Synopses & Reviews
So, How Long Have You Been Native? is Alexis C. Buntenand#8217;s firsthand account of what it is like to work in the Alaska cultural tourism industry. An Alaska Native and anthropologist, she spent two seasons working for a tribally owned tourism business that markets the Tlingit culture in Sitka. Buntenand#8217;s narrative takes readers through the summer tour season as she is hired and trained and eventually becomes a guide.
and#160;A multibillion-dollar worldwide industry, cultural tourism provides one of the most ubiquitous face-to-face interactions between peoples of different cultures and is arguably one of the primary means by which knowledge about other cultures is disseminated. Bunten goes beyond debates about who owns Native culture and has the right to and#8220;selland#8221; it to tourists. Through a series of anecdotes, she examines issues such as how and why Natives choose to sell their culture, the cutthroat politics of business in a small town, how the cruise industry maintains its bottom line, the impact of colonization on contemporary Native peoples, the ways that traditional cultural values play a role in everyday life for contemporary Alaska Natives, and how Indigenous peoples are engaging in global enterprises on their own terms. Buntenand#8217;s bottom-up approach provides a fascinating and informative look at the cultural tourism industry in Alaska.
Review
"A worthy addition to the American Indian Lives series and an uplifting story of one Native woman's ability to rise above poverty and prejudice."and#8212;Deborah Donovan, Booklist
Review
"Muscogee Daughter would be a strong choice for a book group, or for readers interested in contemporary Native American memoirs. Supernaw's life story is compellingand#8212;not only because of her one-of-a-kind experience, but also because of her ability to appeal to a universal readership."and#8212;Claire Rudy Foster, Foreword
Review
"Aand#160;surprise and a delight to read."and#8212;Betty Lytle, NewsOK.com
Review
and#8220;A unique story, but also an iconic American story, it is inspiring and heartbreaking, and ultimately redemptive. Susan Supernaw is living testimony to the triumph of the human spirit as well as the strength of Native American culture.and#8221;and#8212;Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz, author of Red Dirt: Growing Up Okie
Review
"While recounting her journey to compete for the Miss America crown, Susan remains focused on what is most important and never forgets the many people who helped her along the way. This is a charming story of perseverance and spiritual growth."and#8212;Sandy Amazeen, Monstersandcritics.com
Review
and#8220;This is a riveting story about resilience and strength. Susan Supernaw opens the door into the beauty of the Native American spirit as a young girl who triumphs in spite of tough circumstances. Itand#8217;s also the best of the Miss America storyand#8212;not about who wins a crown but about who is helped to become all she is called to be.and#8221;and#8212;Jane Jayroe, author of More Grace than Glamour: My Life as Miss America and Beyond
Review
and#8220;With tremendous empathy, warm humor, and trained insight, Native scholar and ethnographer Alexis Bunten embedded herself for a summer season in her own [Alaska Native] peopleand#8217;s cultural tourism industry. After working as a tourist guide, she produced this absolutely original, insiderand#8217;s journal on the difficult choices and behind-the-scenes debates over how to enlighten outsiders with limited attention spans while protecting the vulnerable, deep-seated beliefs and ritual practices and ever-evolving lifestyles of the local indigenous community. A case study of what small-scale, traditional societies are experiencing all around the world, this is a groundbreaking work and a riveting read.and#8221;and#8212;Peter Nabokov, author of Where the Lightning Strikes: The Lives of American Indian Sacred Places
Review
andquot;Bunten has created an enjoyable mix of ethnographic study and personal memoir in this account of navigating the cultural contradictions and tensions of being a Native Alaskan tour guide and anthropologist.andquot;andmdash;Publishers Weekly
Synopsis
How American is Miss America? For Susan Supernaw, a Muscogee (Creek) and Munsee Native American, the question wasnand#8217;t just academic. Throughout a childhood clouded by poverty, alcoholism, and abuse, Supernaw sought escape in school and dance and the Native American Church. She became a presidential scholar, won a scholarship to college, and was crowned Miss Oklahoma in 1971. Supernaw might not have won the Miss America pageant that year, but she did call attention to the Native peoples living largely invisible lives throughout their own American land. And she did at long last earn her Native American name.and#160;Chronicling a quest to escape poverty and find meaning, Supernawand#8217;s story is revealing, humorous, and deeply moving. Muscogee Daughter is the story of finding a Native American identity among the distractions and difficulties of American life and of discerning an identity among competing notions of what it is to be a woman, a Native American, and a citizen of the world.
About the Author
Susan Supernaw is a computer software, education, and technology consultant. Her manuscript for this book won the First Book Award for Prose from the Native Writers Circle of the Americas under the title and#8220;The Power of a Name.and#8221; Geary Hobson is a professor of English at the University of Oklahoma and the author of, most recently, The Last of the Ofos.