Choice Review

Working collaboratively and respectfully with indigenous peoples requires commitment, because it is by interacting with people in their daily lives and assisting them on special projects that information about cultures is transmitted and understood. Luckily for readers, University of Alaska anthropologist O'Brien has viewed his profession as one dedicated both to long-term commitment to a community as a lifelong learner and to assisting individuals and communities in producing works that will help them preserve precious knowledge. Here, O'Brien presents the life work of Reverend David Salmon, a respected Gwich'in (Kutchin) elder who systematically collected men's implements to preserve late precontact and early postcontact cultural information about his ancestors' way of life and philosophy. The book contains the wealth of Salmon's detailed information, insights, and stories in Salmon's own voice without filtering them through disciplinary jargon or theory, allowing him to continue to teach future generations about how men survived in the Arctic. This exemplary book's maps, photographs, and drawings are superb and illustrate the craftsmanship and ingenuity of the toolmakers. Important for anyone working in material culture studies, indigenous studies, or anthropology. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All levels/libraries. N. J. Parezo University of Arizona