Synopses & Reviews
The Haida world is a misty archipelago a hundred stormy miles off the coasts of British Columbia and Alaska. For more than a thousand years before the Europeans came, a great culture flourished on these islands. In 1900 and 1901 the linguist and ethnographer John Swanton took dictation from the last traditional Haida-speaking storytellers, poets, and historians. Robert Bringhurst worked for many years with these manuscripts, and here he brings them to life in the English language. A Story as Sharp as a Knife brings a lifetime of passion and a broad array of skills—humanistic, scientific, and poetic—to focus on a rich and powerful tradition that the world has long ignored.
Review
"A beautiful weave of poetry anthology, poetics and anthropological adventure.”—Hans Werner, Toronto Star Hans Werner
About the Author
Robert Bringhurst is one of Canadas most respected poets and cultural historians. He is the author of The Black Canoe: Bill Reid and the Spirit of Haida Gwaii and the coauthor of The Raven Steals the Light.