Washington DC: Hayworth Publishing House, 1921. First edition. Signed.

“Writer, composer, lecturer, and activist Zitkala-Sa (Red Bird), also known as Gertrude Simmons Bonnin, was one of the first and most important First Nations reformers of the early twentieth century” (Kunesh). Her early childhood experiences placed her between two worlds, raising her awareness of the injustices faced by First Nations people. At a white Christian boarding school, she was forced to assimilate by relinquishing her Sioux language, dress, and traditions; yet she also honed her love of storytelling and music through reading and learning the piano and violin.

“She began writing about Native American life...presenting her people as generous and loving in opposition to the common racist stereotypes that portrayed them as ignorant savages and were used to justify their forced assimilation into white America” (National Park Services). She worked with the Society of American Indians, and founded the National Council of American Indians to advocate for First Nations land rights, improved funding and infrastructure, and suffrage.

Zitkala-Sa’s books were among the first to bring traditional First Nations stories to a widespread English speaking audience. The effect was that white Americans gained an education and a greater appreciation for tribal cultures; but more importantly, children who had been torn from their tribes and native languages could reconnect with their heritage. American Indian Stories, a more mature work in her oeuvre, blends children’s fables and allegories with an important account of the individual hardships and cultural genocide that First Nations children like herself experienced in Christian missionary schools that sought to assimilate them forcefully into white society.