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Books

Connect to the UCLA VPN to access materials online or check UC Library Search for in-person check out.

Resources

Night of the Living Rez (2022) by Morgan Talty

Book cover for "Night of the Living Rez" featuring a night sky and trees
"Set in a Native community in Maine, 'Night of the Living Rez' is a riveting debut collection about what it means to be Penobscot in the twenty-first century and what it means to live, to survive, and to persevere after tragedy. In twelve striking, luminescent stories, author Morgan Talty—with searing humor, abiding compassion, and deep insight—breathes life into tales of family and a community as they struggle with a painful past and an uncertain future. A collection that examines the consequences and merits of inheritance, 'Night of the Living Rez' is an unforgettable portrayal of an Indigenous community and marks the arrival of a standout talent in contemporary fiction”(Adapted Publisher’s description)
Night of the Living Rez
Night of the Living Rez
Book cover for "Night of the Living Rez" featuring a night sky and trees

Thinning Blood: A Memoir of Family, Myth, and Identity (2023) by Leah Myers

Book cover for "Thinning Blood" with Native illustrations of animals around the border
“In this unflinching and intimate memoir, Myers excavates the stories of four generations of women in order to leave a record of her family. Beginning with her great-grandmother, the last full-blooded Native member in their lineage, she connects each woman with her totem to construct her family's totem pole: protective Bear, defiant Salmon, compassionate Hummingbird, and perched on top, Raven. Crisp and powerful, 'Thinning Blood' is at once a bold reclamation of one woman's identity and a searingly honest meditation on heritage, family, and what it means to belong.” (Adapted UC Library Description)
Thinning Blood
Thinning Blood
Book cover for "Thinning Blood" with Native illustrations of animals around the border

We are the Stars: Colonizing and Decolonizing the Oceti Sakowin Literary Tradition (2023) by Sarah Hernandez

Book cover of "We Are the Stars" with illustrations of three Oceti Sakowin women facing backwards
"'We are the Stars' critically interrogates the U.S. as a settler colonial nation and re-centers Oceti Sakowin women as our tribe's traditional culture keepers and culture bearers" (Publisher's Description)
We are the Stars
We are the Stars
Book cover of "We Are the Stars" with illustrations of three Oceti Sakowin women facing backwards

Girlhood (2021) by Melissa Febos

Cover of "Girlhood"
"In her powerful new book, critically acclaimed author Melissa Febos examines the narratives women are told about what it means to be female and what it takes to free oneself from them. Blending investigative reporting, memoir, and scholarship, Febos charts how she and others like her have reimagined relationships and made room for the anger, grief, power, and pleasure women have long been taught to deny. Written with Febos' characteristic precision, lyricism, and insight, Girlhood is a philosophical treatise, an anthem for women, and a searing study of the transitions into and away from girlhood, toward a chosen self." (Adapted UC Library Description)
Girlhood
Girlhood
Cover of "Girlhood"

Again the Far Morning: New and Selected Poems (2011) by N. Scott Momaday

Book cover for "Again the Far Morning" with an image of a torn piece of paper with writing on it
"The oral tradition of the American Indian is very important to me, and it has informed much of my writing. The poem, in the strict sense of the word, does not exist in that tradition, but song and story are indispensable and highly developed. Both are infused with poetic character. Moreover, the song in oral tradition is invested with a belief in the intrinsic power of language. That power is definitive, and it informs the best of poems.” (Preface)
Again the Far Morning
Again the Far Morning
Book cover for "Again the Far Morning" with an image of a torn piece of paper with writing on it

No Country for Eight-Spot Butterflies: a Lyric Essay (2022) by Julian Aguon

Book cover for "No Country" with a butterfly and photos of faces
"'No Country for Eight-Spotted Butterflies' is a collection of soulful ruminations about love, loss, struggle, resilience and power. Part memoir, part manifesto, the book is both a coming-of-age story and a call for justice—for everyone but, in particular, for indigenous peoples—his own and others." (Publisher's Description)
No Country for Eight-Spot Butterflies
No Country for Eight-Spot Butterflies
Book cover for "No Country" with a butterfly and photos of faces

Resources

An American Sunrise: Poems (2019) by Joy Harjo

Book cover of "An American Sunrise" featuring an illustration of people against a sunrise
"In the early 1800s, the Mvskoke people were forcibly removed from their original lands east of the Mississippi to Indian Territory, which is now part of Oklahoma. From her memory of her mother's death, to her beginnings in the Native rights movement, to the fresh road with her beloved, Harjo's personal life intertwines with tribal histories to create a space for renewed beginnings. Her poems sing of beauty and survival, illuminating a spirituality that connects her to her ancestors and thrums with the quiet anger of living in the ruins of injustice." (Adapted Publisher’s Description)
An American Sunrise
An American Sunrise
Book cover of "An American Sunrise" featuring an illustration of people against a sunrise

There There (2018) by Tommy Orange

Cover of "There There"
“Tommy Orange's first novel is a wondrous and shattering portrait of an America few of us have ever seen. There There is a multi-generational, relentlessly paced story about violence and recovery, hope and loss, identity and power, dislocation and communion, and the beauty and despair woven into the history of a nation and its people.” (Adapted Publisher's Description)
There There
There There
Cover of "There There"

The Lost Journals of Sacajewea (2023) by Debra Magpie Earling

Book cover "The Lost Journals of Sacajewea" with an illustration of bear and its prey
"Among the most memorialized women in American history, Sacajewea served as interpreter and guide for Lewis and Clark’s Corps of Discovery. In this visionary novel, acclaimed Indigenous author Debra Magpie Earling brings this mythologized figure vividly to life, casting unsparing light on the men who brutalized her and recentering Sacajewea as the arbiter of her own history." (Adapted Publisher's Description)
The Lost Journals of Sacajewea
The Lost Journals of Sacajewea
Book cover "The Lost Journals of Sacajewea" with an illustration of bear and its prey

The Rediscovery of America: Native Peoples and the Unmaking of U.S. History (2023) by Ned Blackhawk

Cover of "The Rediscovery of America" by Ned Blackhawk
"The most enduring feature of U.S. history is the presence of Native Americans, yet most histories focus on Europeans and their descendants. This long practice of ignoring Indigenous history is changing, however, with a new generation of scholars insists that any full American history address the struggle, survival, and resurgence of American Indian nations. Indigenous history is essential to understanding the evolution of modern America. Blackhawk's retelling of U.S. history acknowledges the enduring power, agency, and survival of Indigenous peoples, yielding a truer account of the United States and revealing anew the varied meanings of America." (Adapted Publisher's Description)
The Rediscovery of America
The Rediscovery of America
Cover of "The Rediscovery of America" by Ned Blackhawk

Heart Berries: A Memoir (2018) by Terese Marie Mailhot

Cover of "Heart Berries" with a heart made of illustrated berries and leaves
"'Heart Berries' is a powerful, poetic memoir of a woman's coming of age on the Seabird Island Indian Reservation in the Pacific Northwest. Mailhot trusts the reader to understand that memory isn't exact, but melded to imagination, pain, and what we can bring ourselves to accept. Her unique and at times unsettling voice graphically illustrates her mental state. As she writes, she discovers her own true voice, seizes control of her story, and, in so doing, reestablishes her connection to her family, to her people, and to her place in the world.” (Adapted Publisher’s Description)
Heart Berries
Heart Berries
Cover of "Heart Berries" with a heart made of illustrated berries and leaves

Media

Connect to the UCLA VPN to access certain titles through Kanopy.

Resources

Wild Indian (2021) directed by Lyle Mitchell Corbine Jr.

Movie cover for "Wild Indian" with main characters' faces over a tree line
"Two men learn to confront a traumatic secret they share involving the savage murder of a schoolmate." (Kanopy Description)
Wild Indian
Wild Indian
Movie cover for "Wild Indian" with main characters' faces over a tree line

N. Scott Momaday: Words from a Bear (2019) directed by Jeffrey Palmer

Movie cover for "Words from a Bear" showing a man's profile against an illustration of a bear
"When N. Scott Momaday won the 1969 Pulitzer Prize, it marked one of the first major acknowledgments of Native American literature and culture. Now, Momaday’s words come to life in this biography of a celebrated Native American storyteller." (Kanopy Description)
Words from a Bear
Words from a Bear
Movie cover for "Words from a Bear" showing a man's profile against an illustration of a bear

Barking Water (2009) directed by Sterlin Harjo

Movie cover for "Barking Water" featuring illustration of two men, one whispering into the other's ear, above a car on a road
"A uniquely delicate and moving road movie, 'Barking Water' uses the ruggedly beautiful backdrop of rural Oklahoma to tell the story of a proud Native American attempting to reconnect with his estranged family." (Kanopy Description)
Barking Water
Barking Water
Movie cover for "Barking Water" featuring illustration of two men, one whispering into the other's ear, above a car on a road

​​Little Chief (2020)

Movie cover for "Little Chief" with an illustration of two young character sitting in the grass
"Against the bleak landscape of a rural reservation in Oklahoma, exhausted school teacher, Sharon, keeps everyone at an arm’s distance while trying her best to provide for her classroom. Her student, Bear, is having a particularly hard time, enduring challenges both at home and in the classroom. As she watches Bear unravel, Sharon is ultimately forced to accept her role as an imperfect role model, the unlikely matriarch her community needs. Bear becomes desperate to escape it all, and Sharon is left chasing a little boy who is running to nowhere." (Vimeo Description)
Little Chief (Vimeo)
Little Chief (Vimeo)
Movie cover for "Little Chief" with an illustration of two young character sitting in the grass

Toaster Sister (Podcast) hosted by Andi Murphy

Toasted Sister Podcast logo featuring an illustration of Andi Murphy
"After contact, Indigenous foodways and knowledge were devastated, nearly destroyed and replaced with foods that are far from the people. So today, I’m talking to Native chefs and foodies about what Indigenous cuisine is, where it comes from, where it’s headed and how it’s used to connect them and their communities to their origins and traditions." (Website Description)
Toaster Sister
Toaster Sister
Toasted Sister Podcast logo featuring an illustration of Andi Murphy

Native Opinion (Podcast) hosted by Michael Kickingbear and David GreyOwl

Native Opinion logo
"Native Opinion is a unique Indigenous culture education Radio show & podcast from an American Indian perspective on current affairs. The Hosts of this show are Michael Kickingbear, an enrolled member of the Mashantucket Pequot tribal nation of Connecticut and David GreyOwl, of the Echoda Eastern Band of Cherokee nation of Alabama. Together they present Indigenous views on American history, politics, the environment, and culture. This show is open to all people, and its main focus is to provide sight about all things Native American." (Apple Description)education and in
Native Opinion
Native Opinion
Native Opinion logo

Resources

Coffee With My Ma (Podcast) hosted by Kaniehtiio Horn

Coffee with my Ma cover with a black and white illustration of Kaniehtiio Horn
"My radical activist mother Kahentinetha Horn tells me stories of her very long adventurous life, always with the sense of humour that carried her through."(Website Description)
Coffee With My Ma
Coffee With My Ma
Coffee with my Ma cover with a black and white illustration of Kaniehtiio Horn

All My Relations (Podcast) hosted by Matika Wilbur and Adrienne Keene

All My Relations logo featuring an illustration of the two hosts surrounded by leaves and flowers
"All My Relations is a team of folks who care about representations, and how Native peoples are represented in mainstream media. Between us we have decades of experience working in and with Native communities, and writing and speaking about issues of representation." (Website Description)
All My Relations
All My Relations
All My Relations logo featuring an illustration of the two hosts surrounded by leaves and flowers

Follow

Follow these UCLA and California groups on social media.

Resources

American Indian Student Association | UCLA

American Indian Student Association logo
"Empowerment for American Indian Students at UCLA and other academic institutions" (Instagram Description)
@NativeBruins
@NativeBruins
American Indian Student Association logo

Retention of American Indians Now!

Retention of American Indians Now logo with graphic of Indigenous man and a book
"We aim to serve and promote the mental, physical, & spiritual well being of the UCLA Native Community" (Instagram Description)
@uclarain
@uclarain
Retention of American Indians Now logo with graphic of Indigenous man and a book

UCLA American Indian Graduate Students Association

Association of American Indian Graduate Students logo of Bruin bear with a feather behind ear
"As an official campus-based student organization, AIGSA seeks to enhance the academic environment and experiences of American Indian and other interested and involved graduate students. Cultural and social interaction and learning among students are fostered through lectures and presentations involving UCLA and other college and university faculty, students, and community members. AIGSA also facilitates interdepartmental communication and camaraderie among all UCLA graduate students interested in American Indian studies." (Student Org Website)
UCLA AIGSA
UCLA AIGSA
Association of American Indian Graduate Students logo of Bruin bear with a feather behind ear

UCLA American Indian Studies Center

UCLA American Indian Studies Center logo with orange bear
"The UCLA American Indian Studies Center is an organized research unit devoted to facilitate research, strengthen education, support student and faculty projects" (X Description)
@uclaaisc
@uclaaisc
UCLA American Indian Studies Center logo with orange bear

California Indian Museum & C.C

Logo for California Indian Museum
"Native owned & operated museum" (Instagram Description))
@calindianmuseum
@calindianmuseum
Logo for California Indian Museum

American Indian Film Festival

American Indian Film Institute logo with dreamcatcher
"Celebrating 48 yrs advocating for positive representation of Native peoples in film." (Instagram Description)
@aifisf
@aifisf
American Indian Film Institute logo with dreamcatcher