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N. Scott Momaday

    February 27, 1934 – January 24, 2024

    N. Scott Momaday's voice transports listeners through space and time to the sacred, red earth of his tribe. His literary contributions are seen as a continuous narrative, deeply exploring the unique identity of Native Americans and the vital importance of preserving their ancient traditions. Momaday delves into the intersection of the modern and traditional worlds, drawing inspiration from American and European literature alongside the profound oral stories of indigenous peoples. His writings are not merely told, but are lived realities intended to be believed and sustained for future generations.

    The Ancient Child
    The way to Rainy Mountain
    The Death of Sitting Bear
    Earth Keeper
    Three Plays
    Sacred Legacy
    • 2023

      The Death of Sitting Bear

      New and Selected Poems

      • 192 pages
      • 7 hours of reading
      3.8(11)Add rating

      The collection showcases the profound artistry of a master poet, inviting readers to delve into the soulful exploration of dreams and the journey of self-discovery. Through evocative language and imagery, the poems resonate with themes of identity and the mysteries of existence, encouraging a deep emotional connection and reflection. Joy Harjo's endorsement highlights the transformative power of the verses, emphasizing the unique ability of poetry to convey the essence of the human experience.

      The Death of Sitting Bear
    • 2020

      Earth Keeper

      • 80 pages
      • 3 hours of reading
      4.3(1576)Add rating

      A beautifully written and poignant tribute to the Earth, from Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist and poet N. Scott Momaday. One of the most distinguished voices in American letters, N. Scott Momaday has devoted much of his life to celebrating and preserving Native American culture, especially its oral tradition. A member of the Kiowa tribe who was born and grew up on Indian reservations throughout the Southwest, Momaday has an intimate connection to the land he knows well and loves deeply. In Earth Keeper: Reflections on an American Land, Momaday reflects on his native ground and its influence on his people. "When I think about my life and the lives of my ancestors, I am inevitably led to the conviction that I, and they, belong to the American land. This is a declaration of belonging. And it is an offering to the earth." he writes. Earth Keeper is a story of attachment, rooted in oral tradition. Momaday recalls stories of his childhood that have been passed down through generations, stories that reveal a profound and sacred connection to the American landscape and a reverence for the natural world. In this moving work, he offers an homage and a warning. Momaday reminds us that the Earth is a sacred place of wonder and beauty; a source of strength and healing that must be protected before it's too late. As he so eloquently yet simply reminds us, we must all be keepers of the Earth.

      Earth Keeper
    • 2019

      Three Plays

      The Indolent Boys, Children of the Sun, and The Moon in Two Windows

      • 188 pages
      • 7 hours of reading

      N. Scott Momaday, a prominent figure in American literature and celebrated for his Pulitzer Prize-winning work, showcases his unique ability to blend oral and literary traditions in this collection of previously unpublished plays and a screenplay. Known for his deep connection to his Kiowa heritage, Momaday's theatrical works reflect his rich storytelling style, further expanding his artistic contributions beyond novels. This collection highlights his versatility and commitment to preserving cultural narratives through multiple forms of expression.

      Three Plays
    • 2018

      House Made of Dawn [50th Anniversary Ed]

      • 224 pages
      • 8 hours of reading
      3.6(231)Add rating

      A special 50th anniversary edition of the magnificent Pulitzer Prize-winning classic from N. Scott Momaday, with a new preface by the author A young Native American, Abel has come home from war to find himself caught between two worlds. The first is the world of his grandfather’s, wedding him to the rhythm of the seasons, the harsh beauty of the land, and the ancient rites and traditions of his people. But the other world—modern, industrial America—pulls at Abel, demanding his loyalty, claiming his soul, and goading him into a destructive, compulsive cycle of depravity and disgust. Beautifully rendered and deeply affecting, House Made of Dawn has moved and inspired readers and writers for the last fifty years. It remains, in the words of The Paris Review, “both a masterpiece about the universal human condition and a masterpiece of Native American literature.”

      House Made of Dawn [50th Anniversary Ed]
    • 2016

      Guns

      • 248 pages
      • 9 hours of reading

      This anthology with more than 20 contributors from a variety of authors has something to please for every fan. Editor and contributor Gerald Hausman introduces the anthology with a brief history of GUNS. Stories range in tone from The Momaday Gun by Pulitzer Prize-winning author N. Scott Momaday, to Choice of Weapons by New York Times bestselling author Jane Lindskold. There is a spiritual history of firearms as well as a historical one. The truth is, they have been with us for a very long time. Every family has a gun story, a firearm anecdote that bares the bones of the oldest argument there is-the one about the plain old cussedness of the human race. In this unusual and varied collection of tales written by masters of the word, we begin with America's legendary past-with the pirate Blackbeard and the gunslinger Billy the Kid, followed by Teddy Roosevelt and moving forward in time to Andy Warhol. Here are stories that will shock and bewilder.

      Guns
    • 2000

      Sacred Legacy

      • 192 pages
      • 7 hours of reading
      4.6(58)Add rating

      Reproduces nearly two hundred photographs of Native Americans taken by Edward Sheriff Curtis in the early 1900s, with essays that discuss aspects of life common to all tribes, including spirituality, ceremony, arts, and daily activities.

      Sacred Legacy
    • 1990

      "An intriguing combination of myth, fiction, and storytelling that demonstrates the continuing power and range of Momaday's creative vision....These are magical words. Listen." — Washington Post Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist and poet   N. Scott Momaday shapes the ancient Kiowa myth of a boy who turned into a bear into a timeless American classic. The Ancient Child juxtaposes Indian lore and Wild West legend into a hypnotic, often lyrical contemporary novel. It is the story of Locke Setman, known as Set, a Native American raised far from the reservation by his adoptive father. Set feels a strange aching in his soul and, returning to tribal lands for the funeral of his grandmother, is drawn irresistibly to the fabled bear-boy. When he meets Grey, a beautiful young medicine woman with a visionary gift, his world is turned upside down. Here is a magical saga of one man's tormented search for his identity—a quintessential American novel, and a great one.

      The Ancient Child
    • 1977

      Of all of the works of N. Scott Momaday, The Names may be the most personal. A memoir of his boyhood in Oklahoma and the Southwest, it is also described by Momaday as "an act of the imagination. When I turn my mind to my early life, it is the imaginative part of it that comes first and irresistibly into reach, and of that part I take hold."Complete with family photos, The Names is a book that will captivate readers who wish to experience the Native American way of life.

      The Names
    • 1969

      "Both a masterpiece about the universal human condition and a masterpiece of Native American literature. . . . A book everyone should read for the joy and emotion of the language it contains." -- Paris Review The magnificent Pulitzer Prize-winning classic about a stranger in his native land from renowned Kiowa writer and poet N. Scott Momaday, now available as a limited Olive Edition from Harper Perennial. A young Native American, Abel has come home from war to find himself caught between two worlds. The first is the world of his father's, wedding him to the rhythm of the seasons, the harsh beauty of the land, and the ancient rites and traditions of his people. But the other world--modern, industrial America--pulls at Abel, demanding his loyalty, trying to claim his soul, and goading him into a destructive, compulsive cycle of depravity and disgust. An American classic, House Made of Dawn is at once a tragic tale about the disabling effects of war and cultural separation, and a hopeful story of a stranger in his native land, finding his way back to all that is familiar and sacred.

      House Made of Dawn
    • 1969