Long overdue, recognition of Indigenous writing as a distinct category with a uniquely important perspective has been grown over the past 60 years. Permeating every genre, many Indigenous authors use their voices to reclaim their heritage, provide corrective historical context, celebrate traditions, and demonstrate how native identity affects contemporary life.
For this month, I wanted to share some titles that demonstrate the breadth and abundance of Indigenous voices available today. For the sake of brevity, I have focused on current Native American fiction.
![]() | Flight - Sherman Alexie
A bildungsroman about a time-travelling orphan who embodies an FBI agent during the civil rights era, a child at the Battle of Little Bighorn, a 19th-century tracker, and a modern airline pilot. |
| Coexistence - Billy-Ray Belcourt
A debut short story collection that depicts a range of indigenous characters, celebrating different aspects of modern Native life. |
| To Shape a Dragon's Breath - Moniquill Blackgoose
Fantasy series about a young Indigenous woman whose unique bond with a hatchling dragon grants her entry to an elite dragon academy run by hostile colonizers. |
| And Then She Fell - Alicia Elliott
A new mother struggles with postpartum and antagonistic neighbors, believing her survival depends on her finish writing a retelling of a creation story from her Mohawk culture. |
| Antelope Woman - Louise Erdrich
A white man underestimates the power of the seductive Ojibwe woman he has abducted, and his descendants inherit the chaos wrought by the mysterious Antelope Woman. |
| Never Whistle at Night - Shane Hawk and Theodore C. Van Alst Jr. (eds.)
A chilling collection of stories that illustrate the reputed consequences of this typically harmless activity based on the dark lore of various indigenous cultures. |
| The Removed - Brandon Hobson
A novel steeped in Cherokee history and myth about a family grappling with the memorial for their son as the boundary with the spirit world begins to erode. |
| Calling for a Blanket Dance - Oscar Hokeah
Multigenerational voices form the story of a young Native American man whose rage is ignited by the injustices and misfortune suffered by his whole family. |
| The Buffalo Buffalo Hunter - Stephen Graham Jones
A hidden diary contains interviews with a Blackfeet Indian who explains his unnaturally long life, his experiences during a long-ago massacre, and his plot for revenge. |
| Blood Sisters - Vanessa Lillie
An archeologist with the bureau of Indian Affairs is called in to investigate a string of missing Indigenous women-including her own sister who disappeared 15 years ago. |
| Sisters of the Lost Nation - Nick Medina
An ancient tribal myth comes to life as a young Native girl is haunted by an evil entity as she investigates the disappearance of women from her reservation. |
| There There - Tommy Orange
Follows 12 characters whose voices embody the plight of modern urban Native Americans and whose attendance at a climactic event reveals their true connection. |
| The Berry Pickers - Amanda Peters
The youngest child taken from her Mi'kmaq family she grows up plagued by visions suggesting that her parents are keeping her true identity a secret. |
| A Council of Dolls - Mona Susan Power
Historical fiction that tells the stories of three women - told through the dolls they carried - that illuminates the lasting damage wrought by Indian boarding schools. |
| Where They Last Saw Her - Marcie R. Rendon
A Native American woman decides to investigate the disappearance of women from her reservation and faces opposition from the people who are supposed to help. |
| Fevered Star - Rebecca Roanhorse
A city is threatened by a comet, heralding a change of leadership and unexpected alliances in a war spreading from the heavens to Earth. |
| Night of the Living Rez - Morgan Talty
Twelve stories about what it means to be Penobscot in the 21st century, examining the merits and consequences of inheritance. |
| Buffalo is the New Buffalo - Chelsea Vowel
Alternate reality from a Metis perspective imagining the employment of ancestral beliefs and tribal lore to combat colonization. |
![]() | Moon of the Crusted Snow - Waubgeshig Rice
Post-apocalyptic novel in which a group of friends turn to the land and Anishinaabe tradition for survival when the sun suddenly goes dark. |
| White Horse - Erika T. Wurth
An Indigenous woman unearths past truths about her family while battling her mother's spirit and a dark entity haunting her. |
Summaries sourced from publisher's materials.
My 2 Cents - November Review
![]() | Don't Fear the Reaper - Stephen Graham Jones |
DVDs in Our Collection:
Smoke Signals
Indian Horse
Dark Winds
Reservation Dogs
Killers of the Flower Moon
Hop on the Holds List
The Murder Trial – James Patterson
Threshing Day – Rebecca Yarros
Hollywood, Ending – John Green
A Court of Forgotten Melody – Sarah J. Maas
Quote of the Month:
“To be native to a place we must learn to speak its language.”
― Robin Wall Kimmerer
Bookish News and Links:
Want personalized recommendations? Fill out a questionnaire to get a customized list sent directly to your email: https://gpl.org/services/reade...
Love Lists? Here are some more links to visit:
Bibliolifestyle helpfully organizes their guide by genre and includes links to support groups.
Good Housekeeping has a list of 32 books by Native American and Indigenous authors-including nonfiction.
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln has this article detailing the history of Native American literature.
The Poetry Foundation has a ton of information about Native American poetry and culture.
Adaptation News: Upcoming movies and shows based on books:
The Good Daughter, based on the book by Karin Slaughter will be a limited series coming to Peacock on Nov. 12.
The adaptation of Virginia Feito's Victorian Psycho will be released in theaters on Nov. 13.
Sunrise on the Reaping, the latest entry in Suzanne Collins' Hunger Games series will be shown in theaters starting Nov. 20.
Recent Reads
I have recently finished reading Solace House by Will Maclean and The Butcher and the Liar by S.L. Woeppel. I also just finished listening to Japanese Gothic by Kylie Baker Lee.
I am currently reading Newbourne Park by Jennifer Thorne and One Last Warning by Allison Brennan, and I am also listening to the audiobook of The Sanatorium by Sarah Pearse.
So, until next time: Be safe, be well, and be well-read!
Joelle
So, who am I, anyway? I am a resident of West Groton, with a husband, four mostly-grown children, a fluffy Samoyed, and a kitten - all of which keep my vacuum well-employed. I am currently working part-time at the Groton Public Library and writing monthly reviews for Booklist Magazine. In a former life, I was a Director of PR/Marketing at a high-tech consulting firm. My BA is in Psychology, but most of my time was spent in college earning a Concentration in the Novel. That is all to say that I make no claims at being an expert of any kind, and my thoughts, opinions. and mistakes are solely my own. I am just a person whose passion for books has continued to grow from the moment I was first able to clutch and gnaw on them. I have been devouring them ever since.
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