Why am I passionate about this?
When I was young, I read Bambi…and it made me want to go hunting. Perhaps I missed the point. But at the time, I thought Bambi’s exploits sounded much like the animal yarns my dad brought home from his autumnal hunting trips. Both fascinated me. I loved the idea of getting a glimpse into a secret world where animals starred in their own stories and people were, at most, part of the scenery. As an environmental historian, I’ve tried to wring those kinds of stories out of historical documents that are much more suited for telling us about human actions and desires.
Andrea's book list on early America’s beastly nature
Why did Andrea love this book?
Keepers of the Game is a great book for provoking arguments. Martin asks why Native Americans willingly participated in the European fur trade, overhunting beavers and other wild furbearers to near-extinction in the process. His succinctly explained answer is a creative one that centers on the cooperative spiritual relationship between indigenous peoples and indigenous animals. His thesis has generated multiple scholarly counters—a clear sign of true originality. This book really made me think about the different kinds of relationships people have with animals. I think it’s far too easy to assume that we all see the same thing when looking at a wild creature. Martin’s work, though, impressed upon me the need to take seriously other, more unfamiliar perspectives on the natural world.
1 author picked Keepers of the Game as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.
Examines the effects of European contact and the fur trade on the relationship between Indians and animals in eastern Canada, from Lake Winnipeg to the Canadian Maritimes, focusing primarily on the Ojibwa, Cree, Montagnais-Naskapi, and Micmac tribes.