Native American Literature, N-O
485. -. Another copy. Again, one of 100 hardcover copies, although not signed as the colophon calls for. Fine in a near fine dust jacket. Both the book and the jacket bear the blindstamp of author Ken Kesey.
486. NAS' NAGA. Faces Beneath the Grass. (Dayton): (Nas' Naga Enterprises) (1979). Small, self-published volume of poetry, illustrated by the Shawnee-Scot author. This is the deluxe issue, one of 115 numbered copies, signed and dated in the year of publication by Nas' Naga. Also inscribed above the publisher's printed colophon label, presumably in Nas' Naga's hand. Nas' Naga's 1975 novel of a contemporary Indian uprising arising out of the Wounded Knee siege, Indians' Summer, was the fourth book in Harper & Row's Native American Publishing Program. Fine without dust jacket, presumably as issued.
487. (Navajo). Papers on Navajo Culture and Life. (n.p.): Navajo Community College Press, 1970. Papers prepared by participants in an Institute on American Indian Culture seminar held at the Navajo Community College in 1970, as selected and compiled by Ruth Roessel. Ringbound in cardstock and acetate covers; fine. Much of the program was aimed at educators, both those teaching Indian children and those teaching about Indian culture to non-Indian children. An early example of the effort to undertake what we now call a multicultural approach to education.
488. (Newspapers and Periodicals). Department of the Interior Bulletin. Chemawa/Chilocco: Office of Indian Affairs, 1926-1928. Seven issues, as follows: 1926 No. 2 Bibliography of Indian Legends; 1927 No. 4 Indian Art and Industries, No. 9 Education of the Indians, No. 15 The American Indian in the World War; 1928 No. 1 Primitive Agriculture of the Indians, No. 3 Historical References, No. 19 Indian Music. Four issues were printed at the Indian Print Shop of the Chilocco Indian Agricultural School in Oklahoma; the other three were printed at the United States Indian School (earlier the Salem Indian School) in Chemawa, Oregon. Two issues have owner names; 1927 No. 4 has an open tear on the front cover; otherwise the lot is near fine or better and bound in stapled wrappers, with the exception of 1927 No. 15, which is just one folded sheet. Also includes Indians (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1937), a price list of available publications relating to Indians.
489. (Newspapers and Periodicals). Smoke Signals, Vol. 111, No. 1. Newark: Indian Association of America, 1951. Newsletter of an association of non-Indians (apparently), geared toward supporting Indian causes. Mimeographed quarto, 14 pages; seven sheets printed on both sides. Horizontal crease; near fine in stapled wrappers.
490. (Newspapers and Periodicals). Scree 4. Missoula: Duck Down Press, 1975. An issue "devoted to writing by and/or dealing with Native Americans." With work by Robert Conley, Caroll Arnett, Joseph Bruchac, Blue Cloud, Nila NorthSun, Jim Barnes and many others. First page corner creased; near fine in stapled wrappers. An impressive collection of authors in this small publication.
491. (Newspapers and Periodicals). Blue Cloud Quarterly, Vol. 22, No. 4. (Marvin): (Blue Cloud Quarterly) (1976). Fiction and poetry. Mailing label of Joseph Bruchac. Small spot rear panel and nick to crown; near fine in stapled wrappers.
492. (Newspapers and Periodicals). Blue Cloud Quarterly, Vol. 24, No. 2. (Marvin): (Blue Cloud Quarterly) (1978). Poetry by Maurice Kenny, Wilma McDaniel, Geary Hobson, and others. Mailing address of Joseph Bruchac and Greenfield Review stamp. Fine in stapled wrappers.
493. (Newspapers and Periodicals). Blue Cloud Quarterly, Vol. 27, No. 4. (Marvin): (Blue Cloud Quarterly) (1981). The tenth anniversary poetry issue, with work by Maurice Kenny, Jack Forbes, and others. The issue is dedicated to Maurice Kenny. Mailing address of Joseph Bruchac. Fine in stapled wrappers.
494. (Newspapers and Periodicals). Frontiers, Vol. VI, No. 3. (Boulder): (University of Colorado), 1981. A Native American issue of this journal of Women's Studies. Includes work by Louise Erdrich (prior to her first book), Joy Harjo, Wendy Rose, Linda Hogan, Paula Gunn Allen and others. University library markings on cover; very good in wrappers. Early appearances in print for a number of these writers.
495. (Newspapers and Periodicals). Greenfield Review, Vol. 9, Nos. 3/4. Greenfield Center: Greenfield Review (1981). A double issue of American Indian writings, including work by Joy Harjo, Linda Hogan, Paula Gunn Allen, Duane Niatum, Maurice Kenny, Wendy Rose, Simon Ortiz, Adrian Louis, Carroll Arnett, and many others. The Greenfield Review was published by Native author Joseph Bruchac and included Leslie Silko's first book, Laguna Woman, among its publications. Very near fine in wrappers.
496. (Newspapers and Periodicals). Blue Cloud Quarterly, Vol. 28, No. 4. (Marvin): (Blue Cloud Quarterly) (1982). Poetry by Earle Thompson, Sylvester Brito, Diane Burns and others. Mailing address of Joseph Bruchac. Fine in stapled wrappers.
497. (NGO Conference). Treaty Council News, Vol. 1., No. 7. San Francisco: American Indian Treaty Council Information Center, 1977. A special issue of Treaty Council News, reporting on the International NGO (non-governmental organizations) Conference on Discrimination Against Indigenous Populations in the Americas, which was held in Geneva. Russell Means and Oren Lyons, an Onondaga elder, gave opening speeches that are printed here, among other contributions. Near fine in stapled wrappers.
498. NIATUM, Duane. Ascending Red Cedar Moon. NY: Harper & Row (1973). A collection of poems, some of which Niatum had published in his first book, written under the name Duane McGinnis. This is his first collection to be published by a major publisher, and was the second book in Harper & Row's Native American Publishing Program. This is the hardcover issue; there was also a simultaneous paperback. Inscribed by the author to Joseph and Carol [Bruchac] "with affection" in 1974. An early inscription and an excellent association. Fine in a near fine dust jacket with light wear to the top edge.
499. NIATUM, Duane. Taos Pueblo. (Greenfield): (Greenfield Review) (1973). A collection of poems. Slight spine-sunning; else fine in stapled wrappers. Cover illustration by Wendy Rose. An early book by one of the more important Native American poets to come to prominence in the renaissance of American Indian literature that took place in the Seventies.
500. -. Another copy. Near fine in stapled wrappers.
501. -. Another copy. This is the second issue: tipped to the copyright page is an acknowledgement of previous periodicals where some of the work first appeared. Wrappers rubbed; very good.
502. -. Another copy of the second issue. Signed by the author in 1973. Minor rubbing and creasing; near fine in stapled wrappers.
503. NIATUM, Duane. Turning to the Rhythms of Her Song. (Seattle): Jawbone Press (1977). One of 200 copies of a total edition of 225. Although not called for, this copy is signed by the author in the year of publication. Near fine in saddle-stitched wrappers.
504. NIATUM, Duane. Digging Out the Roots. NY: Harper & Row (1977). The ninth book in Harper's Native American Publishing Program; again a collection of poems. This is the simultaneous softcover issue. Signed by the author in the year of publication. Tiny crown bump; else fine in wrappers.
505. -. Another copy. Inscribed by the author to Joe [Bruchac] "in friendship and gratitude" in 1982. Trace rubbing to rear panel; else fine in wrappers.
506. NIATUM, Duane. To Bridge the Dream. Laguna: A Press, 1978. A chapbook printing a single surrealistic story by Niatum that had reportedly been turned down for publication elsewhere, ostensibly because it did not fit the stereotype expected of contemporary Native American literature. Brief introduction to that effect by William Oandasan. Near fine in stapled wrappers. An uncommon book, and an important publication for stretching, or defying, the boundaries of an ethnic literature.
507. NIATUM, Duane. Pieces. NY: Strawberry Press (1981). Pamphlet collection of poetry, with a cover illustration by Kahionhes and published by a press partly owned and operated by poet Maurice Kenny. Fine in stapled wrappers.
508. -. Another copy. Warmly inscribed by the author to Joe [Bruchac] in the year of publication. Fine in stapled wrappers.
509. -. Another copy. Signed by the author. Four poems bear the author's notations of having been later revised; one shows the revisions. Slight corner crease; else fine in stapled wrappers.
510. NIATUM, Duane. Songs for the Harvester of Dreams. Seattle: University of Washington Press (1981). A collection of poetry, which won the prestigious American Book Award from the Before Columbus Foundation in 1982. Inscribed by the author to Joe and Carol [Bruchac] in the year of publication. Fine in a very good dust jacket rubbed at the edges and folds.
511. NIATUM, Duane. Stories of the Moons. Marvin: Blue Cloud Quarterly (1987). Issued as Vol. 33, No. 2 of the Blue Cloud Quarterly. Mailing address of Joseph Bruchac. Signed by the author in the year of publication. Small label over publisher's information on front cover; small spot to rear cover. Near fine in stapled wrappers.
512. NIATUM, Duane. Songs From the Storyteller's Stone. (Seattle): (apparently self-published) (1994). Small poetry pamphlet; saddle-stitched wrappers with beads attached to the binding thread. Warmly inscribed by the author to Joe [Bruchac] in 1996, alluding to the long friendship between the two, which at that point went back more than 20 years.
513. NIATUM, Duane. Nesting Out For Stars and Other Stories. (Bellingham): (n.p.) (2002). One of 150 numbered copies. Inscribed by the author to Joe [Bruchac] in the year of publication, "for our long time friendship and your great gift." Fine in beaded saddle-stitched wrappers.
514. -. Another copy. Of a total edition of 150 numbered copies, this is Copy #2 and is signed by the author. With the cover art credit (to Freda Quenneville) tipped in on a label to the colophon page. Fine in beaded saddle-stitched wrappers.
515. NIATUM, Duane. Earth Vowels. (n.p.): Wessel & Lieberman, 2006. Broadside poem printed on the occasion of Niatum's reading at the National Museum of the American Indian. 14 1/2" x 20 1/2". Illustrated by Greg Colfax. One of 125 numbered copies, signed by Niatum and Colfax. Fine.
516. (NIATUM, Duane). BERNIKER, Jane. Original Artwork for A Cycle for the Woman in the Field. [Laughing Man Press, 1973]. Six pen and ink and collage drawings for Niatum's second book, a poetry chapbook. Each drawing is on 8 1/2" x 11" card stock and is titled and signed by the artist. Unsigned color illustration included. Working copies -- i.e., these were the copies used for production of the book, and include printer's notations for layout; near fine. Unique.
517. NICOLAR, Joseph. The Life and Traditions of the Red Man. Bangor: C.H. Glass, 1893. Penobscot Indian tales by this Penobscot writer, including the story of Klose-kur-beh, the first man, and a history of the tribe through its myths and legends -- a very early collection by a Native writer. Nicolar's purpose was not only to retell the old tales but to convey the spirituality inherent in the old ways via the stories, teachings and prophecies of Klose-kur-beh. Inscribed by the author. Photographic frontispiece excised, front hinge starting; offsetting to several pages of text; very good, without dust jacket.
518. NOEL, Linda. Where You First Saw the Eyes of Coyote. NY: Strawberry Press (1983). Poetry by a writer of the Concow Maidu tribe, of California. Fine in stapled wrappers.
519. OANDASAN, William. Taking Off. (Laguna): (A. Press) (1976). An early publication by this Yuki poet and activist (his first book?), a small press collection of poetry published by the Laguna press that he founded and that focused on Native American writers, one of the first in the country to do so. Oandasan won the American Book Award in 1984. Near fine in stapled wrappers.
520. OANDASAN, William. Moving Inland. (Venice): A Publications (1983). "A cycle of lyrics." Small ink price on title page; else fine in stapled wrappers.
521. -. Another copy. Signed by the author in 1985. Small label removal shadow front cover; else fine in stapled wrappers. This is the second issue, with the author's address stamp listing York Station; there is an earlier issue listing the address as Venice.
522. OANDASAN, William. Summer Night. (n.p.): A Publications (1989). Haiku, published by the press the author founded. Copyright dates changed from 1987 to 1989. Fine in stapled wrappers.
523. (OANDASAN, William). Chicago Uptown Indian Poetry Anthology. Chicago: A Publications, 1982. An anthology edited and introduced by Oandasan, who also contributes two poems. Also includes a poem by Susan Powers, who later received much critical acclaim for her first novel, The Grass Dancer. Fine in stapled wrappers.
524. (Ojibway). Okikinoamadi-Mezinaigan. (n.p.): (n.p.) (n.d.). A spelling and reading book in the Chippewa language, containing scripture histories from the Old and New Testaments and a few hymns. First published in Detroit by the Daily Tribune in 1852, this copy is rebound with a supplied spine and rear cover and without publishing information. Owner name and date (1941) written inside original front board. Foxing to later pages; a fair copy. Uncommon.
525. ORTIZ, Simon J. Going for the Rain. NY: Harper & Row (1976). The first regularly published book by this Acoma poet and the seventh volume in Harper's Native American Publishing Program. Simultaneously published in cloth and paper, this is the cloth issue. Mild foxing to endpages and page edges; near fine in a near fine dust jacket with slight wear at the crown and foxing on verso. An important book, which we have found to be somewhat uncommon in the hardcover issue.
526. -. Same title, the simultaneous issue in wrappers. Inscribed by the author to another Native American poet: "I'm happy to express my thanks to you ... for your support of my work." With the poet's ownership signature. One short tear on foredge of front cover; still near fine in wrappers. A good association copy.
Uncommon Hardcover Edition, 1/100 Copies
527. ORTIZ, Simon J. A Good Journey. Berkeley: Turtle Island, 1977. Poems, with artwork by Native American artist Aaron Yava. This is the scarce hardcover issue, one of 100; although not called for, this copy is signed by the author. Fine, without dust jacket, as issued. An attractive edition, designed by Graham Mackintosh and printed by Mackintosh and Noel Young, who were largely responsible for the books of Black Sparrow Press and Capra Press. Uncommon.
528. -. Same title. One of 1900 copies in wrappers, not to be confused with the edition that came out in 1984. Signed by the author. Erasure front flyleaf; near fine.
529. -. Same title. Tucson: Sun Tracks/U. of Arizona (1984). The reissue of this collection of poems first published in 1977 by Turtle Island. Signed by Ortiz and with the ownership signature of another Native American poet. Fine in wrappers.
530. ORTIZ, Simon J. Howbah Indians. Tucson: Blue Moon Press, 1978. A collection of short stories. Cover photograph by Lee Marmon. Owner blindstamp on title page; near fine in wrappers.
531. -. Another copy. Inscribed by the author to a Native American poet "in brotherhood and strength." Near fine in wrappers. An excellent association copy.
532. ORTIZ, Simon J. Fight Back: For the Sake of the People, For the Sake of the Land. (Las Lomas): (Institute for Native American Development) (1980). A collection of poetry and prose pieces dedicated to the notion of workers' resistance to capitalist exploitation. Issued as INAD Literary Journal Vol. 1, No. 1. Warmly inscribed by the author to Joe [Bruchac] and his family and signed "Simon, brother & friend." Fine in wrappers.
533. -. Another copy. Inscribed by the author in 1982 to another Native American poet: "May we always stand for the people and the land." Fine in wrappers.
534. ORTIZ, Simon J. From Sand Creek. Oak Park: Thunder's Mouth Press (1981). A powerful collection of poems, which many consider his best book to date and which one prominent poet and critic was quoted as saying should have won the Pulitzer Prize if the judges had had any courage. The title alludes to an infamous massacre of unarmed Cheyenne and Arapaho men, women and children in 1864, and the poems address moral, spiritual, and political issues -- in particular, the process of victimization and the possibility of finding some kind of redemption -- with urgency, clarity and poetic grace. This is the scarce hardcover issue. Fine in a fine dust jacket. A beautiful copy of an important book.
535. -. Another copy of the hardcover issue. Signed by the author. Fine in a mildly rubbed, near fine dust jacket.
536. -. Same title, the simultaneous issue in wrappers. Signed by the author. Spots to rear cover; near fine.
537. -. Another copy of the issue in wrappers. Inscribed by the author. Prices inked out on rear cover; else fine.
538. -. Another copy. Warmly inscribed by the author to Joe [Bruchac] in the year of publication. Fine.
539. -. Another copy. Inscribed by the author and with the ownership signature of another Native American poet. Near fine in wrappers.
540. ORTIZ, Simon. Woven Stone. Tucson: University of Arizona Press (1992). Collects three of his earlier, out-of-print volumes of poetry -- Going for the Rain, A Good Journey, and Fight Back -- adding a lengthy (30+ pages) introduction in which Ortiz reflects on language, writing, and the specific considerations of being a Native American writer. This is the simultaneous issue in wrappers. Inscribed by the author to Joseph [Bruchac] in 1993. Fine.
541. ORTIZ, Simon. Pause: Yours: Ours. Seattle: Wood Works No. 35, 2000. A broadside poem. One of 150 numbered copies, this copy signed and dated by the author. 8 1/2" x 11". Fine.
542. (ORTIZ, Simon). Night is Gone, Day is Still Coming. Cambridge: Candlewick Press (2003). The uncorrected proof copy of this collection of stories and poems by young American Indians, ages 11-22. Introduced by Ortiz. Near fine in wrappers.
543. OSKISON, John M. A Texas Titan. Garden City: Doubleday Doran, 1929. A fictionalized biography of Sam Houston by this author of Cherokee descent. Oskison was born in 1874 in the Cherokee Nation. He attended school with and was a lifelong friend of Will Rogers, and he later graduated from Stanford University and did graduate work at Harvard. He is one of the earliest Native American novelists, arguably the earliest. His first novel, Wild Harvest, appeared in 1925; prior to that all the novels written by American Indians had been passed off by their publishers as "true" romances of the West, or historical fiction based in fact. Oskison wrote novels that made no reference to his Indian background or upbringing and were intended to stand on their own merits as literature and referred to Indian issues only in passing, although they were set in the West. His only book to deal explicitly with Indian issues was his biography of Tecumseh. An author whose works are by now largely forgotten, Oskison remains important for his critical position in the history of Native American literature. Spine lean, some handling apparent to boards; near fine in a very good dust jacket with heavy chipping to the top edge and a split to the upper rear flap fold. Uncommon in any dust jacket.
544. OSKISON, John M. Brothers Three. NY: Macmillan, 1935. A novel of a white family settled in Oklahoma, spanning the late 19th and early 20th centuries. This was his most successful novel and the only one to go into multiple printings. Inscribed by the author "For Pauline Mazie, Cordially, John M. Oskison." A very good copy, lacking the dust jacket.
545. -. Another copy. Inscribed by the author (upside down on the rear endpaper): "For Virginia Potter/ Cordially, John M. Oskison." A bit of foxing to page edges and endpages; "X" whited out on front pastedown; a very good copy in a very good, price-clipped dust jacket with modest edge chipping and a small hole at the front spine fold.
546. OSKISON, John M. Tecumseh and His Times. NY: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1938. The last book by this Cherokee writer -- a biography of the great Shawnee chief who tried to organize a confederation of Indian tribes to resist the white man's invasion of Indian lands in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Tan cloth; spine-sunned; very good in a mildly spine-sunned, very good dust jacket. A very attractive copy of an uncommon and important book.
547. OWENS, Louis and COLONNESE, Tom. American Indian Novelists. An Annotated Critical Bibliography. NY: Garland, 1985. The scarce first book by this writer of Choctaw-Cherokee and Irish descent who was himself a novelist as well as a Steinbeck scholar. This is an early bibliography of the field, with short biographical entries on the authors covered, annotated listings of their major works, and selected secondary sources for each author. Inscribed by Owens, who died at a young age in 2002. An uncommon, important overview of the field. Owens' later critical study of Native American literature, Other Destinies, has become a standard work in the field. Fine, without dust jacket, as issued. This is only the second copy of this title we have seen.
548. OWENS, Louis. John Steinbeck's Re-Vision of America. Athens: University of Georgia (1985). A scholarly study, preceding any of his works of fiction by several years, and one of two books of nonfiction he wrote about John Steinbeck's work. Fine in a fine, very mildly spine-sunned dust jacket. Scarce.
549. OWENS, Louis. The Sharpest Sight. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press (1992). A novel of a mixed-blood Vietnam vet. This was the first volume in the University of Oklahoma's American Indian Literature and Critical Studies Series, edited by novelist, poet and critic Gerald Vizenor. Winner of the Roman Noir Prize for best mystery novel (published in France). Blurbs by James Welch, Michael Dorris and Vizenor. Signed by the author. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
550. OWENS, Louis. Other Destinies. Understanding the American Indian Novel. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press (1992). An important historical and critical study of American Indian fiction, Volume 3 in the American Indian Literature and Critical Studies Series. One of the best critical introductions to the field, with chapters on John Rollin Ridge and Mourning Dove, John Joseph Mathews and D'Arcy McNickle, N. Scott Momaday, James Welch, Leslie Silko, Louise Erdrich and Michael Dorris, and Gerald Vizenor. This volume was the co-winner, with Owens' novel The Sharpest Sight, of the Josephine Miles PEN Oakland Award for 1993. Fine in a fine dust jacket.
551. OWENS, Louis. Bone Game. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press (1994). A novel that is part murder mystery, part historical novel of the California Indians and their land and culture. Inscribed by the author in July, 1995: "To ___/ who will know this book." Fine in a fine dust jacket.
552. -. Same title. The uncorrected proof copy. Fine in wrappers, laid into a very good dust jacket, somewhat rumpled where it extends beyond the text block of the proof.