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Mission to space
God is red : a native view of religion
The displacement of native peoples
Sacred wilderness
A boy called Slow : the true story of Sitting Bull
Cell traffic : new and selected poems
Wild berries = Pikaci-mīnisa
Navajo long walk : the tragic story of a proud people's forced march from their homeland
Lana's Lakota moons
Follow the blackbirds
My name is not easy
If I ever get out of here : a novel with paintings
Mni sota makoce : the land of the Dakota
The creator's game : a story of baaga'adowe/lacrosse
Sacagawea
For indigenous eyes only : a decolonization handbook
Lincoln and the indians : Civil War policy and politics
Native writers : voices of power
An infinity of nations : how the native New World shaped early North America
Dance in a buffalo skull
Bears make rock soup and other stories
The dance boots
Jingle dancer
Before Columbus : the Americas of 1491
Grandmother Spider brings the sun : a Cherokee story
I am not a number
Yum! ¡MmMm! ¡Qué rico! : Americas' sproutings
Itse selu : Cherokee harvest festival
Crazy brave : a memoir
A broken flute : the Native experience in books for children
The chichi hoohoo bogeyman
Beloved child : a Dakota way of life
Hungry Johnny
The people shall continue
Moccasin thunder : American Indian stories for today
In the footsteps of Crazy Horse
A man called Raven
Buffalo song
The blue roses
You don't have to say you love me : a memoir
Not my girl
Native women of courage
How I became a ghost : a Choctaw Trail of Tears story #1
Sharing the skies : Navajo astronomy
Songs from the loom : a Navajo girl learns to weave
Nanabosho & Porcupine
The Dakota prisoner of war letters = Dakota Kaŝkapi Okicize Wowapi
The woman who outshone the sun : the legend of Lucia Zenteno = La mujer que brillaba aún más que el sol : la leyenda de Lucía Zenteno
Me funny : a far-reaching exploration of the humor, wittiness and repartee dominant among the First Nations people of North America, as witnessed, experienced and created directly by themselves, and with the inclusion of outside but reputable sources necessarily familiar with the indigenous sense of humour as seen from an objective perspective
Black Elk's vision : a Lakota story
SkySisters
Sky dancers
Eagle song
Native defenders of the environment
The birchbark house
The absolutely true diary of a part-time Indian
House of purple cedar
Custer died for your sins : an Indian manifesto
Giving thanks : a Native American good morning message
Native athletes in action!
Hidden roots
Sitting Bull : Lakota warrior and defender of his people
The Mishomis book : the voice of the Ojibway
First laugh : welcome, baby!
Songs of Shiprock Fair
Buffalo Bird Girl : a Hidatsa story
Taku wadaka he? = (What do you see?)
Home to Medicine Mountain
Dreaming in Indian : contemporary Native American voices
The Lone Ranger and Tonto fistfight in heaven
Birch Coulie : the epic battle of the Dakota War
All our relations : native struggles for land and life
Saltypie : a Choctaw journey from darkness into light
Muskrat will be swimming
When I was eight
Walking on earth & touching the sky : poetry and prose by Lakota youth at Red Cloud Indian School

Access the MN American Indian Collection Literature collection here.

A large selection of fiction and non-fiction works written by Native authors and focusing on Native American culture has been added to our collection, which is made possible by a project of the Minnesota Office of Indian Education using federal funding, Library Service and Technology Act [LS 00-17-0024-17].

The collection boasts works such as “Buffalo Song” by Joseph Bruchac, “The Birchbark House” by Louise Erdrich and more, and offers something for all age groups from childhood to adulthood.

To access the full collection of works, library customers can search our catalog for “MN American Indian Literature” using the keyword search and quotation marks. While the collection was originally designed for use by educators teaching grades K-12, the materials have been wildly popular for audiences of all ages and backgrounds.

Click here to access the American Indian Literature Resources for Educators: An Annotated Bibliography. This document includes the MN English Language Arts Standards for K-12, the grade level served, the title and author of the recommended book, and an annotation.

A printable version of the American Indian book list is also available.

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