Read, Listen, Tell: Indigenous Stories from Turtle Island is the first critical reader of Indigenous literatures to feature contributions from authors from across Turtle Island (North America). The book explores core concepts at the heart of Indigenous literary criticism, such as the relations between land, language, and community; the variety of narrative forms in Indigenous stories; and the continuities between oral and written forms of expression.
Building on two decades of scholarly work to centre Indigenous knowledges and perspectives, the book contributes to the transformation of literary method while respecting and honouring Indigenous histories and peoples of these lands. It includes well-known stories by prominent authors along with works that have often been excluded from the canon, such as those from French- and Spanish-language Indigenous authors; Indigenous authors from south of the Mexican border; Chicana/o authors; Indigenous-language authors; works in translation; as-told-to narratives; and "lost" or underappreciated texts.
In a place and time when Indigenous people often have to contend with representations that marginalize or devalue their intellectual and cultural heritage, this critical reader proclaims the diversity, vitality, and depth of Indigenous writing. It shows that the ways in which we read, listen, and tell play a key roles in how we establish relationships with one another, and how we might share knowledges across cultures, languages, and social spaces.