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Native Americans
Wampanoag
An introduction to the history, social structure, customs, and present life of the Wampanoag Indians.
32 pages, Library Binding
First published January 1, 2004
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
December 30, 2014
I really like the cover of the book and I expected a lot of dynamic information with vivid details, but that was really lacking and I'm disappointed in how short the novel was. I wanted to really know about the culture of Wampanoag Indians but I didn't come away feeling like I did. I learned more information through the novel Weetamoo, which was what led me to seek more info about them. But there was more insight and knowledge provided through that novel, which was about the famous woman leader than a novel about Wampanoag themselves. I'm really disappointed there wasn't more.
It was all very general information which barely scratched the surface of any topic. It might be okay for young school children to use for research to get a general knowledge, but for someone older like myself it just doesn't cut it. Children's books do have good information which I was why I chose it even though it's clearly not on my reading level, but for someone wanting to write their own book and needed very detailed information it didn't have a lot to offer.
I felt like there was so much more information that could have been talked about that wasn't, such as courtship, marriage, raising children, etc. It did say where they lived and showed a map which was helpful, but a picture mentioned that the multicolored Aquinnah Cliffs are sacred to the Wampanoag but didn't say why. It's details like that that would make this a more helpful novel, if things were explained fully instead of just mentioned casually. Every topic had only two pages about it, almost all of which didn't actually fill up the two pages but only had a little on the second page. That just isn't enough to give complete awareness about them.
The problems I had were when things were mentioned but not explained. And there were mostly short sentences that were stilted when reading and just didn't have that good of a flow. Especially when they went like "and, ...." or "then, ...." Those commas really broke it up in an awkward way and I wish the writing had been more mature and flowed better. It said the powwaws, religious leaders, conducted rituals in sweat lodges, but that was it. It didn't say what kind of rituals, what they did, said, felt, etc. It's just impossible to do anything with this information aside from just say it. I don't understand the ritual any better than I did when I started reading, and that's disappointing. Also, I would've really wanted more information about the ceremonies, what kind of songs they sang, what dances they did, who dances the dances, the procedure or order to such a thing, and things like that. I wanted to know more about the arrangement in their homes as well, like if there was some order as to where everyone slept and what the inside looked like, like where they kept all of their things. There needed to be more info about what kinds of designs they painted on their dishware and how exactly a burl cup and bowl was made and what it looked like. I know the glossary said it was the hard, rounded growth on a tree but I'm not sure how that's made into a cup. I would've also benefited from knowing what ingredients are in their stews, soups and chowders to know more about their diet. I didn't know what kind of stories were told, or what parts of their history and how they were told and I would've liked to know that. I was also confused because from the book I just read, Metacom had a brother named Wamsutta, and in here it said he had a son called Wamsutta. Now I can't distinguish what's false between what's true, and that's really frustrating when there's contradicting information out there.
The ending about the Wampanoag Today was pretty random and didn't give me any idea of how they were really living. It said they're fighting to regain their culture, they're federally recognized, that they uncovered the remains of 17 Wampanoag Indians and buried them properly, briefly mentioned cranberry days, and showed a picture of a woman braiding another's hair. Not the insight I was looking for and I'm left with too many questions that I'll have to research further.
Where they lived, their society, food, homes, clothing, crafts, family, children, myths, war, contact with Europeans, Metacom, and their lives today were all talked about.
It was all very general information which barely scratched the surface of any topic. It might be okay for young school children to use for research to get a general knowledge, but for someone older like myself it just doesn't cut it. Children's books do have good information which I was why I chose it even though it's clearly not on my reading level, but for someone wanting to write their own book and needed very detailed information it didn't have a lot to offer.
I felt like there was so much more information that could have been talked about that wasn't, such as courtship, marriage, raising children, etc. It did say where they lived and showed a map which was helpful, but a picture mentioned that the multicolored Aquinnah Cliffs are sacred to the Wampanoag but didn't say why. It's details like that that would make this a more helpful novel, if things were explained fully instead of just mentioned casually. Every topic had only two pages about it, almost all of which didn't actually fill up the two pages but only had a little on the second page. That just isn't enough to give complete awareness about them.
The problems I had were when things were mentioned but not explained. And there were mostly short sentences that were stilted when reading and just didn't have that good of a flow. Especially when they went like "and, ...." or "then, ...." Those commas really broke it up in an awkward way and I wish the writing had been more mature and flowed better. It said the powwaws, religious leaders, conducted rituals in sweat lodges, but that was it. It didn't say what kind of rituals, what they did, said, felt, etc. It's just impossible to do anything with this information aside from just say it. I don't understand the ritual any better than I did when I started reading, and that's disappointing. Also, I would've really wanted more information about the ceremonies, what kind of songs they sang, what dances they did, who dances the dances, the procedure or order to such a thing, and things like that. I wanted to know more about the arrangement in their homes as well, like if there was some order as to where everyone slept and what the inside looked like, like where they kept all of their things. There needed to be more info about what kinds of designs they painted on their dishware and how exactly a burl cup and bowl was made and what it looked like. I know the glossary said it was the hard, rounded growth on a tree but I'm not sure how that's made into a cup. I would've also benefited from knowing what ingredients are in their stews, soups and chowders to know more about their diet. I didn't know what kind of stories were told, or what parts of their history and how they were told and I would've liked to know that. I was also confused because from the book I just read, Metacom had a brother named Wamsutta, and in here it said he had a son called Wamsutta. Now I can't distinguish what's false between what's true, and that's really frustrating when there's contradicting information out there.
The ending about the Wampanoag Today was pretty random and didn't give me any idea of how they were really living. It said they're fighting to regain their culture, they're federally recognized, that they uncovered the remains of 17 Wampanoag Indians and buried them properly, briefly mentioned cranberry days, and showed a picture of a woman braiding another's hair. Not the insight I was looking for and I'm left with too many questions that I'll have to research further.
Where they lived, their society, food, homes, clothing, crafts, family, children, myths, war, contact with Europeans, Metacom, and their lives today were all talked about.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 1, 2010
Note: This review is similar to reviews of others books in this series, as their content is similar and their format is identical.
The author is an Akwesasne Mohawk, as is the illustrator, David Kanietakeron Fadden. Fadden has illustrated a number of books about Indians, including _Keepers of the Night_ and _When the Shadbush Blooms._
The Wampanoag lived together in many villages in what is now southeastern Massachusetts and Eastern Rhode Island. They gardened as well as hunted, fished, and gathered food. This easy-to-read book, just like others in the Native Americans series, contains two-page chapters including Where They Lived, Society, Food, Homes, Clothing, Crafts, Family, Children, Myths, War, Contact with Europeans. There are two pages on Wampanoag chief Metacom (King Philip), who joined with other neighboring tribes to drive out British colonists, and another page on the Wampanoag today. For another book about Metacom, see Giles and Metacom, CL Pic Del50g 2003. All books in the series include a Glossary, Index and a link to the Abdo site which gives related web sites. There are no historical sources listed in the book. The book, like others in the series, would be useful for elementary school reports. Although the book gives basic information on the tribe, much like one would find in an encyclopedia article, there is no depth of information.
The author is an Akwesasne Mohawk, as is the illustrator, David Kanietakeron Fadden. Fadden has illustrated a number of books about Indians, including _Keepers of the Night_ and _When the Shadbush Blooms._
The Wampanoag lived together in many villages in what is now southeastern Massachusetts and Eastern Rhode Island. They gardened as well as hunted, fished, and gathered food. This easy-to-read book, just like others in the Native Americans series, contains two-page chapters including Where They Lived, Society, Food, Homes, Clothing, Crafts, Family, Children, Myths, War, Contact with Europeans. There are two pages on Wampanoag chief Metacom (King Philip), who joined with other neighboring tribes to drive out British colonists, and another page on the Wampanoag today. For another book about Metacom, see Giles and Metacom, CL Pic Del50g 2003. All books in the series include a Glossary, Index and a link to the Abdo site which gives related web sites. There are no historical sources listed in the book. The book, like others in the series, would be useful for elementary school reports. Although the book gives basic information on the tribe, much like one would find in an encyclopedia article, there is no depth of information.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews