Author/illustrator S.D. Nelson is my go-to source for accessible and well-presented background on Native American heroes and culture. Nelson is a member of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe in the Dakotas. His books are simply not to be missed.

The focus of this book is on Buffalo Bird Woman (Waheenee in her native language), born in 1839. (She was called Buffalo Bird Girl as a youth.). She was a member of the Hidatsa, which was united with the Mandan and Arikara people into one tribe living in villages along the Missouri River. In the Author’s Note at the end of this book, Nelson explains that in 1906, Buffalo Bird Woman, concerned that her people’s customs were vanishing and would be forgotten, met with Gilbert Wilson, an anthropologist studying the Plains Indians, and provided him with the details of her life.

Nelson draws from her stories to share Hidatsa traditions, focusing on Buffalo Bird Woman’s childhood experiences.

When Buffalo Bird Girl was only six, smallpox decimated her people, and she lost her mother, brother, and one of her aunts. Her grandmother and two aunts survived, and they raised her.

She goes on to explain, in words partly taken from direct quotes and partly summarized by Nelson, what their house was like, what they ate, and what they did all day. Women did the farming, cooking, and gathering firewood, while the men did the hunting. The children helped out with whatever they could, but also had time for fun and games. There were also occasional celebrations, such as after a successful battle, or after a successful harvest.

When winter came, Buffalo Bird Girl’s people moved from the exposed banks of the Missouri River to the wooded lowlands.

The U.S. Government contributed to the destruction of the tribes people who had managed to survive the diseases spread to Native Americans. The government passed a series of acts designed to relocate Native Americans onto reservations. They would also take charge of Native provisions and food predicated on tribes adapting to “the white man’s way” (not to mention, predicated on the character of the Government Indian Agent, which was often lacking). This meant giving up their customs, dress, and languages, inter alia. Buffalo Bird Girl and her family went to the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation.

But she did not forget the old ways, and was determined that the memories of them would not be lost. She died in 1932, having successfully collaborated with Wilson in the publication of two books based on her stories.

In an afterword, the author explains that in 1934, following the Indian Reorganization Act, the remaining Hidatsa, Mandan, and Arikara officially united as the Three Affiliated Tribes on the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation, in North Dakota. All three still exist and remain one sovereign nation.

Back matter includes the Author’s Note, a selected timeline of Native Americans, and a bibliography.

Like other books on the Native American experience by Nelson, this volume also features not only his pencil drawings and gorgeous acrylic paintings, but relevant photographs when available. Hand-created maps are on the endpapers.

Evaluation: The charming stories told by Buffalo Bird Woman in this book for older children along with the outstanding illustrations by Nelson should be a part of every curriculum about life in tribes before their total co-optation by whites hungry for their land and prejudiced against their customs. Nelson’s other books are excellent too, in particular, Red Cloud: A Lakota Story of War and Surrender, reviewed here, and Sitting Bull: Lakota Warrior and Defender of His People reviewed here. ( )

This book is a biography about Buffalo Bird Women, Waheenee from the Hidatsa tribe. The book talks of her daily life, chores, and activities as well as special occasions. We follow her into adulthood where she now looks back on those days.

Anoted Native American artist interprets the early life of Buffalo Bird Woman, Waheenee-wea, one of the last of the Hidatsa to live according to old traditions.

Using material from his subject’s own reminiscences, published by an anthropologist in the early 20th century, Lakota painter and biographer Nelson describes Buffalo Bird’s village childhood. Each section begins with a quote from her own story. Born around 1840, “three years after the smallpox winter,” the girl grew up in Like-a-Fishhook Village high over the Missouri River in what is now North Dakota. There, for nine months of each year, she lived with her family in an earth-mound lodge. She describes helping her aunts and grandmother with traditional household and garden tasks, visiting a trading center, playing with other children and her dog, and a Lakota attack. During winter’s worst weather, villagers retreated to temporary lodges in the woodlands, where they ate stored food. The extraordinary illustration of this handsome volume begins with the endpaper maps and features acrylic paintings of the Hidatsa world reminiscent of traditional Plains Indian art. Pencil drawings and relevant, carefully labeled photographs round out the exquisite design. All the artwork both supports and adds to the text. An extensive author’s note and timeline supplement this beautiful tribute.

Pair with Nelson’s Gift Horse (1999) for a broad vision of Plains Indian childhood. (notes, bibliography, index) (Informational picture book. 7-12)

A biography of Buffalo Bird Girl, of the Hidatsa people who lived from 1839-1932. Her people lived along the MIssouri River, and she was raised by her grandparents after her parents died from smallpox brought by white settlers. The story chronicles the changes the natives had to go through as their people were eventually forced to move to a reservation. Each section begins with a quote from her own story.

The childhood of a real Native American girl in the 1840s and 1850s gets a treatment that should appeal to fans of the American Girl or Little House books. Lots of pictures and vintage photos, but maybe too text heavy for younger readers or those with short attention spans.

I didn't make the connection until the end matter that she was from one of the tribes mentioned in the Ken Burns Lewis and Clark documentary I watched earlier this year. ( )