Stories of the Sioux

Luther Standing Bear, a Lakota Sioux born in the 1860s, heard these legends in his youth, when his people were being moved to reservations. In haunting mood and imagery, they celebrate the old nomadic life of the Sioux, when buffalo were plentiful and all nature fed the spirit. The twenty stories honor not only the buffalo but also the dog, the horse, the eagle, and the wolf as workaday helpers and agents of divine intervention; the wisdom of the medicine man; and the heroism and resourcefulness of individual men and women.

Children's Literature

Lakota writer, activist, actor, and performer Luther Standing Bear, born in the 1860s, is a remarkable historical figure. Born the year of the treaty that would confine his people in reservations, his traditional boyhood ended when he was sent at eleven to the federal Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Pennsylvania. He would eventually craft his personal story into astonishing narratives (My Indian Boyhood, My People the Sioux), grounding his experiences in his memories of his Lakota upbringing. This collection is therefore a piece of history republished. An introduction by Frances Washburn offers background by detailing the author's life and placing the stories in the context of his original intent in publishing them back in 1934. The stories themselves are strong and vibrant, the narrative voice rich and affectionate. The story arcs honor places and people, and tell of experiences including loss and sorrow, connections with animals, the endurance of warriors, kindness, escape from an unwanted marriage, and more. One, "Buffalo Brothers," is especially touching as it is a first person narrative. All convey the delicate balance that was involved at the time in carrying deeply felt stories to an audience unfamiliar with them, with the explicit purpose of demonstrating to that audience the humanity of the tellers. The irony of course is that the subtleties of this outreach were largely lost on audiences of 1934 and have remained misunderstood to varying degrees since. Given that issues of cultural appropriation and rhetorical sovereignty are very much extant today, these stories remain both significant and poignant.

Luther Standing Bear is the author of Land of the Spotted Eagle, My People the Sioux, and My Indian Boyhood (all available in Bison Books editions).

Frances Washburn is an assistant professor of American Indian studies and English at the University of Arizona and the author of Elsie’s Business (Nebraska 2006).