"It is hard to imagine how this book could be more beautiful. Its scores of photographs, most of them full-page, show Native Americans of dozens of nations in full dance regalia, and they are breathtaking. It is not just the vibrant colors and resplendent patterns of the costumes but also, more important, the strength of spirit revealed in the dancers' faces that draw our eyes into these photographs.
Indeed, comments from each dancer on the tribal and individual significances of costumes and dances illuminate, often poignantly, but they do not say more than the faces. Filled with pride and fervor, the dancers look out at us. Here is Ojibwa Norman Kelly-Kinew, his yellow-painted face streaked with blue, his eyes wise and sad beneath a hat of beads and fur. Here is Nooksac-Nez Perce Reginald A. George in a feather mask and leather hat, his white face paint emphasizing the determination in his jaw. And Nellie Two Bulls of the Oglala Sioux: she half turns from us, her half-smile knowing and confident. Such are the faces of the powwow, and the spirits behind them.”
Patricia Monaghan
Booklist
“Throughout history there has been much misrepresentation between the Native Americans and the non-Indian peoples. Some of those misunderstandings remain today. However, the messages which we, the Native Peoples, have expressed in the book may help to bridge the gap between the ‘First Nations’ and those who wish to learn more about our heritage.”
Harvey and Carolyn Running Crane Whitford
Blackfeet Nation
"The intensity of the souls represented in your book, as well as the beautiful intricacy of the designs was quite overwhelming. I am looking forward to showing the book to my children so they can more fully understand the possibilities of Native American culture and its physical manifestations in sacred ceremony.”
Tim Girvin
Graphic Designer / Calligrapher