Matriarch Makover Library
We must be willing to constantly learn, for the world is always changing.
Shared knowledge is how we understand the world around us, both collectively and as individuals. If we can find the strength to invite new information and perspectives, while also questioning the context and source of them, we can build stronger communities where each person has a purpose and role to play. Many of the books in this library have helped me along my own journey, and have helped others who recommended some of them to me. Please reach out if you have a book you’d like to see added to this library.
Most of the links are to Amazon, so that you can at least see what the cover looks like and read a description if it’s available. I invite you to look for more information elsewhere as well as support independent book sellers.
Among the Living and the Dead by Inara Verzemnieks
The Rings of My Tree: A Latvian Woman’s Journey by Jane E. Cunningham
Nordic Tales: Folktales from Norway, Sweden, Finland, Iceland, and Denmark by Chronicle Books
Folk Tales of Northern Lithuania by Robert Stanselow
Wonder Tales from Baltic Wizards by Frances Jenkins Olcott
The Storytelling Human: Lithuanian Folk Tradition Today by Lina Būgienė
Folklore in Baltic History: Resistance and Resurgence by Sadhana Naithani
A Memoir of Home, War, and Finding Refuge - Biruta's Story by Lilita Z Hardes
Social Class and Caste: A Study of Ethnicity in Colonial Latvia and Race in America by Stefan Bruvelis
Dainas – Wit and Wisdom of Ancient Latvian Poetry by Ieva Szentivanyi
A Testament of Hope: The Essential Writings and Speeches by Martin Luther King
Sacred Tree: Reflections on Native American Spirituality by Judie Bopp, Michael Bopp, Lee Brown
One River, A Thousand Voices by Claudia Castro Luna
When the Light of the World Was Subdued, Our Songs Came Through: A Norton Anthology of Native Nations Poetry by LeAnne Howe, Jennifer Elise Foerster, Joy Harjo
WHEREAS: Poems by Layli Long Soldier
All We Can Save: Truth, Courage, and Solutions for the Climate Crisis by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson, Katharine K. Wilkinson
Music & Poetry Of The Kesh by Ursula K. Le Guin & Todd Barton
How Long is Exile? by Astrida Barbins-Stahnke
The Lamb of Latvia: Growing Up During Nazi and Soviet Occupation by Jane Alter Boldenow
The Case for Latvia: Disinformation Campaigns Against a Small Nation by Jukka Rislakki
The Latvians: A Short History by Andrejs Plakans
Modern Pagan and Native Faith Movements in Central and Eastern Europe by Kaarina Aitamurto, Scott Simpson
Latvia: The Sun Rises over a Nation: A Brief History by Vilis Inde
Boundaries & Protection by Pixie Lighthorse
Conflict Resolution for Holy Beings: Poems by Joy Harjo
Prayers of Honoring Grief by Pixie Lighthorse
Hiawatha and the Peacemaker by Robbie Robertson, David Shannon
Free to Be Mohawk: Indigenous Education at the Akwesasne Freedom School by Ms. Louellyn White Ph.D.
Peace, Power, Righteousness: An Indigenous Manifesto by Taiaiake Alfred
Kayanerenkó:wa: The Great Law of Peace by Kayanesenh Paul Williams
A Clan Mother's Call: Reconstructing Haudenosaunee Cultural Memory by Jeanette Rodriguez (Author), Iakoiane Wakerahkats:the
Basic Call to Consciousness by Akwesasne Notes
Potlatch as Pedagogy: Learning Through Ceremony by Sara Florence Davidson, Robert Davidson
For Indigenous Eyes Only: A Decolonization Handbook by Waziyatawin, Michael Yellow Bird
For Indigenous Minds Only: A Decolonization Handbook by Waziyatawin, Michael Yellow Bird
Decolonizing Wealth: Indigenous Wisdom to Heal Divides and Restore Balance by Edgar Villanueva
SAM WOODS (Talking Leaves Book) by Stan Rushworth
Spiral to the Stars: Mvskoke Tools of Futurity by Laura Harjo
Red Alert! Saving the Planet with Indigenous Knowledge by Daniel R. Wildcat
Decolonizing Methodologies by Linda Tuhiwai Smith
The Inconvenient Indian: A Curious Account of Native People in North America by Thomas King
Speak Truth to Power: Human Rights Defenders Who Are Changing Our World by Kerry Kennedy
Project 562: Changing the Way We See Native America by Matika Wilbur
Grandmothers’ Wisdom: Living Portrayals from the International Council of Thirteen Indigenous Grandmothers
Original Instructions: Indigenous Teachings for a Sustainable Future by Melissa K. Nelson
The Mishomis Book: The Voice of the Ojibway by Edward Benton-Banai
Women Who Run with the Wolves: Myths and Stories of the Wild Woman Archetype Mass Market by Clarissa Pinkola Estés
Mindful of Race by Ruth King
Radical Dharma by Ruth King, Owens, Syedullah
Living for Change: An Autobiography by Grace Lee Boggs
The Different Drum: Community Making and Peace by M. Scott Peck
What Kind of Ancestor Do You Want to Be? by Hausdoerffer, Hecht, Nelson, Cummings
Unsettling Truths: The Ongoing, Dehumanizing Legacy of the Doctrine of Discovery by Mark Charles, Soong-Chan Rah
Stay Solid!: A Radical Handbook for Youth by Matt Hern & The Purple Thistle
Planning for Coexistence? by Libby Porter, Janice Barry
Indigenous Tourism Movements by Alexis Celeste Bunten, Nelson H.H. Graburn
Practice Showing Up: A Guidebook For White People Working For Racial Justice by Jardana Peacock
Nationhood Interrupted: Revitalizing nehiyaw Legal Systems by Sylvia McAdam (Saysewahum)
Feminist International: How to Change Everything by Veronica Gago
Trust in the Land: New Directions in Tribal Conservation by Beth Rose Middleton Manning
Reclaiming the Multicultural Roots of U.S. Curriculum: Communities of Color and Official Knowledge in Education by Wayne Au, Anthony L. Brown, Dolores Calderón
Next American Revolution: Sustainable Activism for the Twenty-First Century by Grace Lee Boggs, Scott Kurashige
The Color of Money: Black Banks and the Racial Wealth Gap by Mehrsa Baradaran
The Myth of Normal by Gabor Maté, MD, with Daniel Maté
My Grandmother's Hands by Resmaa Menakem
Recovering the Sacred by Winona LaDuke
The Devil You Know: A Black Power Manifesto by Charles M. Blow
Healing Our Bloodlines by G.K. Hunter
Introducing Epigenetics by Cath Ennis and Oliver Pugh
The Epigenetics Revolution by Nessa Carey
Wounds into Wisdom: Healing Intergenerational Jewish Trauma by Tirzah Firestone
"When the Body Says No: Exploring the Stress-Disease Connection" by Gabor Maté, MD
Earth Wisdom by Dolores LaChapelle
White Logic, White Methods: Racism and Methodologyby Tukufu Zuberi and Eduardo Bonilla-Silva
Apology, Forgiveness, and Reconciliation for Good Lawyers and Other Peacemakers by Peter Rufo Robinson
Reconciliation: The Ubuntu Theology of Desmond Tutu by Michael Battle
Forgiveness & Reconciliation: Public Policy & Conflict Transformation by Raymond G. Helmick, Rodney Petersen
Atonement and Forgiveness: A New Model for Black Reparations by Roy L. Brooks
The Art of Communicating by Thich Nhat Hanh
Namwayut – We Are All One: A Pathway to Reconciliation by Chief Robert Joseph
21 Things You May Not Know About the Indian Act by Bob Joseph
The Mystic Heart of Justice: Restoring Wholeness in a Broken World by Breton and Lehman
Building Peace: Sustainable Reconciliation in Divided Societies by John Paul Lederach
Keeping the Peace by Kemp & Fry
Being Peace by Thich Nhat Hanh
The Gatherings by Shirley N. Hager and Mawopiyane
Die Wise: A Manifesto for Sanity and Soul by Stephen Jenkinson
The Esselen Indians of the Big Sur Country by Gary S. Breschini and Trudy Haversat
All Our Relations by Winona LaDuke
Children of Coyote, Missionaries of Saint Francis: Indian-Spanish Relations in Colonial California, 1769-1850 by Steven W. Hackel
A Mind Spread Out on the Ground by Alicia Elliott
American Holocaust: The Conquest of the New World by David E. Stannard
The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee: Native America from 1890 to the Present by David Treuer
Masked Gods: Navaho and Pueblo Ceremonialism by Frank Waters
Bad Indians: A Tribal Memoir by Deborah A. Miranda
Hidden History of Spanish New Mexico by Ray John de Aragón
An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz
Lessons from an Indian Day School: Negotiating Colonization in Northern New Mexico, 1902-1907 by Adrea Lawrence
Conquistador Voices (Vol. I) by Kevin H. Siepel
Trash by Dorothy Allison
Our Lady of the Dark Country by Sylvia V Linsteadt
Witchcraze by Anne L. Barstow
The Spanish Inquisition by Henry Kamen
The Adoption Machine by Paul Jude Redmond
The Unsettling of America: Culture & Agriculture by Wendell Berry
A Story as Sharp as a Knife by Robert Bringhurst
Ishi: Last of His Tribe by Theodora Kroeber
Handbook of the Indians of California by Alfred L. Kroeber
Hawaii's Story by Hawaii's Queen by Liliuokalani
A Cross of Thorns by Elias Castillo
Inconvenient Skin by Shane Koyczan
From a Native Daughter: Colonialism and Sovereignty in Hawai’i by Haunani-Kay Trask
The Other Slavery: The Uncovered Story of Indian Enslavement in America by Andrés Reséndez
The Apology by Eve Ensler
Complex PTSD: From Surviving to Thriving: A Guide and Map for Recovering from Childhood Trauma by Pete Walker
Pleasure Activism: The Politics of Feeling Good by Adrienne Maree Brown
The Hite Report by Shere Hite
The Book of Joy by Dalai Lama & Desmond Tutu
The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk
The Red Road to Wellbriety by White Bison, Inc.
California Through Native Eyes by Thomas Bauer
Jambalaya: The Natural Woman's Book of Personal Charms and Practical Rituals by Luisah Teish
Red Medicine: Traditional Indigenous Rites of Birthing and Healing by Patrisia Gonzales
Healing the Soul Wound: Counseling with American Indians and Other Native People by Eduardo Duran
Sacred Laws: Spiritual Healing & Doctoring Songs by Ismana Carney
How It Is: The Native American Philosophy of V. F. Cordova by V. F. Cordova
The Ohlone Way: Indian Life in the San Francisco-Monterey Bay Area by Malcolm Margolin
Unsettling the Settler Within: Indian Residential Schools, Truth Telling, and Reconciliation in Canada Paperback by Paulette Regan