Woven Stone by Simon J. Ortiz

From the Publisher

"What I do as a writer, teacher, and storyteller is to demystify language," says Simon Ortiz. Widely regarded as one of the country's most important Native American poets, Ortiz has led a thirty-year career marked by a fascination with language—and by a love of his people. This omnibus of three previous works offers old and new readers an appreciation of the fruits of his dedication. Going for the Rain (1976) expresses closeness to a specific Native American way of life and its philosophy and is structured in the narrative form of a journey on the road of life. A Good Journey (1977), an evocation of Ortiz's constant awareness of his heritage, draws on the oral tradition of his Pueblo culture. Fight Back: For the Sake of the People, For the Sake of the Land (1980)—revised for this volume—has its origins in his work as a laborer in the uranium industry and is intended as a political observation and statement about that industry's effects on Native American lands and lives. In an introduction written for this volume, Ortiz tells of his boyhood in Acoma Pueblo, his early love for language, his education, and his exposure to the wider world. He traces his development as a writer, recalling his attraction to the Beats and his growing political awareness, especially a consciousness of his and other people's social struggle. "Native American writers must have an individual and communally unified commitment to their art and its relationship to their indigenous culture and people," writes Ortiz. "Through our poetry, prose, and other written works that evoke love, respect, and responsibility, Native Americans may be able to help the United States ofAmerica to go beyond survival."

Library Journal

This book combines three earlier books by Ortiz: Going for the Rain ( LJ 1/77), A Good Journey ( LJ 5/15/78), and Fight Back: For the Sake of the People, for the Sake of the Land (1980). In his introduction, Ortiz explains that one of his functions as a writer has been to demystify language. His poetry is a testament to the care he takes in saying what he has to say simply, precisely, and with regard for the intimacy between reader and poem. As a Native American (Acoma Pueblo) writer, Ortiz feels that he must be committed to both his art and its relationship to the social, cultural, and political issues affecting his people. His poems--whose titles, like ``Apache Love'' and ``The Creation According to Coyote,'' reflect his themes--eloquently convey the sadness born of the suffering Native Americans have endured at the hands of their conquerors. But they also convey hope and the vision of a people whose traditions are the foundation of the soul of this land called America. Highly recommended.-- Francis Poole, Univ. of Delaware Lib., Newark

Booknews

An omnibus of three previous works--Going for the Rain, A Good Journey, and Fighting Back--by one of the leading contemporary Native American poets. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

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