Living in Two Worlds

Living in Two Worlds Synopsis

LIVING IN TWO WORLDS is Charles Eastman's (Ohiyesa) compelling story of embracing a life of traditional cultural ideals of his nomadic ancestors while living in the modern industrialised world. Eastman (1858-1939) was the first and greatest of the Native American authors and the most widely celebrated spokesman of all Native Americans during the first decades of the twentieth century. His life's story gained prominence when the 2007 HBO film entitled "Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee" used Eastman, played by Adam Beach, as its leading hero. Born in a buffalo-hide tipi in 1858, Eastman was raised as a traditional Sioux Indian as a youth, but was catapulted into the dominant white society of his time, becoming a medical doctor who cared for wounded Indians after the 1890 massacre at Wounded Knee. He personally knew paragons of his race that included Red Cloud, Sitting Bull and Chief Joseph and, also, became a lobbyist in Washington, D.C. for the Sioux tribe. This book includes selections from five of Eastman's most important books edited by award-winning author, Michael Fitzgerald. Nine interviews with contemporary Native leaders from diverse tribes bring Eastman's narrative up to our current day. Filled with first-hand accounts, personal stories, interviews, timelines, maps and over 275 stunning vintage photographs and paintings, this beautifully illustrated book presents a vivid account of the American Indian experience during the last four centuries.