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Daughters of the Earth, the Lives and Legends of Indian Women

The Native American woman was the guardian of the hearth and, on occasion, ruler and warrior, managing the affairs of her people, sporting war paint as well as necklaces and earrings. Sometimes she was a visionary and a healer, sometimes mother and matriarch. She built houses and ground corn, wove blankets and painted pottery, played field hockey and rode racehorses. Frequently she enjoyed an open and joyous sexuality before marriage.
The book surveys dozens of North American tribes to explore the chronology of the Native American woman's life from childhood through puberty, marriage, old age and death. The Native American woman emerges as a proud, sometimes stoic always human individual from whom those who came after can learn much.
The stories of these early women are enhanced with the fables, songs and incantations that were part of their cultural and spiritual lives.

Touchstone/Simon and Schuster
280 pages; Illustrated; Bibliography and index
Paperbound 7x10 $17.00

Also available in German and French

Table of Contents

1. The Dawn of Life: Childbirth in Native America
2. The Indian Child: Growing and Learning in Early America
3. From Menarche to Menopause: A Time for Taboos
4. Sharing a Life: From Courtship through Widowhood
5. Making a Home: Women's Economic Role
6. Women of Power: Leaders, Doctors, and Witches
7. Women and War: Helpers, Fighters, Victors and Vanquished
8. Time for Fun: Crafts and Recreation
9. Early Sexual Patterns: A Normal Part of Nature
10. Religion and Spirituality: A Constant Reality
11. Completion of the Cycle: Old Women and Death

Notes
Annotated Bibliography
Bibliography
Index