David Treuer

overview rez life

REZ LIFE—Overview

From award-winning Native American novelist David Treuer comes his first major book of non-fiction, REZ LIFE. Centered on Ojibwe reservation communities of northern Minnesota and Wisconsin—Treuer's homeland—but reaching out to include reservations across the United States, REZ LIFE is the first book written by insider about what Indian reservations are, why they exist, where they are going, and what they mean for the First Americans, and perhaps even more importantly, what they mean for America in a time when the country is once again searching for its identity.

Incorporating memoir, journalism, and history REZ LIFE tackles the harrowing losses of Treuer's family and tribe as well as the surprising triumphs of Indians over their own lives and in their own efforts to shape what America means. REZ LIFE explores the lives of everyday Indians, students, teachers, Bureau of Indian Affairs administrators, lawyers, tribal court judges and in doing so we have in our hands a story beyond the usual grief-stricken narratives of loss and complimentary stories of survival; an entirely new way of learning about reservations and the Indians who populate them.

Written with humor and insight and passion REZ LIFE gives us, for the first time, an insider's view of a world too often shrouded in myth, misunderstanding, and drenched in pathos. This book is for Natives and non-Natives alike; for anyone who has ever wondered-—what ARE Indian reservations? WHY do they exist? HOW do they work? What do they MEAN for Indians and for America.

DAVID TREUER is Ojibwe from Leech Lake Reservation in northern Minnesota where he grew up. He is the author of three novels and a book of essays. He is the recipient of grants from the Guggenheim Foundation, the National Endowment of the Humanities, and the Bush Foundation. His most recent novel, THE TRANSLATION OF DR APELLES was a "Best Book of the Year" selection of the Washington Post, Time Out, and City Pages. He is at work on another novel. REZ LIFE is his first book of non-fiction. Currently he divides his time between Leech Lake Reservation and Los Angeles.