Books by Mourning Dove
“Cogewea is considered one of the earliest novels written by a Native American woman. Its author was a Salish writer known as Mourning Dove, or Hum-Ishu-Ma. She was named Christine Quintasket at birth. Her Western novel is really a reminder of how the genre is a diverse form that has the ability to address a range of ideas and sentiments. The novel basically offers a critique of the ‘savagery-civilisation’ binary by showing the corrupt policies of the US government and the ways in which white settlers often tried to cheat Native Americans out of their land. The book was published in the early 20th century and takes place on the Flathead Reservation in Montana in the early days of the Allotment Era.” Read more...
Susan Kollin, Literary Scholar
Interviews where books by Mourning Dove were recommended
Landmark Western Novels, recommended by Susan Kollin
The Western evolved out of colonial adventure narratives that dramatised a battle between so-called ‘savagery’ and ‘civilisation’; dime novels then turned the cowboy into an iconic symbol of masculinity—explains Susan Kollin, professor of American studies at Montana State University. But this antique genre has plenty of literary potential and moral uncertainty to offer to the modern reader. Here, she selects five landmark Western novels that explore frontier mythology.
