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Of Earth and Little Rain: The Papago Indians
“This text reveals [Fontana’s] interaction with his [Tohono O’odham] neighbors and how geography and climate define life and culture in this piece of dry land. Fontana’s words introduce the reader to people and provide an excellent overview of tribal history, but no notice of this book can overlook John P. Schaefer’s photographs . . . [which] give the reader a feeling for what day-to-day life is like . . . for the 12,000 or so people who call Papaguería their homeland.”— Journal of Arizona History
- GenresHistory
170 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1981
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
May 17, 2021
Great place to start learning about the Tohono O’odahm tribes of Southern Arizona and Northern Sonora. As other reviewers note, this book is now a bit of of date and could have a stronger ending. I still enjoyed it! You can tell the author knew and cared for the people very much and that he was granting his readers his unique view as an outsider that was near and trusted. For me, a Tucsonan with very little real experience with the tribe, this was an excellent place to begin my education.
March 8, 2018
Very interesting, but the ending is weak. An updated version would be excellent.
April 5, 2016
Bernard Fontana lived on the border of the O'odham (aka Papago) reservation near Tuscon. This book is a reflection of his personal relationships with these native american people and the book has the Humbolt flavor of science mixed with personal experience. Although the reservation is the second largest in the US (approximately 24,000 square miles), Fontana's view transcends the US/Mexico border and instead gives a narrative of the Papago presence before and after Spanish contact.
Of special interest to me was the lifestyle of these people before contact by outsiders. They lived in a way that lightly touched the fragile ecology of the desert and mountains. Their structures were made of natural plant materials, with many structures just four poles with a covering for shade. They had a winter and summer places of residence, but could move quickly if water became scarce. They were critical of the Spanish missionary's use of cattle and clay buildings because of the water requirements for both. In a pattern which was familiar to the history of native culture's displacement from springs by American "pioneers" in San Diego, the Papago became day laborers for the Mexican farms or mines after their water sources had been stolen. What happened to the Papago in Mexico ? They became "assimilated".
On the American side of the Papago home turf, somehow their assimilation took a different path. One great story was that of an old O'odham, who was approached by a young missionary at a store where the native was eating peaches out of a can he had just purchased. He was asked why he was eating "white man's peaches" if he didn't like whites. The native refused to reply to the missionary, but said to a native bystander, " I don't like the whites, but I do like their peaches". Fontana chronicles the changes that have befallen the Papago, but also celebrates that they have an intact culture (admittedly with problems) that has survived almost four centuries since contact.
I read this book upon a recommendation of a friend from the Tucson area. Unfortunately, Bernard Fontana, prolific author and expert in Southwestern history and archaeology, died this April at age 85. In an interview in 1990, he said that he was only concerned that he would be remembered as a good father to his children and the rest didn't matter to him.
Of special interest to me was the lifestyle of these people before contact by outsiders. They lived in a way that lightly touched the fragile ecology of the desert and mountains. Their structures were made of natural plant materials, with many structures just four poles with a covering for shade. They had a winter and summer places of residence, but could move quickly if water became scarce. They were critical of the Spanish missionary's use of cattle and clay buildings because of the water requirements for both. In a pattern which was familiar to the history of native culture's displacement from springs by American "pioneers" in San Diego, the Papago became day laborers for the Mexican farms or mines after their water sources had been stolen. What happened to the Papago in Mexico ? They became "assimilated".
On the American side of the Papago home turf, somehow their assimilation took a different path. One great story was that of an old O'odham, who was approached by a young missionary at a store where the native was eating peaches out of a can he had just purchased. He was asked why he was eating "white man's peaches" if he didn't like whites. The native refused to reply to the missionary, but said to a native bystander, " I don't like the whites, but I do like their peaches". Fontana chronicles the changes that have befallen the Papago, but also celebrates that they have an intact culture (admittedly with problems) that has survived almost four centuries since contact.
I read this book upon a recommendation of a friend from the Tucson area. Unfortunately, Bernard Fontana, prolific author and expert in Southwestern history and archaeology, died this April at age 85. In an interview in 1990, he said that he was only concerned that he would be remembered as a good father to his children and the rest didn't matter to him.
June 13, 2009
Some of this book is charming, some a bit pedantic but it is one of the few I have found that paints a broad picture of the "Papago" Indians. Written in 1989 it is now quite out of date but still valuable. Author Bunny Fontana, a local legend, has lived on the San Xavier Reservation for over 25 years.
October 25, 2010
Started out great the ending was rather weak.
January 29, 2016
A sincere, respectful portrait of his neighbors in Tucson and his travels on the Tohono O’odham reservation.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews