Looking for good books/documentaries on native american civilizations

[Kalmageddon]

I've always been fascinated by the civilization that lived in North and South America before that whole ugly business with European settlers and conquistadores...
I've read a couple of books on Aztecs and neighboring cultures, but I know next to nothing about the civilizations of North America.

I would like something easy to get into, not too technical, as I'm not a professional historian, just an enthusiast. Books and documentaries are both viable possibilities and I don't shy away from door stoppers.
I would ask for movies too, but I realize that "movie about native american civilization" and "historical accuracy" are polar opposites. However if such a movie/s exist, I'd be glad to know.

[Palanan]

To start with, if there's any way you can get it in Italy, I'd strongly recommend We Shall Remain, which is a five-part documentary series from PBS. It's one of the best documentaries I've seen on Native Americans.

Is there a particular region or culture you're interested in? There are something like 430 federally recognized Indian tribes today, so there's a tremendous diversity of cultures across the continent. In the meantime I can offer a few general suggestions:

Knights of Spain, Warriors of the Sun is a superb account of the De Soto expedition, which was one of the first long-distance explorations of the American Southeast. De Soto had dreams of emulating Pizarro and Cortes, who conquered wealthy and populous native civilizations, and his expedition marched from central Florida to the Appalachians, the Mississippi and even eastern Texas in a vain, brutal quest for a similar civilization in the Southeast. He never did find the wealth or glory he craved, but the records from his expedition are some of the first glimpses we have of Indian cultures in the Southeast.

In a similar vein, from a later period, Undaunted Courage also gives a basic sense of the Native American cultures of the Great Plains and Pacific Northwest. The book focuses on the Lewis and Clark expedition, which is a fantastic story in itself--but their expedition relied on assistance from Native Americans at nearly every key juncture. It's not an in-depth survey of the native cultures by any means, but a good introduction in the context of early American exploration of the West.

For a fictional examination of modern Native American culture, in particular the Navajo, you can't do better than Tony Hillerman, who uses his two main characters--Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee, of the Navajo Tribal Police--as a way to explore the culture and landscape of the Big Rez. There are close to twenty novels in the series; I'd recommend starting with Coyote Waits, one of my favorites, and see what you think.

And finally, even though this is modern rather than ancient, I would recommend Frozen River as a brief glimpse into another corner of modern Native American life. It's a very personal, small-scale movie which has more of an impact than most blockbusters with countless explosions. It's about a friendship that happens which didn't seem possible, and how that changes lives. No one's heard of it and it's a fantastic film.

[Closet_Skeleton]

If you can read 16th century Spanish I'd recommend finding a copy of Francisco de Orellana's account of the first European trip down the Amazon river. Its the only account and source for a completely destroyed Indigenous Brazilian civilisation.

Bury my Heart At Wounded Knee is good but very hard reading and a sort of classic, but its also problematic in that it claims to be the Native American side of the story but was written by a white historian. Boiling down a wide variety of peoples to just the wars the book documents is dangerous and it neglects the peaceful Indians almost entirely in favour of the Sioux and Cheyenne who it portrays as noble warriors while neglecting all the actually violent parts of that culture. Its also not at all pre-Columbian since if anything its about the transformation of the United States in the 19th Century and how the old colonials were just as doomed as the nomadic life style.

Charles C. Mann's 1492 is probably the best overview of pre-Columbian America available in English, but is very much a work of journalism rather than history and if you want any depth its more valuable for its bibliography than its content.

[Kalmageddon]

T
Is there a particular region or culture you're interested in? There are something like 430 federally recognized Indian tribes today, so there's a tremendous diversity of cultures across the continent. In the meantime I can offer a few general suggestions:

*lots of good suggestions*

Wow, that's really helpful, thank you!
I am interested in a general overview at the moment, seeing how I don't know much about the subject, but more in-depth works are appreciated too.

[Palanan]

You're very welcome.

Originally Posted by Kalmageddon
I am interested in a general overview at the moment, seeing how I don't know much about the subject, but more in-depth works are appreciated too.

Knights of Spain, Warriors of the Sun would probably be a good place to start, because it's very well-written and gives a good ecological context to the landscapes the expedition traveled through. The book compares the cultures and attitudes of the Spanish and Native Americans, and it provides a fascinating series of glimpses of native peoples right at the moment of contact.

Another book that's popular is Cahokia, which is a brief treatment of one of the largest cultural centers in pre-Columbian North America. It's a fairly quick read, but the book does dwell on the process and personalities of the archaeological research that's been done on the site, which some folks find distracting.

If you want a very broad overview, then something like The World of the American Indian would be a place to start. It's by National Geographic, and out of print, so you may have a challenge finding a copy--although it might be worth checking the libraries where you are. Somewhat basic, but NGS does quality basic very well, and it would certainly be a good introduction.

Originally Posted by Closet_Skeleton
Charles C. Mann's 1492…is very much a work of journalism rather than history….

Agreed, and that's one reason why I didn't recommend it, since I'm not a fan of journalists who try to write in-depth books. Knights of Spain and Undaunted Courage were both written by professional researchers who were also talented writers, which for me is the perfect combination.

.

[Clertar]

Red Gold and its sequels are great reads, an extremely well written account of the European colonization of South America.

This documentary is worth a watch, very interesting and technically also very good: http://vimeo.com/11124916

[Closet_Skeleton]

Agreed, and that's one reason why I didn't recommend it, since I'm not a fan of journalists who try to write in-depth books. Knights of Spain and Undaunted Courage were both written by professional researchers who were also talented writers, which for me is the perfect combination.

Its not an attempt to write an in-depth book, its a summary and that's all it claims to be. He claims to have written it because he just wanted a general primer on both American continents before contact and found that such a book did not exist yet.

It's a fairly quick read, but the book does dwell on the process and personalities of the archaeological research that's been done on the site, which some folks find distracting.

Well, its a much more honest way to pad the book out than wild speculative details. Archaeology is highly interpretive so if you don't know about the guys making the interpretations you can't really trust their validity.

I haven't read it but it sounds interesting.