Posting book announcements on the Siouan list (fwd)

[Mark Awakuni-Sweltand]

25 October 2001
ZhiNtheho John:

Personally, I'd rather see book announcements coming as recommendations from
someone on the list who has already checked out the contents.

For example, I've been asked to look at the 2000 Watts Library (Grolier)
publication by Madelyn Klein Anderson "The Omaha". Fortunately for the
SiouanList, this 63 page book has little Omaha language (e.g., Hoo-Thu-Ga).
Unfortunately for anyone wanting to use it as an introductory text in a
grade school, it contains several questionable or misleading descriptions
and photographs, and some outright errors. I cannot determine from the
author's "note on sources" whether she actually entered Nebraska or the
Omaha Reservation, or visited with Omaha people, during her research. I am
in the process of preparing an email letter to the Grolier folks detailing
my concerns.

It is this sort of engaged information that I would find useful should
anyone wish to offer it. Otherwise, I would rather take a pass on the
marketing announcements.
best
uthixide


Mark Awakuni-Swetland, Lecturer
Anthropology/Native American Studies
University of Nebraska
Bessey Hall 132
Lincoln, NE 68588-0368
402-472-3455
mawakuni-swetland2 at unl.edu

----- Original Message -----
From: "Koontz John E" <John.Koontz at colorado.edu>
To: <siouan at lists.colorado.edu>
Sent: Thursday, October 25, 2001 7:46 AM
Subject: Posting book announcements on the Siouan list (fwd)


> I received this enquiry.  I told Mr. Schiavo only announcements of
> publications on Siouan languages would be really appropriate and that I
> was personally of the opinion that it would be better to keep book
> announcements out entirely.  I recommended SSILA as a better alternative.
>
> However, I thought I should ask the list subscribers what they thought.
> I don't think it's so much an issue of volume or length of submission.
> We probably err in all directions already - too much, too little, too
> long, too short, depending on who and when ...  For me it's more a
> question of whether you want direct commercial attention, however apt,
> modest and scholarly, through this channel.
>
> Perversely, if someone reposted an announcement or a review that wouldn't
> bother me.  It's the difference between somebody coming up and asking me
> if I'd like to buy a book and an acquaintance recommending one.
>
> If you have views on this that you'd like to express, feel free to respond
> either to the list or to me personally.
>
> -------- Forwarded message ----------
> Date: Thu, 25 Oct 2001 09:03:24 EDT
> From: EvolPub at aol.com
> To: John.Koontz at colorado.edu
> Subject: Posting book announcements on the Siouan list
>
> ...
>
> I understand that you are the moderator for the Siouan language list and
was
> wondering if you permitted postings of new book announcements that are
> relevant to the subject matter of the list. We publish a series of Native
> American language vocabularies extracted from historical documents which
the
> readers of your list would likely find interesting. While not all of our
> books deal specifically with Siouan languages, we have two Tutelo and
Saponi
> vocabularies that are due within the next year. Our posts would be
> informational, relevant, tasteful, and infrequent (perhaps 1 per month at
> most).
>
> ... [an included sample announcing an Oneida vocabulary]
>
> Tony Schiavo
> Evolution Publishing
> 10 Canal Street, Suite 231
> Bristol PA 19007
> USA
> www.evolpub.com