An Introduction to Native North America

by Mark Q. Sutton

This text begins with a discussion of the geography of North America, then delves into the history of research, basic prehistory of North America, the European invasion, and the impact of Europeans on Native cultures. Also discussed are issues relating to contemporary Native Americans, including religion, health, and politics.

Genres: Anthropology, Textbooks, Archaeology, Nonfiction, Reference

422 pages, Paperback

First published November 16, 1999

About the author

Mark Q. Sutton is Emeritus Professor of Anthropology and Adjunct Assistant Professor at the University of San Diego, USA. He is Principal Investigator at Statistical Research, Inc., San Diego. His publications include An Introduction to Native North America 5e (2016), A Prehistory of North America (2011), Introduction to Cultural Ecology 3e with E.N. Anderson (2013), Paleonutrition (2010), and Archaeological Laboratory Methods: An Introduction 6e with Brooke S. Arkush (2014).

Reviews

[Olivia Mitas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this for my anthropology culture course, Indians of North America. Great overview, the case studies for certain tribes was a nice added aspect.

[Michelle DeCourcey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read for a class. Very dry and difficult to get through except for the VIP profiles and sidelights, those are great. Would use in the future as a reference for the maps that are mostly adapted from Handbook of North American Indians volumes and for the references list. An essential broad overview if you don’t plan on owning all 20 volumes of Handbook of North American Indians.

[Ray]

Wish I could've enjoyed this class a little more. It was a summer class so it was wholly online and I was left to my own devices in reading the book. It was a good read. I definitely want to do further reading with an indigenous perspective.

[Aisha Manus · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good introduction to the various nations that has a respectful voice. Good source for basic information and a jumping point. A did find a few typos.

[W · Rating 3 out of 5]

I used this for an anthro class and it was okay. I got through the class but I thought this went into so much detail and I just wasn't liking it that much. It got the job done but I wouldn't go through it again for a piece of information.

[Angela Reichert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great concise information on the North American groups. It is not overly detailed but detailed enough to get a good idea of each group and how they were organized socially, politically, and their subsistence strategies as well as impact during European contact.

[Holly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Broad, well-defined overview of different Native American cultures. Detail is lacking in some areas I would have liked to see more of and too thick in others, but overall it's a good book and accomplishes the task.

[Chaya Ruiz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book on the many Indian Tribes that existed before White man set foot on North America. Also, a sad reminder of the mass killings of Indians over land that belonged to them.

[Cassie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very detailed. Also a textbook.