Book Description
Sora, the High Chieftess of the Black Falcon Nation, has been banished by her own people until she can find healing for her broken spirit. Her seductive, murderous rampages have led to war with nearby clans and caused dissension in her own, as well. If another body was to turn up, Sora will certainly be blamed--even her own clan will demand her death. Now facing her thirty-third winter, she and her husband Flint are wandering the land searching frantically for the means to cure her shattered soul.
In the wake of the Eagle Flute Village massacre, Red Raven witnessed a woman murder Chief Short Tail of the Loon people in an exotic ritual. As word spreads, more people want Sora found and killed, but there is still hope to heal her . . . she must find her reflection-soul. But Short Tail's shadow-soul managed to find a home in his last breath, and, hell-bent on revenge, he'll do anything to put an end to Sora's life.
Customer Reviews:
I got what I was looking for.......2007-06-23
Nothing aches the soul more than loving a man so much and desiring only him and having that same love focused on you by the man that it burns it the most harmful way. A man's deep love can quite easily become the man's demise. The love turns to jealous rage and through many stages finally leads to hate. His hatred spurns hatred from his love and the relationship becomes quite literally a love-hate relationship. It is not until it is too late that you realized that this relationship is destructive and needs to be eliminated before you reach your own demise at his hands. It is a curious thing how one man's love turns into this but love from another man can reach such tenderness that it lifts the souls to such pure light and love. I had the unfortunate experience of a man whose love turned destructive much like Sora's experience with Flint. Then when he was gone, my heart ached even though it knew that it was for the best. For Katherine O'Neal Gear to capture such a realistic scandal was mesmerizing. This was by far her best work. When the twisting perils first began I was not sure how the story would end. I was disappointed twice by the first chapters of this story because of a missing conclusion. All my answers have been found and I got the conclusion that I so desperately sought. I found a tender love light Sora found in Strongheart and by the end of the story I was literally in tears at the heartfelt ending. I am not the type to easily shed tears either. I look forward to seeing more of her work.
Book 3 in a triogy........2007-06-09
This is the last and best in the triogy. The triogy should only be read by older teens or adults because it has a lot of adult themes in it. Book 3 finally anwsers all the Questions from book 1 and its amazing.
Book Description
Mounds and earthworks are the most conspicuous elements of prehistoric Native American culture to be found on the landscape of eastern North America. Indian Mounds of the Middle Ohio Valley identifies and describes 70 extant, publicly accessible sites in Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, and West Virginia, where mounds were constructed by Woodland people beginning some 3000 years ago. This book also reviews the culture, history, and geography of the Woodland and Late Prehistoric mound building groups and the fate of their structures during the Historic period. Sources of additional information about the Ohio Valley mound building groups are provided, as is access information for the mound and earthwork sites.
The revised edition of the popular guide book incorporates new information and ideas about the mound building groups that have appeared since the first edition was published in 1986, and describes almost twice as many sites as were in the earlier edition.
Customer Reviews:
Guide Book.......2007-01-03
We spent a few days hunting down the mounds in Southern Ohio. We used this book as a guide and carefully mapped out the sites we thought we could fit into our time frame. The book is filled with great information and served as a valuable reference. The State and Federal Park sites are the best maintained and offer on-site information. At several of the sites, the mounds were downplayed by other monuments or historical reference. And of course, a golf course adorns one of the mound formations. The good news is they left the mounds and didn't plow them away. Great Book, we will probably use it again to research other sites.
Ohio's Prehistoric Earthworks.......2005-09-10
At one time Ohio had the largest concentration of prehistoric earthworks on the planet. While sadly most of these structures have been lost over time to human intrusion, a number do still remain in this state. This book shows excellent photographs and diagrams of most of the more well-known and interesting sites. Here you will find the Newark mound groups, Fort Ancient, Serpent Mound, and details on the Adena, Hopewell, and other peoples who erected these impressive monuments to collective effort. Not only are the mounds studied here, directions are provided to make day-trips to these locations possible. An approachable starting point for learning about Ohio's amazing pre-Columbian past.
Average customer rating:
- Scholarly, in-depth scrutiny and hypothesis
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Great Basin Rock Art: Archaeological Perspectives
Manufacturer: University of Nevada Press
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ASIN: 0874176964 |
Book Description
Rock art is one of humankind's most ancient forms of artistic expression, and one of its most enigmatic. For centuries, scholars and other observers have struggled to interpret the meaning of the mysterious figures incised or painted on natural rocks and to understand their role in the lives of their long-vanished creators. The Great Basin of the American West is especially rich in rock art, but until recently North American archaeologists have largely ignored these most visible monuments left by early Native Americans and have given little attention to the terrain surrounding them.
In Great Basin Rock Art, twelve respected rock art researchers examine a number of significant sites from the dual perspectives of settlement archaeology and contemporary Native American interpretations of the role of rock art in their cultural past. The authors demonstrate how modern archaeological methodology and interpretations are providing a rich physical and cultural context for these ancient and hitherto puzzling artifacts. They offer exciting new insights into the lives of North America's first inhabitants. This is essential reading for anyone interested in the petroglyphs of the American West and in the history of the Great Basin and its original peoples.
Customer Reviews:
Scholarly, in-depth scrutiny and hypothesis .......2007-04-12
Edited by Angus R. Quinlan, Ph.D. (deputy director of the Nevada Rock Art Foundation), Great Basin Rock Art: Archaeological Perspectives is an anthology of essays by learned authors concerning some of the most ancient cultural and artistic relics known to humankind. Topics include petroglyph dating, native and anthropological interpretations of cultural identity, a gender-inclusive view of the social context of rock art, and much more. A handful of black-and-white photographs and diagrams illustrate this scholarly, in-depth scrutiny and hypothesis of what rock art has to tell us of prehistoric culture.
Book Description
In a time before history, in a harsh and beautiful land near the top of the world, womanhood comes cruelly and suddenly to beautiful, young Chagak. Surviving the brutal massacre of hertribe, she sets out across the icy waters off Ameria's northwest coast on an astonishing odyssey that will reveal to Chagak powerful secrets of the earth and sky... and the mysteries of love and loss.
Customer Reviews:
Fantastic.......2007-07-24
This book found me at the local library. I'm not a big reader, and I wasn't seeking a new read; I was there with my kids. However, it didn't take me long to start this book, nor more than a day to finish it; I couldn't put it down. It was fantastic. Set in BC alaska , where traditions were strong and customs were different, it's entertaining, empowering, and educating. The strong and curious will appreciate this journey of a woman and the tale of a survior that I've recommended to many friends. When I realized it was the first of a trilogy, I was back to the library immediately to get books 2 and 3.
Wonderful Story.......2005-09-04
I started reading this book and I literaly couldn't put it down.
Sue Harrison did a great job, I felt for the heroine-Chagak, I was sad reading about her sorrows and I was happy when good things happened to her.
I didn't even finish half of the book when I got back on online and ordered 2nd & 3rd books (My Sister The Moon & My Brother Wind)
You won't regret reading Sue Harrison's book-that's for sure!
Can't believe how much I loved this book!.......2005-06-01
Amazing story! The detail and character depth was unbelievable. The story was action packed and full of emotion. This story is a unique way of portraying the life style and beliefs of the prehistoric people of this region of Alaska. This was a very satisfying book and one that I will keep forever!
Sue Is Right Up There With Jean...........2004-03-26
Truthfully, I read My Sister The Moon before I read this one. I didn't even realize there was a 1st to the series. In fact, after reading this one, that one is even better. And of course everything makes even more sense. I read Jean Auel's series right before reading Sue's and I didn't expect to find an author to match the Earth's Children's Series. The story was amazing and so were the details. I was so caught up in this tale that it didn't take me long at all to read it because I couldn't put it down. By writing this series Sue made me a very loyal reader and i will read anything she writes and anyone who like Auel or Shuler or even the Gears couple will love Harrison
UNBEATABLE!!!.......2003-10-21
I have read many books by many authors. I have quite a collection I read over and over every year.But Sue Harrison has a way of drawing the reader in. I can smell the salt air, feel the cold, hunger, and taste the meat. The culture lover will enjoy her books. I have been reading her books since Mother Earth Father Sky hit the stores. She knows her stuff. You will be hooked......line n sinker.
Book Description
A gripping new saga of pre-historic America that takes us to the Mississippi Valley and the tribe known as the Mound builders. It is a time of troubles. In Cahokia, the corn crop is failing again and a warchief--and the warrior woman he may never possess--are disgusted by their Chief's lust for tribute. Now even the gods have turned their faces, closing the underworld to the seers. If the gods have abandoned the people, there is no hope--unless it comes in the form of a young girl who is learning to Dream of Power.A masterful story of the first north Americans by the bestselling authors of People of the Earth.
Customer Reviews:
This one was disappointing.......2006-04-07
I started with book 1 of the series and loved each one I read til I got to this one. In the books prior to this, they took the time to help you get to know the characters first before diving into the plot. This time they didn't do that. It felt rushed and even tho it was full of action, I couldn't care less about what happened to any of the characters because I hadn't gotton to know them. I kept forcing myself to keep reading but eventually had to put the book down and go on to the next one in the series (people of the sea). I'm only on page 31 but I already have much more interest in the characters this time.
Historical Fiction or Fantasy?.......2006-03-02
The story of the collapse of Mississippi Valley civilization in the early 16th century. The characters are well rounded and the plot is suspenseful. However, the mysticism dives deep into the realm of fantasy and the happy ending seemed a bit contrived.
Weak .......2005-08-19
I'm a fan of some of the Gear's books in this series, and think the concept of novelizing the lives and stories of people who lived in ancient America is fascinating, but this book is a little weak. First off, this novel comes across as more "New Agey" than any of the other 3-4 in the series I've read. It comes close to being about magic and psychic visions rather than about history and anthropology. I didn't like that. Its cardinal sin, in my eyes, was the underuse of the presence of Cahokia, the greatest city in pre-eighteenth-century America. Barely a description is given of this metropolis beyond brief mentions of its walls and "the great mound". Had a chapter or two been put in detailing the might and glory of Cahokia, or had this become a novel about Cahokian culture itself, then this book might truly have earned five-stars.
Would I have read it if I knew then that it would be a story about a little girl's vision quests as a weapon against (apparently god-created) drought in the mid-Mississippi basin? Probably....but it does let me down that what could have been a tale of Cahokia the Great, was misused as a tree-hugging fable about the management of the earth, and the inner strength of the apparent weakest members of society.
Maybe someday the Gears or another author will do justice to Cahokia and write a good novel about it at its height. I hope so.
Well thought out and executed.......2005-03-16
As a fellow writer of historical Native American fiction, I found the attention to detail in this work first rate. The People of the River, takes the reader on a ride across the, river roadways, of trade and war and deceit. Drought and madness of the chief drive the people to a decision that may cost them their lives if they are wrong. A well thought out novel with a moving plot line. I look forward to reading this one yet again to find nuances, I know I missed in the first read.
Good but not great.......2002-08-23
Firstly a bit of history behind the story.....This narrative told of an ancient civilisation of Cahokia and the surrounding villages. Simply, they belonged to what was known as the "Mound Builder" settlements, so called because the people in the settlements built burial mounds to honour their dead. The Mound Builder culture, of which Cahokia was a part, had its beginnings 3,000 years ago, when groups of early Americans settled along the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers. These people were known as the Adena people. Cahokia was believed to be the capital city of that culture having up to 20 000 inhabitants in that area. It was also believed that Cahokia was led by a religious chieftainship, called the "Great Sun." He was thought to be the brother of the sun and his commands were unquestionably followed. His family and close relatives formed an elite ruling class. Warriors were present to guard the food crops (corn) and the villages. They had permanent positions as were depicted in the story.
For those who have read the story and who know some American history, one can see the attention to detail the authors have put into this. We have the mad omnipotent Sun Chief, Theron, and the Warrior leader Badgertail, who obeys his commands even though he disagrees with them. The descriptions of the land make the book a good read. The many different threads that make up the story; disgruntled villages rebelling against the Sun Chief over tributes that need to be paid (main plot), the love between Badgertail and Locust, the dilemma of Badgertail with obeying Theron and doing what he believes is right, the relationship between Lichen and Wanderer, the growth of Lichen spiritually to become a powerful dreamer (subplots) and the way each are connected to one another makes the book interesting.
However, it is disappointing in the lack of character detail. (The landscape detail is excellent and so are the plot and subplots). Of all the characters in the book, only Badgertail is described somewhat fully. The reader cannot predict how a character will behave because not enough character traits are given. Because of this lack of detail, the reader cannot fully engage in the story. Some examples of fantasy novels that will pull the reader into the story are Robert Jordan's "Wheel of Time" series, George RR Martin's "Song of Ice and Fire" series and Stephen Donaldson's "Chronicles of Thomas Covenant". True all these novels are much longer than "People of the River", but nevertherless are much better reads because of the added detail. An example of a great short novel is the war story " All Quiet on the Western Front" written by Erich Maria Remarque which is much shorter than this novel but is more descriptive of its characters. A similar kind of story (historical fiction) to "People of the River" is written by Jean Auel in the "Earth's Children" series but with the character analysis far surpassing this.
Nevertheless, if all you are after is a book to fill up time, this book is not a bad one to pick. However if you want a great book, go for one of the ones I have listed. They are much more enthralling novels.
Book Description
There has long been controversy between ecologists and archaeologists over the role of prehistoric Native Americans as agents of ecological change. Using ecological and archaeological data from the woodlands of eastern North America, Paul and Hazel Delcourt show that Holocene human ecosystems are complex adaptive systems in which humans have interacted with the environment on a series of spatial and time scales. Their work therefore has important implications for the conservation of biological diversity and for ecological restoration today, making it of great interest to ecologists and archaeologists alike.
Customer Reviews:
Worth the money.......2007-08-12
For anyone interested in the migration of early populations to the North and South American continents, this book is very satisfying. There are some minor problems noted, but overall, the beringia land theory of migration is pretty much set aside in favor of other routes. This book is very technical, over my head in quite a few spots, but it is obvious that this book emerged from years and various disciplines of research. I found myself agreeing with them on a number of points and allowing my own project of Indian environmentalism to go in new directions.
Amazon.com
Archaeology is radically rewriting American prehistory. Since 1932, when exquisite stone points were first discovered at Clovis in New Mexico, accepted theory has asserted that humans did not begin to populate the New World until the retreat of glaciers that were blocking entry from Asia about 12,000 years ago. Then, in 1997, a group of archaeologists confirmed that objects found preserved in a peat bog in the far south of Chile--stone tools, bones, even chunks of mastodon meat--could securely be dated to at least 12,500 years ago. In The Settlement of the Americas, Thomas D. Dillehay--the archaeologist who excavated this material--gives his reasons for believing that people reached the Americas before the ice sheets moved south more than 20,000 years ago. It is a fascinating detective story based on tantalizingly meager data, one in which logic and a powerful imagination are required to fill vast blank areas in the geography and prehistory of two continents. The author sets the scene at a time when so much water was locked up in glaciers that coastlines were several hundred feet lower than they are now. Scientific studies such as stone-tool technology, linguistics, and genetics are used to build an overwhelming argument. Academic battles can be as bitter as any others, and the author is ruthless in his demolition of rival theories. Every scientist has his own bias, and this study is heavily weighted toward South American evidence, but Dillehay's interpretations appear to be objective and well-argued. The Settlement of the Americas answers basic questions, such as who were the first Americans and how did they colonize an empty land, in an exciting and readable way. --John Stevenson
Book Description
The first authoritative account to present the new paradigm in American archaeology about the origin of early American culture
Who were the first Americans? Where did they come from, when did they get here, and how did they settle the Americas? Until three years ago, the "Clovis" people were credited as the pioneers, arriving across the Bering land bridge at the end of the last Ice Age, no earlier than 12,000 B.C. Now that standard scientific account has been demolished.
As the principal investigator since 1977 at Monte Verde, Chile, the most important site in overturning the old theories, Thomas Dillehay spent many years being dismissed for his insistence on the presence of "impossibly" ancient human artifacts dating back 20,000 years. In the past few years he has been soundly vindicated, and in this book he presents a highly readable account of who the earliest settlers are likely to have been, where they may have landed, and how they dispersed across two continents.
Customer Reviews:
It Is About Time.......2007-08-01
In 1986 I lived in Coquimbo, Chile, while I was down there on a field project for weather. I had a chance to see some of the country and to read a few books. One was by a Chilean archeologist who had excavated a cave in Tierra del Fuego (Fell's Cave? I can't remember.) Among other things, she found a hearth with charcoal that had a radio-carbon date about 20000 BP.
She flat-out stated that it was impossible for people to have entered the continent from the north and to have gotten all the way south to Cape Horn BEFORE they showed in Clovis NM.
So that got me thinking -- how did they get there? I think it is easily possible to have used a maritime route. The natives along the Pacific northwest coast of America and Canada retain a maritime tradition.
But what about a direct passage? Wind and current are favorable for a voyage from Australia or New Zealand. Get blown out to sea by accident and you might have no choice but to head east -- and land in Chile. Alan Villiers gives us the sailing directions from Hobart Tasmania to Cape Horn. We may find that the story is much more complicated than we imagine.
Anyway it is good to see South America getting the attention it deserves. People have been there for a very long time, long enough for all those languages to develop. You may want to read America B. C. by Barry Fell.
The Archaeological Puzzle of our Time .......2006-10-11
Dillehay, from the University of Kentucky, may be the most important American archaeologist of the last half century. He has challenged and may have demolished the "Clovis barrier" -- the cherished and long-held belief of archaeologists that the Clovis big game hunters of 11,200 years ago were the first humans in the Americas. The artifacts Dillehay found at the Monte Verde site in Chile are dated reliably to 12,500 years old -- and possibly much older. This is not pop-archaeology of the "Chariot of the Gods" variety. Dillehay is a professional and has worked at Monte Verde for a quarter of a century.
This book outlines Dillehay's theories as to how the New World was settled, including brief descriptions of his work at Monte Verde. The focus is on the little known archaelogical sites in South America, and there are many of them. The writing is intended for the general reader, although the author gets more than a little technical in discussing bi-facial and uni-facial projectile points, radiocarbon dating, and other topics only barely famiiar to the non-specialist. He describes a large number of old archaeological sites in South America -- and one can get lost in the abundance of detail. Persist! Or skip some of the detail. The last four chapters (of 11) are the most interesting in the book.
As an icon-breaker Dillehay has undergone much abuse for his Monte Verde claims and there is a bit of subtle response and pay-back in this book to his critics. One can perceive anger hidden just below the surface of his plodding scholarly prose. The important question is, of course: Is Dillehay right? I'm not an archaeologist, but I am inclined to think he is -- although I have a few lingering doubts. Why, for example, if people were in the Americas before 11,200 years ago have we found no skeletons and so few indications of their presence?
This is an important book and one that everyone interested in New World archaeology should read.
Good But Not Great.......2005-11-30
This is a worthwhile book but it has some detractions. A big chunk of the book consists of dry archaeological site descriptions - not for the faint of heart. This book is suitable for archaeologists and very interested non professionals only. The author does not discuss any North American sites - he focuses solely on South America. This is not made clear in the editorial descriptions published by Amazon, or in the book title for that matter. The very important Monte Verde site excavated by the author is discussed only briefly - the author states that a detailed description is
not the purpose of this book. However, the degree of preservation at Monte Verde is so much better than at any other late Pleistocene site in the Americas that a lengthier description would have been appropriate. The antiquity of the deepest level at Monte Verde (33,000 BP by C-14) is supported by limited but apparently problem free data. The author reserves judgement until more very old sites are found. One wonders how long we will have to wait.
The southern route.......2004-07-30
Creation myths hold a certain fascination - even when they're not your own. In North America, the finding of a set of finely hewn stone points established a new creation myth - the Clovis People. Clovis Points are unique to the Western Hemisphere - indeed, unique to North America. Their discovery created a dogma of origins with the story locked in time and place. The Americas, it was declared, were founded by Asian peoples skirting the last glaciers beginning their own withdrawal north - about 11 000 years ago. The dating and the path were thus inexorably set in the minds of scholars and the citizenry alike. Tom Dillehay wants to overthrow that dogma. He presents several challenges to long-held concepts, supporting his contentions with detailed information on recent finds and analysis. And all the information arises from an unsuspected source - South America.
Although Dillehay is hesitant to condemn North American archaeologists for their studied avoidance of South American possibilities, the inference is clear. Northern, mostly white, Protestant archaeologists left unacknowledged the work of their Catholic, Indo-Spanish colleagues digging in the other half of the hemisphere. Dillehay, breaking into that unexplored territory, encountered another unique find. At Monte Verde, he unearthed the remains of a prehistoric camp. The moist conditions of the site, almost unknown in North American locations, preserved skins, wood, even rope. These artefacts also pushed back the settlement of the Western Hemisphere some 1500 years.
The Clovis mythology contained more than timing. A lifestyle was deduced as well. The finely hewed points suggested a hunting people - moving and breeding rapidly. It was calculated they filled the hemisphere in but one millennium. Dillehay and his South American colleagues demonstrated that this scenario is highly unlikely. The settlers left too much evidence of opportunistic hunting, mixed with a well-established vegetable diet. The sites also long-term residency in rock shelters and built-up structures. The pre-Clovis people may have been mobile, but the mobility was likely seasonal with plant fruition, not the following of migratory animals.
Although Dillehay asserts scientists are accepting the notion of pre-Clovis Americans, he concedes some critics remain strenuously vocal. Most of the objections now fall into the "contaminated dating" theme - the radiocarbon samples were corrupted by introduced material. Dillehay simply counters that after a generation of collecting, such objections are demonstrably spurious. There are simply too many supportive cases verifying his contentions. He lists and describes many of these, even adding a chart of all the samples taken up to the time of publication. Many ideas, including some current legal ones, will have to be reconsidered. For the issue isn't purely academic. One of the United States' most ill-conceived pieces of legislation, the Native American Graves Protection and Registration Act [NAGPRA] has opened the door to a plethora of claims to research material. Many of these claims have already been shown to unsubstantiated. The new dating will likely reduce new claims and force reconsideration of the law.
Dillehay enhances this book with maps, photographs and diagrams. The maps of site locations clearly indicate South America was a well-populated area in pre-historic times. While Dillehay avoids sinking into the polemics of some of his colleagues, the text remains clear and understandable. He reminds us that discovery, excavation and analysis of South American prehistory await more students. Perhaps you could be the next to reveal a campsite or established community from the dim past. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]
Thought provoking........2003-02-12
While Dillehay's book The Settlement of the Americas refers to both the northern and southern continents, it is primarily concerned with the archaeological evidence from South America, giving a thorough assessment of data from several sites. I suspect that the middle chapters on lithic technology may be less than engrossing to the average reader, but there is still much of interest for anyone interested in the topic. The author discusses the current debate, and while he has his own opinion, his assessment of the data is not overly credulous. In particular the heated contentions over the date and significance of the Pedra Furada site of Brazil are evaluated with a balance and thoroughness that is open minded but professional. The author's attention to taphonomy, geological processes, and off site data in the interpretation of the significance of on site finds is very good. It certainly shows the reader how archaeological data are interpreted and what the problems in doing so are. It also highlights why there is still so much disagreement between researchers.
The author, Thomas Dillehay is a professor of anthropology at the University of Kentucky and has conducted extensive research into the subject of early American origins. He has done research at Monte Verde in Chile, in Peru, Argentina, and Uruguay. The Monte Verde site, discussed at some length in the book, is particularly significant as it preserved many usually perishable artifacts that encapsulate a much fuller understanding of the lifestyle of the people living there than is usually the case with sites that preserve mostly only lithic cultural materials.
Of interest to me, if for no other reason that it had not occurred to me, is the author's note that some of the confusion over the first peopling of the Americas may be due to the fact that our information may be confusing itself. The author looks at things such as the possible back flow from the Americas to Siberia and Asia which may have mixed the genetics of the populations under study. While he notes that it is currently not provable, the fact that it might have been possible cannot be neglected. He also notes that skeletal material from the earliest period is conspicuously absent and that this may represent a paradigm shift necessitated by survival in new territories by the immigrants or a research bias based upon expectations drawn from research conducted in the Old World environment. He notes that until we are ready to shake free of preconceptions, we will probably not make much real headway.
The greatest contribution of the book to my own stock pile of information is the concept that the major factor affecting the survival and spread of modern humans in any environment may have been a change in the mental equipment of the human being. This may have been the ultimate change that divides the anatomically human from the intellectually human being. In particular the author speaks of cognitive maps involved with an exploring skill. Here too might reside the social skills required to roam into unknown territory , a willingness to take environmental risks based upon an effective evaluation of the costs and benefits of such a move and an ability to fall back on long range social contacts that spread out risk. Much has been written about the possible insurance activities in which Southwestern pueblo groups may have participated in a climatically unstable environment, but little-to my knowledge-has been made of the importance of these same risk-reducing social paradigms among even earlier human groups. Perhaps the reason that modern humans were able to spread as successfully as they did to every inhabitable environment on earth has to do with this capacity to maintain social links over long ranges. By these links, however great the temporal or spacial distance, early people could exchange information, mates, and help. Perhaps even shared links of tradition, remembered by elders much as they were and are among Arab groups, provided a measure of long term connection even after long separations. If one can recount ones linage back to a common ancestral root one can make claims of charity.
An intriguing book.
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The Rock-Art of Eastern North America: Capturing Images and Insight
Manufacturer: University Alabama Press
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The Petroglyphs and Pictographs of Missouri
ASIN: 0817350969 |
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- Ambitious book is a big disappointment
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Rock Art in New Mexico
Polly Schaafsma ,
Karl Kernberger , and
Curtis F. Schaafsma
Manufacturer: Museum of New Mexico Press
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Indian Rock Art of the Southwest
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Images in Stone: Southwest Rock Art
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A Field Guide to Rock Art Symbols of the Greater Southwest
ASIN: 0890132321 |
Customer Reviews:
Ambitious book is a big disappointment.......2004-01-29
First let me say that I am reviewing this as a person who likes to visit rock art sites and thus bought this book to help me in a trip to New Mexico. In that regard it failed miserably. Many archeologists feel the need to protect rock art sites from us "tourists" and probably think we should be confined to the national parks and monuments. While I acknowledge that there are some jerks out there who do not respect these ancient sites, if you are going to take the time (and my money) to write a book on New Mexico rock art, wouldn't it be logical that you would want others to appreciate it as well? Apparently not. To be fair, this book is more like a textbook and may be useful to someone in a graduate class doing a paper on Rock Art. It is a large format book althouth it is not hardcover. It has numerous black and white photographs which will entice the reader to want to learn more but the vaque descriptions and overly technical writing, will ultimately result in disappointment. Perhaps Mrs. Schaafsma should read books by Grant Noble and Dennis Slifer to get a better idea on how to write for the masses. Until then, I would recommend finding a good web-site on New Mexico art versus buying this book.
Book Description
From the USA Today bestselling authors of People of the Masks he oldest city in America is not St. Augustine, Florida (1565 AD) or even Old Aralbi of the Hopi Mesas (1240 AD), but the vast 400-acre earthen mound of Poverty Point, Louisiana, dating back some 3500 years. A booming commercial center, its thousands of inhabitants traded as far north as Wisconsin and Ohio. People of the Owl tells the story of this vast trading empire and its people-their war stories and songs, and their fiery loves. Most of all, this is the story of the noble warrior and shaman, Sala-mander. An im-passioned messiah, his stirring vision would shape the People of the Owl, inspire their dreams, fire their faith, and lead them into truth-and sometimes into slaughter.
Customer Reviews:
People of the Owl (The First North Americans Series).......2007-06-11
I've loved everything I've read by the Gears and I've read just about everything they have published. Wonderful interposing of fiction onto the facts! They use their expertise as anthropologists and as story tellers to combine what really has been found about North American Indians and interpose a very believable story onto it. They really make the past come alive! The inclusion of what has really been found by anthropologists adds tremendously to the books!
a great read!!.......2006-03-15
I loved this book. I was transported back in time. I could picure my self in the village. my only down side with it was thw ending but it was sill a great read!!
Fab...........2005-10-31
Another engrosing book from the Gear duo. However, it took quite awhile for me to get pulled in. About twelve chapters or so. When I finally did get sucked in I stayed up until the wee hours of the morning to finish the story. I do wish I could have found out a completion for the Anhinga character, I felt we were left hanging there for some reason. The other thing I wish would be completed would be the lead-in story lines. otherwise, I love the Pre-historic America series.
excellent and would read again!!!.......2005-10-16
I like some of the others thought there was a lot of characters. However, I thought this book was EXCELLENT, and would read it again in a heartbeat!!! A lot of intrigue, no swearing and not big with the sex!!! Very refreshing not to have that.
And yet again.......2005-10-12
Another great read in a continuing series. "Owl" was hard to put down, as usual with this couple's writing.
This is a 'don't miss'.
Books:
- Lakota Woman
- Life With an Indian Prince: By Archives of American Falconry
- Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War
- Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War
- Molecular Gastronomy: Exploring the Science of Flavor (Arts and Traditions of the Table: Perspectives on Culinary History)
- Mr. Tucket (Francis Tucket Books)
- My Book of Telling Time: Learning About Minutes (Kumon Workbooks)
- My Brother's Road: An American's Fateful Journey to Armenia
- Nothing But The Truth: A Documentary Novel
- Obsession (Alex Delaware Novels)
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