Black Eagle Child: The Facepaint Narratives - Softcover

A classic of Native American literature, Black Eagle Child uses a rich mix of verse, prose narrative, and letters to tell Edgar Bearchild's journey to adulthood. Although the backdrop of much of Young Bear's novel may be familiar the conflicts over race, drugs, Vietnam and others that gripped America in the fifties, sixties, and seventies Bearchild recounts his coming-of-age story from a distinct vantage point, as a member of the Mesquakie nation. From his childhood delight in Jell-O to his induction into the faith of his elders, Bearchild's journey is a uniquely American one.

Destined to become a classic of Native American literature, Black Eagle Child uses a rich mix of verse, prose narrative, and letters to tell Edgar Bearchild's journey to adulthood, from his childhood delight in Jell-O to his induction into the faith of his elders. Seamlessly mixing tribal memory and the comic events of Bearchild's life, Young Bear's story excels at startling, absurdist juxtapositions of the ancient and modern, expresses bemusement and anger at the strange ways of whites, and tells of the strength and vision that come from his Native tradition.