Recollections of an Assiniboine Chief

This volume collects historical stories and legends told by Dan Kennedy (Ochankugahe), an Assiniboine Chief from Carry the Kettle Nakoda Nation (east of Regina, Saskatchewan). The stories span firsthand accounts of Kennedy’s experiences at Lebret (Qu’Appelle) Industrial School in the 1880s to retellings of stories of Sitting Bull and the Cyprus Hills Massacre passed down from elders and relatives. The second half of the volume focusses on myths and legends, ranging from the antics of trickster spirits to explanations of why crows have black feathers. Chapters are brief and Kennedy’s stories are uninterrupted by commentary (although editor James R. Stevens adds clarifying postscripts in several cases).