Review by Choice Review
This well-crafted collection provides a valuable new look at the experiences of Shawnees, Delawares, and other Natives in the region between the Mississippi River, Great Lakes, and Ohio Valley and their relations with the growing flood of Anglo-American traders, settlers, military men, and politicians. The 11 distinct pieces begin with Ian Steele's examination of how a seemingly insignificant incident in South Carolina may have triggered the French and Indian War, and end with Thomas Lappas's penetrating look at the efforts of the Sac-Fox leader Keokuk to fulfill the duties of a chief while dealing with the threat of removal. Each piece examines a narrow range of people, space, and time, and each historian (from senior scholar to graduate student) has a particular interest: politics, diplomacy, economics, land use, identity, or crime. The resulting book features deep analyses and revelations while providing a broad view of developments and issues in this region during a century of explosive change. Such balance is rarely achieved by edited collections, making this volume useful for undergraduate courses as well as for more focused scholars. ^BSumming Up: Highly recommended. All levels/libraries. D. R. Mandell Truman State University
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
