Sipapu, The Story of the Indians of Arizona and New Mexico

Many accounts of American Indians treat them like museum specimens or inanimate objects of study, paying little attention to their dynamic histories and cultures. The Indian tribes of the Southwest come alive in this unusually sensitve and well-researched ethnography. William E. Coffer, himself of mixed Indian ancestry, tells their story from pre-European times to the present. He covers such tribes as the Navajo, Pueblo, Apache, Hopi, and Yaqui. His sensitive prose vividly describes the Indians' constant struggle for survival, while capturing the essence of their mystical identification with the land. "Sipapu" is a compelling source of information and a vital contribution to our understanding of American Indians and the history of the southwestern United States. It is must reading for all anthropologists and other social scientists interested in American Indian cultures.