Paiute Princess

Deborah Kogan Ray chronicles the inspirational life story of Sarah Winnemucca, who was born in 1814 in Nevada to a northern Paiute tribe. While Christina Moore's steady, strong voice details the events of Sarah's life in the third person, Angela Lin's softer tone injects passion and feeling into Sarah's first-person accounts. The horrifying aspects of the story are delivered with suitable solemnity. Sarah never gave up on her fight to gain rights for her people even while being subjected to prejudice, diminishing land, forced relocations, government roadblocks, and prison camps, and even if it meant working with white people, which led to resentment from her own tribe. The dual narrators' rendering of the challenges she faced elicits a deep emotional response. An author's note and timeline are included. M.F.T. (c) AudioFile 2013, Portland, Maine

June 1, 2013

Gr 3-6-Ray's biography (Farrar, Straus, 2012) provides a compelling look at a lesser-known historical figure. Sarah Winnemucca of the Paiute tribe was a determined advocate for her Native American people in the mid- to late-1800s. With gripping detail, the atrocities and injustices committed by military leaders and tribal agents are presented. In stark contrast, characters sympathetic to Sarah's cause are also introduced. Set against the backdrop of the forty-niners and the silver mining stampede, the story is presented with rich detail and direct quotes. The use of two narrators-Christina Moore and Angela Lin-effectively emphasizes when Sarah's actual words are used. Sarah's aptitude for languages and learning at a young age enabled her to straddle the white man's world and her Native American world. Motivated by her grandfather's efforts to connect peaceably with "the newcomers," Sarah wrote persuasive letters and made powerful speeches on behalf of her people. Ray's beautiful chalk drawings bring listeners into a time often overlooked in history. The book includes archival photographs, a timeline, maps, and author's notes. This inspiring story of a woman of conviction deserves a space on every library's shelf.-Terri Perper, Middletown Public Library, MD

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