970

This reference book includes information about 143 American Indian tribes. Twelve of them are Californian: Chumash, Hupa, Luiseno, Maidu, Miwok, Mojave, Paiute, Pomo, Wintun, Yana, Yokut, and Yurok. The book is easy to use because it has a great index and the descriptions of the tribes are arranged in alphabetical order. However, I find one of the best aspects of this book is that it makes an attempt to avoid the stereotype that Indians only existed in the past. In the book's introduction, Ronald LaFrance stated "In the encyclopedia we portray Indian tribes in three time frames: past, present and future". This will be a useful book for my fourth graders. ( )