Night is Gone, Day is Still Coming: Stories and Poems by American Indian Teens and Young Adults

by Simon J. Ortiz (Introduction)

The voices of fifty-seven young American Indians emerge in a powerful collection of original writing coedited by the anthologist of YOU HEAR ME? and THINGS I HAVE TO TELL YOU.

When the night isgone and the day isstill coming,we will be taken awayfrom this earth.We will be rising asthe next generationis coming.- from "Next Generations" by Marcia Blacksmith, age thirteen, Crow, LakotaOpen this revelatory anthology of poetry, prose, and memoir and listen to the voices of today’s young American Indians, ages eleven to twenty-two, from many nations across the A young man pines for his "fry bread queen" in a comically honest take on unrequited love. Another teen tells of a "carbonation dance," his summer ritual of crushing returnable Coke cans with his grandfather. Some express typical teenage angst. Others share glimpses of their culture’s unique traditions and beliefs. And many speak of culture clash - such as the homesick "rez girl" riding the New York subway like a "Cochiti carrot in the huge ethnic salad." The chorus assembled between the covers of this essential book sings a song that transcends all borders, seen and unseen.

Genres: Poetry, Young Adult, Native American

160 pages, Hardcover

First published July 14, 2003

About the author

Simon J. Ortiz is a Puebloan writer of the Acoma Pueblo tribe, and one of the key figures in the second wave of what has been called the Native American Renaissance. He is one of the most respected and widely read Native American poets.

After a three-year stint in the U.S. military, Ortiz enrolled at the University of New Mexico. There, he discovered few ethnic voices within the American literature canon and began to pursue writing as a way to express the generally unheard Native American voice that was only beginning to emerge in the midst of political activism.

Two years later, in 1968, he received a fellowship for writing at the University of Iowa in the International Writers Program.

In 1988, he was appointed as tribal interpreter for Acoma Pueblo, and in 1989 he became First Lieutenant Governor for the pueblo. In 1982, he became a consulting editor of the Pueblo of Acoma Press.

Since 1968, Ortiz has taught creative writing and Native American literature at various institutions, including San Diego State, the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, Navajo Community College, the College of Marin, the University of New Mexico, Sinte Gleska University, and the University of Toronto.

Ortiz is a recipient of the New Mexico Humanities Council Humanitarian Award, the National Endowment for the Arts Discovery Award, the Lila Wallace Reader's Digest Writer's Award, a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship, and was an Honored Poet recognized at the 1981 White House Salute to Poetry.

In 1981, From Sand Creek: Rising In This Heart Which Is Our America, received the Pushcart Prize in poetry.

Ortiz received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Returning the Gift Festival of Native Writers (the Wordcraft Circle of Native Writers and Storytellers) and the Native Writers' Circle of the Americas (1993)

Reviews

[S10_Abby Alley]

Grade Level: 8 and up (maybe 7th)

This book is an incredible compilation of poems and short stories written by Native American teens and young adults between the ages of 11-22. The talent of these young people is astonishing. Their ability to express their fears, worries, dark moments, and memories in such poetic beauty is very impressive. I was touched by a 22-year-old girl’s letter she wrote to her mother. This girl was separated from her mother at a young age, and her mother was unaware of many of the trials and tribulations she went through and eventually overcame. Tears came to my eyes as she told her mother she could feel her love even though they were far away from each other. There were themes that came up across many of the poems and stories. Family, especially the importance of the grandmother in the family was talked about by many of the authors. Alcoholism was discussed in poem after poem. The disease just ripped apart families and damaged so many lives. These young authors try to make sense of their experiences in their poetry.
This book was a pleasant surprise for me. I don’t typically love reading poetry for pleasure, but I honestly couldn’t put it down. I loved how each person was able to express themselves individually and had their own voice. Although each person is different, so many of the same painful experiences showed up over and over again. I felt like reading their poems and stories gave me an authentic look into the life of a Native American teenager and the things they are grappling with. I don’t want to over-generalize, as I am sure there are Native American teens who feel very differently than those represented in this book, but I feel good knowing this isn’t a book written by one person – it’s the feeling of many people. I would definitely recommend this book for middle school or even high school. I think it would be a great mentor text for writing person poems or short stories since the authors are real teens going through real issues. After reading some of the reviews online, I am thinking The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian could be a good book to pair this with. Many of the kids wrote about their experience leaving their reservation, which from what I understand is what the Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian is about.

[Heather]

The poetry and short stories in this book are by teenage and young adult Native Americans. Many of the poems express the conflict they feel growing up as an American Indian. The writings are very personal expressing the authors' feelings about their families and their hopes for the future. Many of the stories are heartbreaking accounts of alcoholism and child abuse. There is also a great deal of hope and stories of strength and courage.

[Lizzy]

This is a collection of poetry and short stories I got from the free section of my school library. Some of them deal with abuse and alcoholism, some of which I skipped, but I read nearly all of them. Some of my favorites are Summertime, Butch's Drop, Butterfly Princess, Traveling During Summer, My Favorite Runner, and Next Generations.

[Elsie]

This book I would classify as a narritive poem because of the theme throughout the book. This book is based around Indian traditions, apprication for nature and everything nature has to offer. The poem I used that I thought would work well with fifth graders was the poem titled, At Midnight. This poem was short, but followed a good rhythm. The rhythm flowed well while I was reading the poem. The author also used personification when addressing midnight and the trees. One line says, "At midnight there's a whisper". This would be a great way to introduce different types of figuritive language for students. Through the use of personification, the reader can identify what quality the author was trying to give the trees. In this poem, the author uses personification to display importance with the trees and nature.
As a teacher I would have many differnt options to read this poem. When teaching a unit about American Indian cultures, I could read this book to students to help them better understand the importance of nature to the specific culture.
Another way I could teach this book would be a poetry unit. This poem would introduce how poems can have deeper meaning. The students could dissect the meaning behind this particular poem. Possibly the author wanted to make midnight the calm time where everything is peaceful and perfect.
After reading, I would ask the students to write their own poem about nature and what they enojy or dislike about the world and nature. This would be a great way for children to express themselves and find a deeper meaning for an everyday object.
I really liked this poem because you can look at it in two different ways. I can relate because I love the nightime and how nature is calm and relaxing. Other people can relate with their own experiences as well. As a teacher I would hope to always have my students engaged and relating to the lesson.

[S10_Jessica Oster]

format: poetry
age: grades 8 and up
protagonist: n/a

Ortiz, S. (2003). Night is gone, day is still coming: Stories and poems by American Indian teens and young adults. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Press.
This is a wonderful collection of poems, letters, and stories written by Native Americans between the ages of eleven and twenty-two. Issues touched on range from unique cultural traditions to culture clash to the typical angst of a being a teenager. This window book will allow students to easily relate to and better understand a Native American perspective. With a wide variety of poetic formats, this book be a great supplement to a poetry unit or class as well as to a unit on Native Americans or in conjunction with reading The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie. Students could be challenged to write a poem about a specific theme (i.e. fear, death, nature) or a cultural tradition unique to their background or family. (Grades 8-12)

[Quinn]

Wow. Such power and pride and sorrow and loss. This collection of prose and poetry is beautiful and I wish this was a book taught in school during the poetry unit. This is beautiful and I can't recommend it enough

[Beth]

Collection of Stories and Poems
Ages 14-18