FROM ABENAKI TO ZUNI: A Dictionary of Native American Tribes

Brief information on about 70 tribes in the US and Canada; each is dealt with in a short section providing basic details (e.g., area and dress) plus a short history and description of the tribe, including their present status. Two maps give the cultural and language families of North America. There are also a brief glossary, a list of tribes by geographical area, suggested reading, a bibliography, and an index. While this will serve as an introduction or a source of quick-and-easy facts, there is not much depth here, and there are confusing details: Sioux are not listed as such but under their tribal groups divisions (Yankton, Teton, and Santee); Shoshone are found under Western Shoshone. Cross references would have helped. No distinction between present and past is made in describing clothing, food, and housing. And major tribes receive the same emphasis as minor, with no comparison of population or area. Illustrations are murkily reproduced sketches; heavy, see-through paper.