Rediscovering Turtle Island: A First Peoples’ Account of the Sacred Geography of America

The history, mythology, and cosmology of the hundreds of tribes that make up Turtle Island are vast, intricate, and complex. The colonization of the lands now known as America carries the trauma and hurt of broken treaties, land grabs, and genocide. Amid the legacy of disruption, the stories, beliefs, and cultures of Indigenous peoples continue to thrive.

Indigenous scholar Taylor Keen, a member of the Cherokee Nation, explores creation myths, oral traditions, artifacts, and landscapes of various North American tribes in Rediscovering Turtle Island. Keen synthesizes his research about sacred places, ancient rituals, and ceremonies, accompanied by maps, illustrations, and photos. Crediting Vine Deloria, he shares the importance of taking a perceptive look at the sociocultural impacts of colonization to reclaim the tenacity of the Indigenous spirit, which uplifts respectful and mutually beneficial human relations with land, water, animal, and plant kin.

This is an excellent read for anyone seeking to deepen their knowledge of age-old wisdom about interconnectedness from an Indigenous worldview. As a decolonizing Filipina American, I appreciated Keen’s insights about the damaging generational effects of expressionist doctrine, Western expansion, and Federal Indian policies. Knowing about colonial history is important in appreciating the resilience of Indigenous peoples. The text is undoubtedly pro-Indigenous and written in a way that is relevant and accessible to non-Natives.