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A review by mnboyer
The Way to Rainy Mountain by N. Scott Momaday
5.0
The Peoplehood Matrix (Tolm Holm et. al.) is an Indigenous theory that suggests all Indigenous communities have specific ties to land/place, language, ceremony, and sacred history; furthermore, each of these elements is interwoven and they rely and react to one another. I strongly believe that this theory stems directly from the prose found in Momaday's The Way to Rainy Mountain. I have never read a book that so directly shows the connection to Indigenous peoples and place, to their language, to their ceremony, and to their sacred history.
The prologue opens with the cosmology of the Kiowa, showing how they believe they came into existence and delving into some of their sacred history. It is well written, bordering on being text that appears simple but is also full of beauty and mystery. Yet you cannot put this book down once it begins. There are oral moments where it feels like you're actually listening to (not reading) the novel. Momaday walks the reader through Kiowa creation, through years of history (including mentions of intergenerational trauma), and ends by uplifting the warrior spirit. After all, oral stories are history.
Fun note: There are also illustration from Al Momaday throughout the book that are particularly gorgeous to look at.
The prologue opens with the cosmology of the Kiowa, showing how they believe they came into existence and delving into some of their sacred history. It is well written, bordering on being text that appears simple but is also full of beauty and mystery. Yet you cannot put this book down once it begins. There are oral moments where it feels like you're actually listening to (not reading) the novel. Momaday walks the reader through Kiowa creation, through years of history (including mentions of intergenerational trauma), and ends by uplifting the warrior spirit. After all, oral stories are history.
Fun note: There are also illustration from Al Momaday throughout the book that are particularly gorgeous to look at.