When Sally Thompson was given the task of writing about the Native presence around Glacier National Park before it became a national park in 1910, she had two tasks: first,to examine the writings of pre-park explorers, and secondly, to talk to the tribes.

After much talk among the tribal members of the Blackfeet and the Kootenai nations, they agreed to help. In fact, this became a joint effort with the Kootenai Cultural Committee and the Pikunni Traditional Association to such a degree that Thompson insisted they be given joint authorship. The two tribal groups took on the goal of making this book be an accurate history for their grandchildren. Thompson recounts that often times, they would insist that a single specific word be changed in order to give a more accurate meaning of their accounts.

This book is the result. It gives the yearly cycles, myths and day to day activities of people who lived in the area for ten thousand years before it became a National Park. For example, what we now know as the Apgar Campground was known as The Place Where We Dance for literally thousands of generations of Kootenai.

This is beautifully illustrated with dozens of historical photos and drawings. It also has a bibliography and index.

Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in Glacier Park, American Indians, or an authentic and accurate history of the Kootenai and Blackfeet peoples. ( )