Under Prairie Skies
The Plants and Native Peoples of the Northern Plains
Bison Books · Print & ebook · July 1, 2022
In Under Prairie Skies, C. Thomas Shay asks and answers the question, What role did plants play in the lives of early inhabitants of the northern Great Plains?
We earn from qualifying purchases.
- Who it’s for
- Plants shaped Native life across the northern Great Plains over millennia.
- Themes
- Native plant knowledge and uses, Cultivation of crops, Spiritual and material ties to land
- Genres
- Prairie Life, Native American Studies, Plants
Nearest books
Matched by what the books are about, then ordered by what their readers also loved. Most of these share its genre: Native American Studies.
Sea of GrassDave Hage, Josephine Marcotty60% matchAlso shares Prairie Life
Braiding SweetgrassRobin Wall Kimmerer55% match
Indians of the Pacific NorthwestVine Deloria Jr., Steve Pavlik54% match
Indians in the Fur TradeArthur Ray, Arthur J. Ray53% match
Indian GiversJack Weatherford52% match
Ancient PlacesJack Nisbet52% match
The Common PotLisa Brooks51% match
For younger readers: All Our Relatives, Explore Native American Cultures!, Native Plant Stories
Start with three books, and this one can be the first.
Members get a new edition every morning: a route out from their books to essays, research and talks, with the reason for each.
Start with this bookAbout this book
In Under Prairie Skies, C. Thomas Shay asks and answers the question, What role did plants play in the lives of early inhabitants of the northern Great Plains? Since humans arrived at the end of the Ice Age, plants played important roles as Native peoples learned which were valuable foods, which held medicinal value, and which were best for crafts.
Continue reading
Incorporating Native voices, ethnobotanical studies, personal stories, and research techniques, Under Prairie Skies shows how, since the end of the Ice Age, plants have held a central place in the lives of Native peoples. Eventually some groups cultivated seed-bearing annuals and, later, fields of maize and other crops. Throughout history, their lives became linked with the land, both materially and spiritually.
Northern Plains Plants
Plants shaped Native life across the northern Great Plains over millennia.
Come here for
- Plants as valuable foods
- Medicinal and craft uses of plants
Expect
- Native voices
- Ethnobotanical studies
Where it sits
| Prairie Life | 43% |
|---|---|
| Native American Studies | 41% |
| Plants | 41% |
Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.
Publisher categories
- Prairie Life
- How Cultures Work
- Native American Studies
- Authors
- C. Thomas Shay
- Publisher
- Bison Books
- Published
- July 1, 2022
- Format
- Print & ebook
- Theme
- Native plant knowledge and uses · Cultivation of crops · Spiritual and material ties to land
- Reading lane
- Prairie Life