Since 1990, the month of November has been celebrated in the US as Native American Heritage Month. While books by Indigenous authors can and should be read all throughout the year, Native American Heritage Month is an opportunity to further highlight these authors and their books. To honor the recent release of our nonfiction title Tribal Histories of the Willamette Valley by David G. Lewis on November 14, 2023, we explore the literary works of other Indigenous authors writing about their personal and communal histories. Like Tribal Histories of the Willamette Valley, the ten books in this list demonstrate the power of nonfiction to transmit culture, particularly through interviews and oral storytelling, and to show the interwovenness of the past with the present.

Unsettling Native Art Histories on the Northwest Coast edited by Kathryn Bunn-Marcuse and Aldona Jonaitis

Native Enough by Nina O’Leary

Native Peoples of the Olympic Peninsula: Who We Are edited by Jacilee Wray with a foreword by Senator Patty Murray

Jesintel: Living Wisdom from Coast Salish Elders by Children of the Setting Sun Productions, edited by Darrell Hillaire and Natasha Frey

As Long as Grass Grows by Dina Gilio-Whitaker

Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer

Shapes of Native Nonfiction: Collected Essays by Contemporary Writers edited by Elissa Washuta and Theresa Warburton

Carry: A Memoir of Survival on Stolen Land by Toni Jensen

Black Indian: A Memoir by Shonda Buchanan

Spirit Run: A 6,000-Mile Marathon Through North America’s Stolen Land by Noé Álvarez

Beyond reading, Native American Heritage Month is also an opportunity to learn more about Native communities in the area in which you live. Search online for local events such as talks and presentations, cultural experiences that are open to the public, and performances. On the national level, look for in-person and online events from places such as the National Museum of the American Indian, National Archives, Library of Congress, National Park Service, and National Congress of American Indians.

Written by Karina Agbisit.