This is an imperfect book, and yet it is absolutely extraordinary. Truer has given us the history of America's indigenous people, attempting with admirable success to tell the stories of many different nations, as impacted by European imperialism. The majority of what is here is history I never learned, and I am someone who has actively tried to gain this knowledge. Of course its a series of terrible tales, more shameful than I could have imagined. As far as I know the material in this book has never been taught to a single American schoolchild. (I do have a couple friends who went to rez schools, and I will need to ask them if they knew all of this.) Every American should be taught this history, it is essential to understanding America. With this book Treuer seeks to change the narrative of Indians as victims, a narrative with its popular genesis in Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee. Instead Treuer tells us the story of resilient peoples. Indians who faced unimaginable violence and oppression and soldiered on.

To create this narrative of resilience Treuer blends history with memoir, social science, modern oral history, and political philosophy. While I understand his choice, in my opinion Treuer tries to do too much, and it makes it hard to follow the book in parts. As a reader I found I wanted more history, and suddenly I was listening to the personal stories of modern Indians. Again, I get that these modern stories illustrate the costs of the history described, and the power and resillience of communities who have had their land stolen, their citizens murdered, and their good faith mocked for hundreds of years. Still, I think this approach muddied everything, this should have been two books. Still, it was a perspective changing read which I know I will reread. It turns out to be one of the best reads of the year for me, but if it had been streamlined I think it would have been on my best ever reads list.

19th-21st century history, incorporating elements of memoir/personal essay that add immediacy rather than distract, IMO.

In just over 450 pages, Treuer recounts the modern history, both triumphant and tragic, of the many people and cultures that make up Native America. The writing is fantastic, and the dense history-rich portions are interspersed with engaging anecdotes that add depth to the discussion of historical events. I think this is a must-read for anybody interested in the culture and history of America, especially through the 20th century.

Phenomenal. David Treuer gives a history of American Indians & the US and carries it to modern day. He explains the relationships between the two at the founding of the US are still fundamental questions we are grappling with today. That America is it’s relationship with Indian history and Indian present.

I especially love how he put people and faces to Native American history and current events. Treuer excels at shows how history and the telling of a story dictate our current relationship and future.

I learned so much; I need to go buy my own copy now because the library copy is covered in sticky notes. Something to read, ponder, and come back to.

How can I not know the things written here? As Anglo-Americans, we've been taught such lies and shaded stories. This book gives a different side, another heart-breaking view of all the evil done by Europeans when they arrived in America. I was fascinated to learn so much and horrified that I didn't know it.

While I would like to hand this book to everyone and say, "read this," it isn't an easy read. More like a history book than a personal narrative (of which I would have liked more), its long and detailed and takes some work to make it through. I could see Treuer's training in this book (anthropology PhD).

In the end, though, the readers who put in the time and effort will be rewarded with a fuller understanding of history, the present, and the future. Treuer waxes hopeful and forward looking, which is a great counterpoint to the horrors of history.

A difficult but important read.