Left Handed, Son of Old Man Hat, Bison Classic Edition: A Navajo Autobiography
Indigenous peoples history, Indigenous peoples
Synthetic audio, Automated braille
Summary
With a simplicity as disarming as it is frank Left Handed tells of his birth in the spring of 1868 when the cottonwood leaves were about the size of his thumbnail … of family chores such as guarding the sheep near the hogan and of his sexual awakening As he grows older his account turns to life in the open nomadic cattle-raising farming trading communal enterprises tribal dances and ceremonies lovemaking and marriage As Left Handed grows in understanding and stature the accumulated wisdom of his people is revealed to him He learns the Navajo lifeway which is founded on the principles of honesty foresightedness and self-discipline The style of the narrative is almost biblical in its rhythms but biblical too in many respects is the traditional way of life it recounts