Description: The Wyandot were born of two Wendat peoples encountered by the French in the first half of the seventeenth century and their history is fragmented by their dispersal between Quebec, Michigan, Kansas, and Oklahoma. This book weaves these fragmented histories together, with a focus on the mid-eighteenth century.
Brief description: John L. Steckley has taught at Humber College since 1983 in the areas of Aboriginal languages, culture, and history. His books include: Beyond Their Years: Five Native Women's Stories; Full Circle: Canada's First Nations; Aboriginal Voices and the Politics of Representation in Canadian Introductory Sociology Textbooks and De Religione: Telling the 17th Century Jesuit Story in Huron to the Iroquois. In 1999, he was adopted into the Wyandot tribe of Kansas.
Review Quotes: Steckley's central thesis is that clans kept the Wyandot strong, enabling them to survive forced migration and the splitting up of ancestral villages and tribes. Steckley demonstrates that the Wyandot clan structure was dynamic in nature, despite its static depiction in classic anthropological literature. The author's uniquely personalized writing style makes this work accessible to interested readers outside of academia.... This work makes an invaluable contribution to a better understanding of Wyandot history. Summing up: Highly recommended.--B.F.R. Edwards, ALA, Choice, 2014 October 1