Review by Choice Review
The antiquity of human remains found in the Americas was one of the key debates in Americanist archaeology in the opening decades of the 20th century, but by century's end the debate had turned to the question of the ownership of human remains: Were they the property of institutions such as universities and museums, or did they belong to Native American groups that claimed the bones as remains of ancestors? Dewar examines these and other issues in her well-written and researched book. She is not a professionally trained archaeologist or physical anthropologist, but she appears well versed in the pros and cons of the various contentious issues that continue to swirl around prehistoric human remains. Nonprofessionals will find her writing nontechnical and enjoyable. Professionals will pay more attention to the juicy tidbits that she drops with respect to their friends and colleagues. All in all, Dewar presents a fairly balanced treatment of the current issue of the ownership of human remains, although it is clear she sides with Native Americans. For readers who want more coverage of this issue, see David H. Thomas's Skull Wars (CH, Oct'00). Useful references to the issues and a good index recommend this book for all levels. M. J. O'Brien University of Missouri--Columbia
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Booklist Review
In this reexamination of Native American origins, Canadian journalist Dewar argues that anthropological science is hampered by national politics, adherence to accepted "truths," reluctance to share finds, and Native American activism aimed at repatriation of Indian skeletal remains. She develops the provocative idea that the story of the colonization of the New World is as long as that of the Old and that the New and the Old Worlds may not be as separate in human origins as has been believed. Challenging the established theory that the First Americans were an Asian people who traversed the Bering Land Bridge to America as late as the last Ice Age, then trekked southward, she takes us on a rummage through basement laboratories and museum shelves for evidence that has been missed or ignored. In particular, she examines what the disputed Kennewick Man find from Washington State--designated alternatively as of Paleo-Indian, Caucasoid, and Ainu-Polynesian morphology--suggests about American prehistory. Controversial but not far-fetched, Dewar's narrative, written with the zest of a travel account, will intrigue amateur archaeologists and readers interested in American Indians. Philip Herbst
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Dewar, a Canadian investigative journalist whose expos Cloak of Green probed the dark underbrush of environmental politics, returns here to dust off North American anthropology's skeletons in the closet. The author profiles a handful of scientists whose research debunks the prevailing theory that the first Americans came here on foot from Siberia over the Bering Strait during the last ice age; she also presents controversial archaeological, genetic and folkloric evidence suggesting that humans settled in South America at least 1,000 years earlier. Furthermore, she says, finds like the Caucasoid Kennewick Man, discovered in a Washington State riverbed, suggest that somebody beat the forebears of modern Native Americans to these shores. The truth is out there, but as Dewar argues, proper research has been thwarted time and again by stiff-necked academic careerism, the "dirty water of ethnic politics" and just plain carelessness bones mysteriously "disappear" from museum storerooms, labs forget to conduct crucial DNA studies and so forth. This is popular rather than hard science, and there are gripping moments, but had she written half as much book, Dewar would have told a leaner, more vibrant story. But Dewar is a keen observer of place and personality, and the scientists she interviews are the real heart of the story she wishes to tell which is perhaps why her argument sometimes gets buried in pages of anecdotal narrative. (Mar.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
We've all been taught that the first Americans crossed a land bridge over the Bering Sea about 11,000 years ago and continued down to Tierra del Fuego, populating two continents. Canadian journalist Dewar (Cloak of Green) explores emerging research that calls into question that venerated theory. In this lengthy, detailed, and well-written story, the author explores the saga of the Kennewick Man, findings in Peru that show dates much earlier than expected, mummies discovered in Nevada that do not fit the accepted time lines, and more to illuminate the current state of archaeology in the Americas. With the flair of a mystery writer, Dewar explores the conflicting theories as they are influenced by academic and personal jealousies, government interference, ethnic concerns, mishandled artifacts all the human and bureaucratic folly that have gotten in the way of the science. A revealing and informative look not only at the archaeology in question but at the convoluted, intricate, and very human difficulties involved in "doing science," this book is recommended for academic and large public libraries or where interest warrants. Ann Forister, Roseville P.L., CA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Where did North Americans come from way back when, asks Canadian journalist Dewar (Cloak of Green, not reviewed, etc.), in this eye-opening study for laypeople that debates the merits of archaeological theories swirling about the question. Archaeological orthodoxy has it that the ancestors of Native Americans entered the continent over the Bering Land Bridge at the end of the last Ice Age, some 10,000 years ago. But, as Dewar illustrates in this smoothly written overview of the conflicting evidence, there is plenty of material that suggests otherwise. There are the Caucasoid features of 8000+-year-old Kennewick Man; the mitochondrial DNA work that found examples of North American populations without a common ancestor in Asia; hookworm evidence in early South Americans that could not have survived a Beringian crossing; and ancient bones with African features, plus lots more niggling little questions that simply have no truck with the established picture. Dewar travels to all the locales, interviews all the principals, comes at the problem from many angles: remains, ancient art, oral traditions, forensic archaeology, international law, racism. This is all fascinating stuff, and Dewar writes it up with the flair of a good mystery-yet what rankles and haunts the reader long after the all the new theories have been posited are Dewar's condemnations of the field of archaeological study: all the petty squabbles and beard-pulling; the narrow-minded, fractious, timid, possessive scientists who don't even publish their findings; of government interference and the deference to vested interests; of the withheld reports and outright theft of evidence and private digs and scattered materials that amount to a scandal; and of the miserable politics-land, political, and academic-that taints everything it touches. The New World may well be another Old World, and hoary parables may speak as loudly as DNA testing in the search to answer Dewar's question.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
Review by Booklist Review
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Review by Library Journal Review
Review by Kirkus Book Review
