ST.
FRANCIS, S.D. - "Salt Camp: HerStory, Lakota Living Treasure
Ollie Napesni" is the personal memoir of Ollie Napesni, Lakota.
In a series of 13 tape-recorded interviews between April 17, 2001
and Oct. 30, 2001, Napesni recounted her life story to Dianna Torson.
The result is an astonishing record of the remarkable life of this
respected and revered elder.
Napesni
was born at St. Francis, S.D. in 1917. She lived her early life
at Salt Camp, an area north of Rosebud, S.D., with her parents.
She recounts her life and the world beginning in 1918 through the
events of Sept. 11 into the present world. Her life is a lesson
in history and Lakota culture as she describes the conditions throughout
the Depression, Dust Bowl, and World War II up to the present day.
Her memory is astounding as she remembers even the smallest events
in colorful and vivid detail.
The
stream-of-consciousness style of her autobiography makes the reader
feel as though she is listening to Napesni in person. The intent
of the editor was to retain Napesni's voice and she has done
a credible job. In the true tradition of the Native storyteller,
she intersperses 12 tales of folklore and one "true story"
among the anecdotes and advice of Napesni's personal narrative.
During the 1960s, '70s and '80s, the feminist movement
was growing. Napesni's life story is a model for women on how
to live as equals in any society. Especially compelling is her advice
for today's society rooted in Lakota family values and the
past.
Renowned
for her famous star quilts, she has made more than 600 since 1980.
Napesni, along with her editor, have effectively sewn together the
events of her life as a liberated women, artist, teacher and storyteller.
Napesni
has shown through her own life the perseverance, courage, creativity
and peace that we should share as a world community, cooperating
towards a better future as we learn from our past.
For
more information on this book, contact Trafford Publishing at http://www.trafford.com,
call (250) 383-6864, e-mail sales @trafford.com or write Suite 6E,
2333 Government Street, Victoria, B.C. V8T 4P4.
|