One for the books: Readers gather to learn about Native American culture

Sandi Brewster-walker, a Montaukett Indian Nation official, is an avid reader who always looks forward to diving into another historical novel or a gritty crime thriller by local author Nelson DeMille.

But throughout the pandemic, this always curious bookworm has also concentrated on another genre that strikes closest to her heart — works that chronicle, celebrate and illuminate her rich and complicated Native American culture.

In April 2020, Brewster-walker launched The Montaukett Book Club to facilitate and further the conversation about the Montaukett’s triumphs and ongoing challenges, whether it’s involving land rights or recognition that they are very much still here.

"I tried to think of something that would keep people engaged," said Brewster-walker, who lives in Amityville. "I got a lot of calls because people were home with time on their hands. They asked, ‘Is there something I can read about the Montauketts?’ "

There is a lot, actually. Dogged-eared works in her home library cover the Montauketts and other Native American communities near and far. "I was trying to keep the focus on Long Island and our local region," she said.

A welcoming group

While the scope has been somewhat narrowed, the invitation to join the discussion, initially sponsored by the Montaukett Women’s Circle, is wide open. The club meets on Zoom every other Thursday from 7 to 8 p.m.

According to Brewster-walker, club ranks have risen to nearly 80 members. At a typical get-together there are around two dozen people taking part. That includes Native Americans, non-Native Americans, extended family members, historians, educators, librarians, authors and students.

Madelyn Miller Jackson, a native of Copiague and member of the Montaukett Indian Nation who’s known as Mandy, moderates each virtual get-together. She marvels at the book club’s "ongoing dialogue about indigenous people on Long Island" and that people from various parts of the country have tuned in.

Members have logged on from Nassau and Suffolk counties, Brooklyn, Massachusetts, Georgia, Florida and other parts of the United States.

Jackson begins each hour with an overview to ensure everyone is "at the same space," she said, adding that there is a mix of generations, cultures and education levels.

She believes the book club accomplishes multiple missions, including representation and promoting Montaukett traditions and culture. "It’s about the exchange of intelligent discussion, bringing up new ideas and sharing time with one another in a fun and relaxed way," Jackson said. "It’s a safe space to communicate."

"I’m excited about the engagement of the people who want to participate," she added. "I think those interactions are very, very important."

There’s no official count of how many Americans are in book clubs, but an often-cited statistic ballparks the figure at 5 million. One of the most inviting things about any book club is that even when readers are on the same page, they bring their own distinct observations, insights and questions to the chat.

That fact shone through at the Montaukett Book Club meeting on Feb. 7, when the group continued its exploration of "The Indian Great Awakening" (Oxford University Press, 2012), a work by Linford Fisher, associate history professor at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island.

Subtitled "Religion and the Shaping of Native Cultures in Early America," the book examines how indigenous people "adapted and retooled," Fisher said, during a period from around 1720 to 1820. Beaming in from his home office in Rhode Island, the author was one of the two dozen attendees in the meeting.

Fisher happily fielded questions and insights from members. Among them: Could you please discuss how local Native people incorporated Christian teachings into their own spirituality? Can you talk about the Green Corn Festival? Why was there a predominating focus on the Narragansett Indian Tribe? And there were more.

"It's a lot for readers to really take your work seriously, and every time someone does that, it’s a gift to the author," Fisher told Newsday. "This book club has very methodically worked its way through my book, chapter by chapter. Honestly, that’s kind of amazing."

Participating in the discussion was remarkable in its own ways. "It’s always interesting to think about the ways readers approach what you’ve written," Fisher added.

Questions big and small

Some questions probed deeply. "If you were a Native American today," Jackson inquired, "after reading your book, do you have any insights or comments you’d like to share from that perspective?"

Fisher paused and considered his response. "It’s hard putting myself fully in shoes that aren’t that aren’t my own," he said. "But I think I’ve really become … more aware of how many different ways the attempt to influence indigenous communities just kept on coming, and keeps on coming, over time."

Some queries were easy-breezy and just for fun. Brewster-walker popped a question that has become a familiar one in the socially distanced era granting access to people’s personal spaces.

"I’m dying to find out what books you have behind you," the club founder said. Fisher slid over in his chair to give members a better view of a bookcase that, he said with a grin, is home to his and his wife’s collections. "It’s a big mix of novels," he told the group, "and there are academic books on the history of colonialism and slavery."

Brewster-walker considered her own book collection for inspiration to compile the club reading list.

"They’re all books I’ve read and I loved," she said, adding that she knows some of the authors. She’s a tribal adviser on "Stolen Relations," a digital humanities project Fisher is working on that is all about recovering stories of enslaved indigenous people.

In addition to his book, the group has read and discussed John Strong’s "The Montaukett Indians of Long Island," Nathan J. Cuffee and Lydia A. Jocelyn’s historical romance novel "Lords of the Soil," Ron Welburn’s "Hartford’s Ann Plato and the Native Borders of Identity," and David Bunn Martine’s "Time and Memories." Next up is Joy Harjo’s "An American Sunrise." (See sidebar.)

Welburn, who is an Accomac Cherokee and Lenape descendant, is a retired English professor from University of Massachusetts at Amherst. His book viewed the title character, who was an early 19th century writer, as part of the Native American community.

"I was delighted to be invited to participate with the book club," he said, adding that between "good, honest questions" from members and his answers, the subject was further illuminated.

Jackson describes the club’s range of reading material as "heady" and acknowledges that materials covering colonialism, occupation and land transfers "may be very dark. But they also shine a light on the intelligence, the confidence and the resilience of Native Americans," she said.

That point came through for Manhasset High School senior Caroline Owen, 17. She and other Social Studies Honor Society members were invited to sit in on the book club in January. They were given a synopsis and chapter overviews before the meeting. Afterward they wrote reflections on the experience.

Owen was struck by Fisher’s recounting of the community of Native Americans and conversion efforts by missionaries. It wasn’t a story set in some faraway world, but practically in her own backyard. "This took place very close in proximity to where I live," she told Newsday.

"I’m very interested in anthropology, history, and the relationship between societies and the individual and how that relates to political institutions on a larger scale," said Owen, who plans to study culture and politics at Georgetown University.

Long Island history is "so rich," she added, but at the same time "it’s something that’s not largely discussed in the public school system."

‘We’re still here'

Margaret Ronai, district coordinator for social studies and home and careers for K-12, hoped that Manhasset students would walk away from the experience with an expanded context and appreciation of a culture that isn’t their own.

"My goal for this is to really educate students and give them the opportunity to get different perspectives. There’s this idea that Native Americans are in the past and we moved on," she said. "It’s still an ongoing issue and just having students realize that is valuable."

Brewster-walker wholeheartedly agrees that everyone should understand that the Montauketts aren’t the bygone stuff of history books.

"It’s important for people to realize that we’re still here," she said. "It’s also really important for them to understand why we’re still here — and that’s because we’ve been able to overcome a lot of struggles."

She could write a book about that subject — and has. Her 2007 memoir, "The Colored Girl from Long Island," chronicles her experiences growing up as a Native American in Amityville. "They called us ‘colored’ then," she said.

The Montaukett Book Club is the latest chapter in ongoing effort to explore her place in the world.

"Why am I obsessed about my history? From the time I could walk and talk, my grandfather would tell us our family history," she said. "There wasn't a day in my life that I can remember where I didn't realize I was a Native American."

"I’ll be perfectly honest," she continued. "I went through periods of my life where I didn't tell people I was Native American." The potential for blowback silenced her. She’s living out loud now — and extending the conversation to Zoom.

"We have such a great book group and I'm very satisfied with it," said Brewster-walker. "I hope more people will join us."