Dine Tah: My Reservation Days 1923-1939
Alwin J. Girdner's Diné Tah tells about his Navajo reservation days between 1923 and 1939. At first you're thrown off balance because of the sweet but intense humility of the writing, something largely unknown to us, but then you discover its honesty and humor. This is an utterly engaging book and certainly an unknown chapter of America --Jim Harrison, author of Legends of the FallWhat is most compelling about this large memoir is that it stays true and never strays from its title, Diné Tah, which literally translates as "among the people," or "among the Navajo. ...The importance of this book, for either scholars or general readers interested in traditional Navajo life on the reservation prior to WWII, cannot be overestimated. --The Journal of Arizona HistoryIn the chapter titled Navajo Ceremonies, the author reminisces about his own proximity to Navajo life as an eight-year-old boy who never had all the information he needed to understand the complexities of the culture. Yet what he observed as a young man were the impressions that led him to fill in the blanks years later, after he learned the language and studied the culture in an academic setting. The overwhelming amount of research on Navajo culture enables the author to share important historical and cultural details that are poignant, insightful, and distinctive as the book's greatest strength. It is obvious the author's research along with his father's voluminous collections of notes helped his memories as well, as they are vivid and carefully detailed. --Malcolm Benally, Arizona Archeological and Historical Society