The Zunis (First Book)

Examines the history, religion, social structure, and daily life of the Zuni Indians, one of the groups of Pueblo Indians living in New Mexico

Grade 6-8-What should be a fascinating and informative history and description of the Zuni is marred by stiff and, at times, disjointed writing. The excellent-quality, full-color photographs and black-and-white illustrations are attractive, but some of their captions are vague and potentially confusing. The one map is colorful but of little use to readers: Chaco Canyon, an important geographical area for this tribe, is not shown; however, six branches of the Apache tribe are noted-though they are not mentioned in the text. The authors do cite Thomas Canby's piece on "The Anasazi" (National Geographic, Nov., 1982), which has excellent coverage of the subject and is frequently available at garage sales for a quarter.
George Gleason, Department of English, Southwest Missouri State University, Springfield
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.