Neither Wolf nor Dog

On Forgotten Roads with an Indian Elder

By: Kent Nerburn

Narrated by: Tim Connor

Length: 10 hrs and 10 mins

Publisher's summary

The 1996 Minnesota Book Award winner - a Native American work.

The heart of the Native American experience: In this 1996 Minnesota Book Award winner, Kent Nerburn draws the listener deep into the world of an Indian elder known only as Dan. It’s a world of Indian towns, white roadside cafes, and abandoned roads that swirl with the memories of the Ghost Dance and Sitting Bull. Listeners meet vivid characters like Jumbo, a 400-pound mechanic, and Annie, an 80-year-old Lakota woman living in a log cabin. Threading through the audiobook is the story of two men struggling to find a common voice.

Neither Wolf nor Dog takes listeners to the heart of the Native American experience. As the story unfolds, Dan speaks eloquently on the difference between land and property, the power of silence, and the selling of sacred ceremonies. This edition features a new introduction by the author, Kent Nerburn.

“This is a sobering, humbling, cleansing, loving book, one that every American should read.” (Yoga Journal)

If you enjoyed Empire of the Summer Moon, Heart Berries, or You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me, you’ll love owning and listening to Neither Wolf nor Dog by Kent Nerburn.

©1994 New World Library (P)2018 Novel Audio Inc.

Powerful

This is a story that is rich with perspectives on so many topics of the past, present, and future; it should be including in reading lists for students and adults who have been either knowingly or unknowingly deprived of this knowledge and understanding. I wish politicians and policy-makers would be required to read it.
The Audible version added a layer of understanding that I would have missed by reading alone. Well-done. Recommended.

Important Relevant Listen

Tim Connor’s narration puts you in the room, car, and on the plains with Grover and Dan. Kent manages a truly honest portrayal of his emotions through this amazing process.
Most importantly, this book covers huge aspects of the Native/White cultural struggle that is real, relevant and so crucial to understand, while also being so real it draws tears and laughter alike. Listen!

truly moving and inspiring!

I really wish that everybody in this planet starts to think more like a Native American. We, the nature, Mother Earth, The Whole of It need to so so so much!

Opened my eyes and my heart!

Great book to listen to while driving home from Custer State Park. It brought more meaning to visiting The Black Hills and The Badlands. Narrator is very good!

A thought provoking book.

A very thought provoking book. Allowed me to listen to an Elder of the Lakota people.

I think everyone should read this narrative. Time well spent for me

A good lesson on my journey to learn about true history through the eyes of a great man.

A must read)listen for anyone seeking to learn more about Native American way of seeing the past & our differences in thought.

Very enjoyable book, an honest book

A must read/listen.

Everyone should read this. I’m almost 30 years late but better late than never. Powerful.

Perspective

When history is learned, we often forget it’s usually written by the perceived winners. This book is a poignant Journey into some of the realities of the plight of indigenous peoples. The atrocities, the genocide, and the wickedness that was used for subjugation and extermination is one of the greatest evils in the history of the world. I’m glad that there are authors and storytellers that can lead us through a more realistic thoughtful perspective.
Teaching us about the Sacred ways, Honor, and connectivity to this beautiful earth, it’s animals, and of course the Creator.

Embrace honor and community, let go the mysticism

There's a lot here to like, though in the years since its first release, I'd have to say there have been more compelling books expressing the same ideas. Despite an early promise not to present Indians (the inaccuracy of that term is sufficiently acknowledged and reluctantly accepted) as either pathetic drunkards or wise mystics attuned to the cosmos, the book tends to stumble into the latter trope. Partially pulling the leg of the wasi'chu chronicler, and partially channeling truly held mythology, Dan the elder shares oral history, equal parts legitimate Lakota history, stinging personal grudges, and magical Native wisdom. It's the last part where the book gets wobbly. Communing with nature and honoring community are all aspirational goals. But it gets a bit too (to use modern parlance) woo-woo in its Great Spirit and Jesus narratives, assigning mysticism an importance not entirely deserved. After all, the supposed spirituality of "listening to the birds and rocks", at the end of the day, is really just scientific inquiry, as prosaic and un-Indian as that may seem. Dan doesn't like being called a wise old Indian, but it he knows enough to use it to his advantage.

As mentioned, there's a lot to like in the book, and if I'd first encountered it when initially released nearly 30 years ago, it very well may have had a larger impact. But thankfully, with that time and a slight bit of wisdom of my own, I can more rationally separate the wheat from the chaff. Native people have a lot to teach about how to live, and that is a blessing. It isn't mystical or magical, an sometimes flawed. But that makes it all the more human.

Really enjoyed this book

The story and wealth of information, humor, and introspective inspiration in this book, is wonderful.

The narrators voice and cadence were fantastic also. Wish he did the second book too.

Enlighten

This book brought many good points to light but I would be interested in another persons perspective on some of the key points like the ghost dance and what news the four directions bring mostly for self clarification.