1.Sherman Joseph Alexie, Jr.
Sherman Alexie is one of the most famous Native American writers alive today. Alexie was brought up on the Spokane Indian Reservation and suffered numerous hardships in his childhood. Alexie had to undergo surgery when he was only 6-months old due to excess fluid in his brain. He also had to deal with an alcoholic father.After years of struggle to find his voice, Alexie broke onto the American literary scene in 1993 with the publication of The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven. Most people describe this as a collection of short stories, but since all of the stories feature the same characters, some critics think it more appropriate to call this work a novel. Whether you call it a short story collection or a novel, this book has been hailed as a masterpiece of modern Native American literature.
Alexie uses various techniques such as surreal imagery, flashback, and poetic verses to explore the issues of Native Americans in present-day America. If you want to introduce this great author to a younger reader, then you are in luck. Alexie wrote the wonderful young adult novel called The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian in 2003.
2.James Welch
James Welch was a very prominent author in the so-called Native American Renaissance, which began in the 1960s. He was born and raised in Montana, where he witnessed first-hand the rich heritage of the Blackfeet tribe.His best-known novel is Fools Crow, which was published in 1986. This novel of historical fiction tells the story of Blackfeet men in the 1800s who are challenged by white imperialists. Welch’s poetry has also been hailed by many for its vivid imagery. Interestingly, Welch’s work is much more popular in Europe than in America. Indeed, the French so loved Welch that they gave him many honorific awards before his passing in 2003.
3.Eden Robinson
Another powerful female Native American voice is Eden Robinson. Robinson was born in British Columbia to parents in the Haisla and Heiltsuk First Nations.
Robinson’s first work is Traplines, a short story collection that was published in 1995, but she is better known for Monkey Beach, her second novel. This novel tells the tale of Lisamarie, a young girl of the Haisla people, who investigates the mysterious death of her brother at sea. Robinson effectively ties together many different genres in this spellbinding piece. She also deftly incorporates traditional Haisla mysticism into this novel. Robinson’s work reminds us of the rich aboriginal cultures that flourished in what we now know as Canada.
Listen to Eden Robinson in her own words as she reads from “The Sasquatch at Home”:
4.Janet Campbell Hale
Janet Hale draws on her experiences at the Coeur d’Alene Reservation in Idaho for much of her work.
Her breakthrough novel is entitled The Jailing of Cecilia Capture. This novel, which tell the story of a young Native American student who is arrested for drunk driving, is an exemplary work for anyone who wants to better understand the experience of a modern Native American woman. Hale’s tight prose and unabashed honesty have earned her a respected place in the annals of modern Native American literature.
5.Barney Bush
Many people know Barney Bush for his political activism in the 1960s and onwards. Bush was a prominent member of the American Indian Movement and is responsible for forming the Institute of the Southern Plains in Oklahoma.
Bush’s political achievements are so great that they sometimes overshadow his wonderful poetry. A few of the books of poetry Bush published include Inherit the Blood, My Horse and a Jukebox, and Petroglyphs. Because Bush was keen to preserve the oral transmission of texts so central to many Native American traditions, many of his poems have also been released in audio format.
Listen to his deeply moving poem, “Lady Liberty: The Indictment”:
