Every Day Is a Good Day: Reflections by Contemporary Indigenous Women

Amazing work! A wonderful collection about outstanding, powerful Native American Women! For anyone wanting a more complete view of native women and what they've accomplished and plan for the future.

Wilma Mankiller, along with a distinguished and talented cast of other Indian women, have created a book to savor in Every Day is a Good Day. Their highly individual perspectives on spirituality, history, culture, and womanhood should appeal to men as well as women and people of all cultures. The book dispels a number of myths long held by non-Indians who may be well-meaning but poorly informed. As a woman, I was heartened by the indigenous woman's sense of herself as integral to the community, equal to the men of her tribe, happy being "brown and round" rather than caught up with negative body images and the superficial, youth-oriented and consumer-driven culture of much of mainstream America. Every writer speaks of the damage to indigenous culture wreaked by Eurocentric domination, but at the same time, these women offer a resilient, proud, and surprisingly optimistic view of today and tomorrow. This is a book to keep on hand next to your favorite chair or on your night stand. It is not literary fast food but a deep and expansive collection of thoughts to read and contemplate a chapter at a time. The book concludes with a photo and brief bio of each of the contributing women. I had a sense of familiarity with them because of their words, but their messages also taught me that I would be arrogant to think that I "knew" them. Having lived all my fifty years in the West, never more than an hour away from an Indian reservation, I thought I knew a lot about indigenous culture, but Every Day is a Good Day gave me an articulate yet gentle comeuppance. The writers reveal nuances of Native American culture. They also celebrate the profound joy to be found in life, a joy that is available for people of any religion or ethnic group.

should include this book. Wilma graces her story with those of her colleagues.

Composed and compiled by author, activist and former principal chief of the Cherokee Nation Wilma Mankiller, Every Day Is A Good Day is an anthology of writings by Native American women reflecting on such varied topics as day-to-day life, love and acceptance, governmental issues, ceremony, finding one's way through difficult times, and much more. Black-and-white photographs of the contributors are included, but the primary focus of Every Day Is A Good Day is the power of the multitude of voices, most of which are from different tribes, and each one's message to all readers. A welcome amalgamation of wisdom, warnings, and dry commentary.