Native American Tribes: The History and Culture of the Pawnee

By: Charles River Editors

Narrated by: James Weippert

"All things in the world are two. In our minds we are two, good and evil. With our eyes we see two things, things that are fair and things that are ugly. We have the right hand that strikes and makes for evil, and we have the left hand full of kindness, near the heart. One foot may lead us to an evil way, the other foot may lead us to a good. So are all things two, all two." - Letakos-Lesa (Eagle Chief), a member of the Pawnee

From the Trail of Tears to Wounded Knee and Little Bighorn, the narrative of American history is incomplete without the inclusion of the Native Americans that lived on the continent before European settlers arrived in the 16th and 17th centuries. Since the first contact between natives and settlers, tribes like the Sioux, Cherokee, and Navajo have both fascinated and perplexed outsiders with their history, language, and culture. In Charles River Editors' Native American Tribes series, listeners can get caught up to speed on the history and culture of North America's most famous native tribes in the time it takes to finish a commute, while learning interesting facts long forgotten or never known.

One of the most famous Native American tribes on the Great Plains is the Pawnee, and they were also once one of the strongest groups in the region. At the turn of the 19th century, there were about 10,000 members spread across much of modern day Nebraska, Kansas, South Dakota and even into Missouri and Iowa. The Pawnee were able to thrive despite having strong neighbors to their west, most notably the Arapaho and the Lakota Sioux, and though the different Pawnee bands were autonomous, they also recognized the need to cooperate with each other to face various threats.

©2012- Charles River Editors (P)2015 Charles River Editors

Quality Listen and Good Research

Very well written and researched story. Highly recommend the read. The auto get did a great job at representing the problems the Pawnee faced and how they went from a dominate force to almost non existent in a matter of 200 years.

Good Info, Weak Narration

I lived in Nebraska, so was interested in this subject as the Pawnee are very much a part of Nebraska's roots.

The subject material was good. A good discussion of pre-Columbian contact, contact with Anglo Americans, and current life. The discussion of current life was excellent: the author wasn't nostalgic but described modern life in the 21st century for the Pawnee.

The narration is very lacking. The narrator "reads" and is monotone. He also mispronounced many Native American names (particularly tribes) as well as common words in English usage.

Overall good info and worth listening to despite the narration.