An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States for Young People

Gr 9 Up--This adaptation offers an Indigenous perspective of U.S. history. Beginning with an introduction and moving into the first chapter, which discusses the Indigenous peoples who populated the land and their domestication of corn before Europeans arrived, the narrative follows a chronological track. The adapters' use of language successfully conveys the complexities of Indigenous societies. Engaging sidebars with headers such as "To Do" or "Did You Know?" provide additional details about the chapter's topic or suggest critical thinking activities. Proclamations and legislation (Document of Discovery, Proclamation of 1763, and the Morrill Act) that affected Indigenous peoples are contextualized well. Some terms or phrases are defined within a sentence while others are separated out from the text in footnotes. Excerpts from primary sources, by U.S. presidents and other government officials and Indigenous men and women, are interspersed with photographs, paintings, and maps. Each visual is captioned and relevant to the corresponding text. Source notes and a recommended list of fiction and nonfiction titles, picture books, and novels by Indigenous authors are in the back matter. VERDICT Dunbar-Ortiz's narrative history is clear, and the adapters give readers ample evidence and perspective to help them to engage with the text. A highly informative book for libraries serving high school students.--Hilary Writt, Sullivan University, Lexington, KY

Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

"An important corrective to conventional narratives of our nation's history . . . . An accessible, engaging, and necessary addition to school libraries and classrooms. An excellent read, dismantling American mythologies and fostering critical reasoning about history and current events."
—Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review

"This adaptation of An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States (2014) should be required reading for all middle and high schoolers—and their teachers . . . . There is much to commend here: the lack of sugar-coating, the debunking of origin stories, the linking between ideology and actions, the well-placed connections between events past and present, the quotes from British colonizers and American presidents that leave no doubt as to their violent intentions . . . . The resistance continues, and this book urges all readers to consider their own roles, whether as bystanders or upstanders."
—Booklist, Starred Review

"Dunbar-Ortiz's narrative history is clear, and the adapters give readers ample evidence and perspective to help them to engage with the text. A highly informative book for libraries serving high school students."
—School Library Journal, Starred Review

"Gripping, tightly written, and packed with facts traditional textbooks and historical accounts neglect to cover."
—Shelf Awareness

"Wide-ranging and politically engaged . . . a valuable resource."
—The Horn Book

"This is a desperately needed corrective to existing histories for young people, and its combination of breadth and passion will spur both reflection and emotion."
—The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

"This is the book I wish I'd had when I started teaching. An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States for Young People represents a fundamental challenge to the textbooks that celebrate 'liberty, ' 'freedom, ' and the 'rise of the American nation' but fail to recognize the humanity—or often even the existence—of the Indigenous peoples who were here first, and are still here. Our students will see the history of this country much more clearly when we put Indigenous people's lives at the center."
—Bill Bigelow, curriculum editor, Rethinking Schools, and codirector, Zinn Education Project