full-color, double-page acrylic paintings with heavy brush strokes express the violence and suffering as soldiers storm where people live. Small, sepia-tone watercolor portraits show individuals close up. Together the words and pictures reveal not victims, but the strong community and culture that helped the Navajos survive atrocity and return home. Unfortunately, there are no sources at all, not even for direct quotes. Hazel Rochman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Edition details

• Publisher: National Geographic Kids
• Publication date: 2002
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0792270584
• ISBN 13: 9780792270584
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 64