In The Presence of The Sun: Stories and Poems

by N. Scott Momaday

In the Presence of the Sun is a celebration of works of extraordinary range by the accomplished author and artist N. Scott Momaday. A glorious testament to our Native American past, this collection of thirty years of work from 1961 through 1991 is a concentration of riches and proof of the persistence of the human spirit. This volume features over seventy poems, sixteen newstories about the great tribal shields that delve into the deeper meaning of legend, love, and loss, as well as a striking section devoted to Billy the Kid. The words, poems, and stories are enhanced by Momaday's own line drawings and paintings.

Momaday's voice is ancestral and contemporary, profoundly American and genuinely universal. Here, at his best, is a truly distinguished poet, storyteller, and artist.

Genres: Poetry, Native American, Fiction, Short Stories, College, Indigenous

176 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1992

About the author

N. Scott Momaday's baritone voice booms from any stage. The listener, whether at the United Nations in New York City or next to the radio at home, is transported through time, known as 'kairos"and space to Oklahoma near Carnegie, to the "sacred, red earth" of Momaday's tribe.

Born Feb. 27, 1934, Momaday's most famous book remains 1969's House Made of Dawn, the story of a Pueblo boy torn between the modern and traditional worlds, for which he won a Pulitzer Prize and was honored by his tribe. He is a member of the Kiowa Gourd Dance Society. He is also a Regents Professor of Humanities at the University of Arizona, and has published other novels, memoir, plays and poetry. He's been called the dean of American Indian writers, and he has influenced other contemporary Native American writers from Paula Gunn Allen to Louise Erdrich.

Momaday views his writings, published in various books over the years, as one continuous story. Influences on his writing include literature of America and Europe and the stories of the Kiowa and other tribal peoples.

"Native Americans have a unique identity," Momaday told Native Peoples Magazine in 1998. "It was acquired over many thousands of years, and it is the most valuable thing they have. It is their essence and it must not be lost."

Momaday founded The Buffalo Trust in the 1990s to keep the conversations about Native American traditions going. He especially wanted to give Native American children the chance to getting to know elders, and he wanted the elders to teach the children the little details of their lives that make them uniquely Native American. Once the Buffalo Trust arranged for Pueblo children to have lesson from their elders in washing their hair with yucca root as their ancestors did for as long as anyone can remember.

"In the oral tradition," Momaday has said, "stories are not told merely to entertain or instruct. They are told to be believed. Stories are realities lived and believed."

Reviews

[Charles · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazing collection of poetry, short prose pieces, and sketches. Momaday is an extraordinarily talented writer. The last section of poetry was beautiful and evocative.

[Carlton Phelps · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sad Poetry

The rawness of the poems brings about the feelings of shame, as the treatment of Native Americans. True Americans.
When I read what Mr Momaday had written I could feel despair, love, loss and strength.
He tells us of times gone but never forgotten and about how his history may be forgotten by younger people.
Worth reading.

[Jeanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This poet came upon me during my travels to Santa Fe NM. I finished the book 9 years later. It was a slow book for me for many reasons. Death, pilgrim, journey, family stories, and birth all rise like smoke from his words. And the universal spirit of people becoming ripples through the pages. Of course, I view them from my perspective of Jesus as the Supreme Being, who saves. The One who walks with me through the fog.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the combination of poetry and short prose interspersed with illustrations by the author - the idea that one may create in many forms and mediums.
I especially liked the section about shields I found those stories and illustrations powerful and important.

[Lenora Good · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a marvelous collection of Momaday's stories, poetry, and art. He draws on his Kiowa heritage and paints gorgeous, gentle, and dignified word pictures for us. His artwork adds to the inspiration. A most beautiful book.

[Bert Huisman]

26a t13

[Katherine Holmes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very much liked the author's voice and his images add to that. I don't usually read so many poems in one sitting but his have correspondence, one to the next, and, like the short prose, it creates a narrative such as his section on shields. The book is a pastiche of poetry, prose about Billy the Kid, observances that are like sayings, a great texture for reading through the book.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting read. I’m not sure I ever would have picked it up on my own. But I appreciated so much of this. The Southwestern images and stories that ran throughout were rich. My favorite section was the section on Billy the Kid - as if he were Billy the Kid’s companion on the trail. It read true to me.

[Jeffrey Bumiller · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simple poems that pack at lot of punch. Some of these pieces are very zen like, heavy on beauty and wisdom.

[Nate · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mind-altering. Moving. All encompassing. Dream-like.

[Julie Akeman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this collection.