Books for/about - Marmon

Ceremony (Contemporary American Fiction Series)

Publisher: Penguin Books
Authors: Leslie Marmon Silko

ISBN: 0140086838
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Summary: Excellent Service
I recieved my book in a very short amount of time, and it was in great condition!! i would highly reccommend working with this seller.

Summary: In writing of the American Indian "condition"
Ms Silko paints a picture, not of historical wrongs, apologetically <yet easily> swept under faded carpets of days gone by, but of contemporary sufferings and injustices, hidden from white consciousness by the remoteness of the reservation system, and quietly tucked away behind white washed institutional walls. It is not a little ironic, that a people so quick to denounce the injustices of an Iraq, or the horrors of the Holocaust, become so indignant when confronted with their own ongoing cultural/ethnic genocide. Yet Silko, herself of mixed ancestry, does not place the blame solely on the shoulders of the whites, she takes Native American peoples to task as well. She chastises those holding tightly to an improvident past, unable to accept changes that are necessary to Indian cultural survival. She is equally critical of those who abandon their identifies, embracing solutions offered by the white man, solutions leaving them in cultural limbo, no longer Indian, and
perpetually at the mercy of white prejudice. The key to Native survival in Ms Silko's view, is adaptation, symbolized by the protagonist, Taio. Adaptation which involves accepting the white presence, acknowledging that it is neither good nor bad, simply an unwitting pawn of ancient forces way beyond its ken. Adaptation which at the same time celebrates one's Indianness, its unique way of relating to the land, to things both living, and non, and its special understanding of those forces which the collective white conscious has chosen to forget.

Summary: Context over Character
I'm not a big fan of this novel; I feel like instead of using specific character experiences to mold its unique story, it really capitalizes upon the context of the story. Its setting, native american reservation post WW2, is certainly a fertile ground for all sorts of social commentaries.

However, the tone of the novel is set mostly by the main character's incessant depression and post traumatic stress; you can't blame a war veteran for being traumatized, but this tone makes everything slightly noticeable in the novel of great exaggerated importance because, hell, it could somehow refer to war or the suboridination of the native americans.

All of the action in this book occurs before you open the first page. We get glimpses of Tayo's life in the war, which would have probably made for a much more interesting, revealing, enlightening, and emotional book. I feel like this novel is very dry and not of much consequence.

If you're not being forced to read this book through school, then don't waste your time. After pages and pages of non-events occuring in the desert wasteland, you'll wonder what made you pick it up in the first place.

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God Is Red: A Native View of Religion, 30th Anniversary Edition

Publisher: Fulcrum Publishing
Authors: Vine Deloria Jr. Leslie Marmon Silko George E. Tinker

ISBN: 1555914985
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Summary: A stunning book!
This book deserves to be in every comparative religion course. It takes a person on the periphery of a religious culture to see what is invisible to its own people. Originally written thirty years ago, Vine Deloria, Jr.'s thought-provoking Native American perspective is equally as valid now.

One could perceive his book to be a challenge to Christianity; however, I had a vision (while reading the book) that I was standing beside a keen observer who clearly puts words to the dichotomies and paradoxes of a culture that he lived with but was not a part of--like a leaf that is carried by the river. His philosophical views are a gift that only a Native North American could share.

Deloria's ability to describe perplexing contradictions is exceptional. One I found fascinating is that Christianity adopts a historical view versus a spatial (geographical) view; however, when the United States was concerned with the spread of Communism, it attempted to establish geographical constraints to contain a philosophical threat. Something to think about.

Like Deloria I, too, am concerned that unless the dominant Christian culture begins to connect to the earth and learn what it has to share with us, at some point there will be nothing left to explain to future generation. As a traveler into the wilderness, I can say from my experiences that the land has much to teach us provided we listen and hear.

Anyone in the dominant Christian culture who is unable to set aside their own perspective could find Deloria's view offensive. Yet, if the dominant culture would entertain this perspective, there would be an immense opportunity for greater compatibility, collaboration and cohesiveness.

Armchair Interviews says: To read and reflect on any one of the many questions that Deloria poses will give rise to the obvious, "there is much to be learned from Native American religions. And Vine Deloria, Jr. is speaking his truth when he states that God is Red.

Summary: Insightful Read
Deloria's "God is Red" is an excellent critique of Christian theology. To be clear, this is not an anti-Christian text as some have stated in their review. Nor is it an argument that Native American religion is supreme or universal. It is however a critical account of Christianity and points out these criticisms by comparing Christianity to Tribal Religions. A good book for anyone interested in comparative religion, a critical view of Christianity, a better understanding of Native American religion, and anyone interested in ecology as it relates to religion/spirituality. I would have given 5 stars except the editing is below average. Writing is fine and clear, but typos and grammatical errors are too common.

Summary: Humorous, insightful, and flawed
After a visit with his Aunt Lily while a student at Oxford, C.S. Lewis wrote in his diary, "Her conversation is like an old drawer, full both of rubbish and valuable things, but all thrown together in great disorder." This quote often recurred to me while reading Vine Deloria's book "God is Red", for he shares many valuable insights regarding Native American Spirituality and its differences from Christianity while at the same time overgeneralizing, misinterpreting, and omitting a mound of evidence that goes against his stated positions so he can argue against straw men. In other words, "God is Red" is a true polemic.

Deloria is at his best when describing the various characteristics of Native American spirituality such as the strong connection with the land or the relation of mankind to all living things. In this, he gives the reader an insider's view, which is enlightening. He also correctly points out the many flaws in behavior and inconsistencies in logic demonstrated by many Christians throughout history. Sometimes he does this in a very telling fashion, as when describing the Treaty of Tordesillas in 1494 where the papal bull divided South America between Spain and Portugal. "Plainly the pope was supervising not the divinely ordered division of the world's lands but national hunting licenses for rape and pillage." At other times, his biting comments are humorous, as when he talked about a popular movie called Billy Jack, with a character having martial arts expertise who "demonstrated his commitment to peace by breaking people's limbs in a spectacular fashion."

The flaws in this book are unfortunately not mere pecadillos. For one, Deloria speaks in overly broad generalities, of "Indian tribal religions" (as though it were a single entity when in fact there is quite a bit of religious variation among the more than 300 tribes), or of behavior of a 'Christians' (when referring to the actions of governments and individuals of western Europe or the U.S. over the years).

This tendency to broadly generalize becomes problematic when he assigns blame for the wretched treatment Indians received at the hands of whites in the centuries following the arrival of Colombus. He commonly takes an anecdote and from this states a principle or generalization that is far too broad to be supported by such isolated events, e.g., an Indian killed in the Korean war not being allowed burial in his own home town in Iowa (before burial in Arlington National Cementery), and then from this states, "One can only conclude that the Christian religion and its promise of the afterlifie is not meant for nonwhites."

Deloria at times paints too much of the "White man he bad, red man he good" portrait, selecting the worst incidents of abuse over the years while ignoring a mountain of charitable actions done by both individual and corporate whites over years. Moreover, he frequently talks of the many positive values of Native American society yet omits the more beastly elements of their societies (e.g., kidnapping and torture of prisoners) and constant wars which went on between Native American tribes long before the white man ever set foot in North America.

In addition to oversimplifying complex issues, there are some serious problems with the subjectivism that Deloria promotes with regard to Native American religions. "Salvation and religious participation in communal ceremonies did not depend on the historical validity of the event but on the ceremonies and powers that were given to the people in the event." Again, "It was not what people believed to be true that was important but what they experienced as true." Such relativistic thinking is problematic because it questions the very nature of truth. If something does not need to be historically valid or believable as a doctrine, then one is hard pressed to argue against any position in the world, including the Christianity that Deloria criticizes throughout the book.

Deloria is insightful when talking about an insider's view of the Indian societies or how an outsider sees Christianity. He is at his worst making dogmatic statements insufficiently supported by the facts or arguing against straw men. "God is Red" is an interesting read, but one that ought to be taken with a large grain of salt.

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YELLOW WOMAN AND A BEAUTY OF THE SPIRIT

Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Authors: Leslie Marmon Silko

ISBN: 0684827077
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Summary: Deeply Moved by Parts of this Book
This book is a book of short stories in which some connect and others do not. My favorite story in this collection is "Yellow Woman and a Beauty of the Spirit". In this story Silko tells of helping her grandmother in her garden while her grandmother tells her stories from the Pueblo people's mythology and folklore. Silko tells us in this particular story that "Many worlds may coexist here". It's a beautiful prose piece that will stick with you after you have left it.

There are other memorable stories in this collection also. "Notes on the Almanac of the Dead" is quite interesting and as I have just recently started reading that novel, I found it especially intriguing. It tells of prophecies made 1,000s of years ago by tribal leaders about the future, i.e., the invasion of the white man, his technology, his downfall. Very, very interesting little story!

"Interior and Exterior Landscapes" is another interesting story which describes in detail the beauty of the New Mexico landscape. Then Silko goes on to talk about landscape as a character in a piece of fiction, which I found to be very compelling.

This is a really good book and if you have not otherwise read Silko a great introduction to her. As the previous writer stated there are some pieces which repeat but otherwise it is a well written and deeply moving collection of stories.

Summary: Insightful
The quality varies in this collection of essays, newspaper/magazine commentaries and other textual fragments. Also, because they often touch on similar topics, the book is a bit repetitive at places - especially in the case of "Fences Against Freedom" and "The Border Patrol State," which contain a number of identical passages. Even so, it is in these two pieces in particular that Silko provides some of her sharpest insights and most damning criticism of official U.S. policy toward Mexico and toward its own citizens living in the Southwest. Also interesting are Silko's observations on the concepts of collective memory and consciousness contained in the complex system of oral narratives among her own Laguna Pueblo nation. Although none of the contributions in this book are in-depth studies, taken together they all offer a great deal of food for thought.

Summary: Reveals The Landscape of Silko's Spirit
Silko's collection of essays present an open, expansive view of her mind and art, her background and destiny. If you've read any of her other works, reading this short book will enrich your appreciation as well as assist you on the next step of your journey. If you haven't read any Silko yet, this is a gentle way to ease you into her writings.

I read it for the background that she gives about storytelling and the narrative process; for wonderful sentences like this: "The storyteller did not just tell the stories, they would in their way act them out. The storyteller would imitate voices for vast dialogues between the various figures of the story. So we sometimes say the moment is alive again within us, within our imagination and our memory, as we listen."

I read it for the wisdom of the old ways of the old-time people; like this: "...time was round--like a tortilla; time had specific moments and specific locations, so that the beloved ancestors who had passed on were not annihilated by death, but only relocated to the place called the Cliff House. At Cliff House, people continued as they had always been, although only spirits and not living humans can travel freely over this tortilla of time. All times go on existing side by side for all eternity. No moment is lost or destroyed. There are no future times or past times; there are 'always all' [her emphasis] the times, which differ slightly, as the locations on the tortilla differ slightly. The past and the future are the same because they exist only in the present of our imaginations...." and she continues, but, isn't that powerful? As well as good writing?

I also enjoyed reading of her political activism and her position on many issues of the west and Native-Americans.

For me, highly recommended. Can't you tell?

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Storyteller

Publisher: Arcade Publishing
Authors: Leslie Marmon Silko

ISBN: 155970005X
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Summary: some good, some bad
STORYTELLER is a collection of short stories rooted in Native American culture written by Leslie Marmon Silko. The first thing that strikes me about STORYTELLER is the way the book is formatted. Normally, the reader shouldn't pay attention to it; it generally has ntohing to do with the book. However, in STORYTELLER, it is a signal to the audience that this collection of writings is going to be personal, and based on the importance of oral tradition. The text flows around the page as if it was spoken word. Intimate family pictures compliment various stories for a very personal feeling...

...unfortunately, many of the stories didn't live up to my expectations. While some stories, like the title story, were interesting, many were too vague to me, as a cultural outsider, to understand. I wasn't really connected with Tony and his friend in the story of the oppressive state trooper, after they start to believe he is an evil spirit. I start to look at it in an overly critical way because I wouldn't say the officer is possessed, I would reason that he's simply racist. This is definitely geared toward those interested in Native American cultural studies, but not necessarily appealing to the general public.

Summary: A first, now a classic
Leslie Marmon Silko's Storyteller was the first of its kind--a combination of fiction, poetry, family history, oral tradition from her own and other Native American communities, photographs--woven together to create a sense of personal, cultural, feminist, and human identity. Others have adopted some of her techniques, but Storyteller ranks as a classic work of Native American and American literature--and a great read.

Summary: A different book
The format is unusual: poems, short stories, personal accounts, photographs, all intermingled through the pages. The book shape is unusual (landscape vs the conventional portrait). The poems and songs were not lined up, but the stanzas were scattered through the page. Very interesting, and i am happy that i've read it, but i think this book was trying too hard to be different, and that took away from the content.

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Almanac of the Dead

Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics)
Authors: Leslie Marmon Silko

ISBN: 0140173196
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Summary: The American Ulysses
This novel is one of the great novels of the 20th century--IMHO. It ranks with Joyce's "Ulysses" in dissecting a culture, this one of North America (sans Canada). There are lessons here, and the writing cuts to the bone.

Not F. Scott Fitzgerald or Ernest Hemingway, to be sure. More like an extended take by Flannery O'Connor from a Native American perspective.

To read (and re-read) "The Almanac of the Dead," "Under the Volcano," (Malcolm Lowry) "Wise Blood," (O'Connor) and "Moby Dick" (guess who) is to obtain a comprehensive view of America from the underside. And the underside, as Carl Jung was at pains to point out, is where the collective unconscious is at work.

Summary: Awesome, Gritty, Graphic, and Beautiful
I love Leslie Marmon Silko's book. I was able to relate to the story and the plot is believable. Leslie is a very talented, and worthy writer. While the book was depressing at times, it was filled with truth, righteous indignation, and deep wisdom. It is time to take our lives back from those that destroy and plunder our Earth Mother, and seek nothing more then greed for comfort.

I hope a revolution develops, like the one in Almanac of the Dead. It is time for Indigenous peoples to take back their lands and to put an end to all human suffering.

This book is a message for all peoples of the Earth. It is a change that is necessary to bring peace, and harmony to our lives. Resist!

Summary: Stunning Revelation
Leslie Marmon Silko has created an intensely profound window into the deep undercurrents of American civilization. Her complex characters and revealing looks into their lives opens a porthole into the human condition that is intersting and intense all at once. The reader becomes an intregal part of the lives of the characters that she has created. The shortcomings of the characters are buried beneath reality and Silko is able to make a connection that is intriguing. Aside from the all consuming length of the book Silko manages to stay the course and complete a novel that is worthy of the time investment. I read this book as part of an essential study on modern American novels and I agree that this book has characteriscs that make it worthy of its lofty modern day status.

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	The Serpent's Tongue : Prose, Poetry, and Art of the New Mexican Pueblos Publisher: Dutton Juvenile Authors: Paula Gunn Allen Willa Cather Frank Hamilton Cushing Tony Hillerman Oliver La Farge Oliver Littlebird Barry Lopez Leslie Marmon Silko Simon J. Ortiz Joe S. Sando
ISBN: 0525455140 List Price: $35.00 Amazon Price: This item is currently not available. Buy this book from amazon.com or from amazon.co.uk	Avg Cusomer Rating: Reviews: Summary:

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The Delicacy and Strength of Lace : Letters Between Leslie Marmon Silko and James Wright

Publisher: Graywolf Press
Authors: Anne Wright

ISBN: 0915308746
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Summary: A moving, personal exchange of letters
_The Delicacy and Strength of Lace_ is an incredibly moving exchange between two great American poets who only met briefly on two occasions: Wright heard Silko read from her work which initiated the correspondence; Silko visited Wright on his deathbed. In between they exchanged letters about their everyday existences, everything from Silko's rooster to the nature of another animal, the human animal. Wright's inititial letter told Silko of his high regard for her book, _Ceremony_ and it's importance and stature in American literature. The letters quickly take on the knowing, personal feel of two people who have known each other for years. The reader is drawn into their lives and, especially, their visions. I recently re-read the book, and once again found myself examining along with the writers the very heart and nature of our existence in this vale of tears. Fans of the poetry of either will find this exchange especially enlightening, but I came to it unfamiiliar with either and found its simplicity and yet its warmth and vision compelling. I often give it as a gift. My copy has been around the world. This is a book to read, relish and re-read. Most readers will probably move next to the works of these two wonderfully compassionate soulmates. Many of Silko's poems appear in the letters.

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GARDENS IN THE DUNES: A Novel

Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Authors: Leslie Marmon Silko

ISBN: 0684863324
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Summary: If I wanted a lecture....
This book seemed to bring me straight back to my days of trying to absorb hundreds of pages of notes in my college Botany classes. Though I am interested in the subject, I did not enjoy it forced down my throat whilst trying to enjoy a fictional story. I picked up this book because of its Native American aspect. Having lived on a reservation, the stories and folktales of the cultures have always interested me. I found this book randomly at a book outlet store and decided to pick it up for a nice read. Unfortunately, what I was hoping would be a fun, interesting, and possibly historical book, turned into a Botany lecture straight out of Room 264. LMS goes on for pages and pages describing gardens and plants, most of which have no relevance to the story line. Yes, I am sure it is metaphorically pertaining to the characters or plot lines, but it is completely unecessary for any author to carry on for so long. In the long run, I ended up skipping pages and pages of this book, only to realize that somewhere in the lines of botanical descriptions, an action sentence had occured. As a result, I had to fumble my way back through the grand descriptions to figure out just exactly how Hattie and Indigo had gotten to their current location.

This is the first book of LMS I have read, but I don't think it will be the last. When it comes down to it, the story was actually quite fabulous. The tale of Indigo, Hattie, and Sister Salt is heart-warming, scary, and adventurous all at the same time -- it's just the filler that weighs it down. In my opinion, this book could have easily been cut by at LEAST half, if not more. If you do decide to pick this book up, be prepared to wade your way through pages of unecessary text -- but be aware of the gem caught in the middle.

Summary: Enchanted Gardens, Lush and Vivid botanical descriptions
I loved this novel because of its vivid descriptions of plant life and gardens. I live in an urban environment and flowers, trees, colors and scents are not part of my daily life. I just couldn't get enough, and Silko creates dazzling gardens everywhere throughout her book.

The first section is about a young Native American girl named Indigo, her Sister Salt and their Grandmother Fleet. They are making a life for themselves in a small town in the American Southwest around the turn of 19th century. Their greatest wish is to return to the home of their people, the Sand Lizards, and tend their desert garden in the dunes. But they are in constant fear of being caught by the white government and forced to live in schools or on reservations.

Although the beginning of the book is wonderfully descriptive, I became very engaged with the characters about 50 pages in. Indigo escapes from the Indian school and wanders into the gardens of Hattie and Edward, a wealthy married couple. Edward's monkey, Linnaeus, charms Indigo out of hiding and as the 2 get acquainted, we learn of Hattie's life.

Hattie was a scholar devoted to studying the role of women in early Christianity. However, the all male Harvard review board rejected her thesis topic and when she returns home, she meets and marries Edward, an older man with a professional interest in botany. Edward travels the world in search of plant specimens and his trip to South America to gather rare orchids is described in detail. In Brazil he was sabotaged, causing him personal injury as well as legal and financial difficulties. His leg was hurt so badly that intimacy is painful and unlikely for him, but Hattie wished to marry him regardless of their passionless future. With the intention of curing his money problems, Edward seeks out profitable citrus cuttings guarded closely by the Italians.

Hattie becomes attached to Indigo and persuades Edward to let Indigo travel with them. Edward has planned a trip to Italy and en route they visit their families in Long Island where we get a glimpse into the frivolous lives of the wealthy and visit their cultured gardens. Indigo meets other Native Americans whose land and lifestyle has been taken from them. The story turns to Sister Salt who is now living in the Southwest with other Native American Indian girls. Sister Salt has become a laundress and works in an area where the government is building a dam to divert water to California, taking more life-sustaining farmland away from the Indians. Meanwhile, Indigo, her pet parrot Rainbow, Hattie and Edward travel to England and visit enchanting gardens in Bath, then more charming gardens in Italy where Edward pursues his illegal scheme. There is an underlying theme of the deification of snakes and the worship of the Mother figure that is explored and lends an air of mysticism to the novel.

Throughout the story Indigo and Sister Salt long to be reunited with one another and we always wonder if it will happen. The story could have been edited in several places and I was upset by the violence against Hattie in the end of the novel. Could the author have still made her point without Hattie's loss being so extreme? Overall, I enjoyed this book immensely and I loved the journey it took me on. It is laced with many issues that are thought provoking and still relevant in today's world: feminism, religion, environmental awareness, class structure, oppression and beliefs about our relationships with others, the earth and our spirituality. I loved Indigo, Sister Salt and Hattie. I loved the mesmerizing Ghost Dance, Grandma Fleet's apricot tree, the lively Linneaus, the miniature farm animals, the Rainbow parrot, the eccentric Aunt Bronwyn, the allure of long distance travel by train and by boat, the snake in the water hole and most of all the lush and enchanting gardens.

Summary: IMMENSE STORY
Silko's novel is fascinating. Its continent-leaping plot begins and ends with the simplistic lives of the "sand lizard" Indians of the southwest. The great themes of greed and ambition are visited along the way as well as the more intimate ones of loyalty and courage.

As one might expect, when the "civilized" world intrudes into that of the young Indian girls, conflict and betrayal are the result. But politically correct ideas are not played out heavyhandedly here. Deep character development and the heartbreaking story itself are the priority of this writer.

I rarely savor a novel as much as I did this one. In fact, while reading dozens of others concurrently, this one took nearly half a year. There's a marvelous amount of gravity working in these pages.

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