52 Books, Documentaries & Movies to Celebrate Native American Heritage Month

| November 1, 2023 | 7 min read
52 books, documentaries & movies to Celebrate Native American Heritage Month

Native American Heritage Month is a time to celebrate the diverse cultures and traditions of Native American, American Indian, and Alaska Native communities, as well as honoring their historical legacy. November is also a month for awareness and acknowledgement of the inequities and erasure that Native American communities have faced, and continue to face, in the U.S.

The unemployment rate among American Indians and Alaska Natives (AIAN) was 7.3% in Q3 of 2023, over twice as high as the rate for white workers (3.4%) and higher than any other group the Bureau of Labor Statistics tracks in its data series. (The next highest rate was for Black workers at 5.8%.)  Only last year did the BLS start publishing AIAN outcomes for other monthly employment statistics such as the employment-population ratio and the labor force participation rate — for which outcomes are also worse for the AIAN population than any other published group. Even for those who are employed, the experience can differ: a Great Place to Work survey found that American Indian and Alaska Native employees have the lowest levels of belonging at each level in an organization and their sense of feeling seen and valued decreases as they move up in the organization. Compared to white employees, Indigenous employees feel 3x less belonging at the individual contributor level, 5x less belonging at the frontline manager level, 9x less belonging at the mid-level manager level, and 7x less belonging at the executive level.

Stats like these are why Syndio is committed to providing data-driven solutions to drive progress around equitable pay, representation, and opportunity for every worker. To celebrate Native American Heritage Month, our team has put together this collection of books, poetry collections, graphic novels, documentaries, movies, and TV shows that showcase Native American, American Indian, and Alaska Native stories, traditions, voices, and experiences. 

 

Nonfiction books

Project 562: Changing the Way We See Native America book coverProject 562: Changing the Way We See Native America

by Matika Wilbur

Get the book

 

 

Indigenous Ingenuity: A Celebration of Traditional North American Knowledge book coverIndigenous Ingenuity: A Celebration of Traditional North American Knowledge

by Deidre Havrelock and Edward Kay

Get the book

 

 

 

An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States book coverAn Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States

by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz

Get the book

 

 

 

Unbroken: My Fight for Survival, Hope, and Justice for Indigenous Women and Girls

by Angela Sterritt

Get the book

 

 

 

Thinning Blood: A Memoir of Family, Myth, and Identity book coverThinning Blood: A Memoir of Family, Myth, and Identity

by Leah Myers

Get the book

 

 

 

 Kinauvit?: What’s Your Name? The Eskimo Disc System and a Daughter’s Search for her Grandmother

by Norma Dunning

Get the book

 

 

 

American Indian Stories book coverAmerican Indian Stories 

by Zitkála-Šá

Get the book

 

 

 

Seven Fallen Feathers book coverSeven Fallen Feathers:  Racism, Death, and Hard Truths in a Northern City

by Tanya Talaga

Get the book

 

 

 

Waterlily book coverWaterlily

by Ella Cara Deloria

Get the book

 

 

 

 

The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee book coverThe Heartbeat of Wounded Knee: Native America from 1890 to the Present

by David Treuer

Get the book

 

 

 

 

Braiding Sweetgrass book coverBraiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants

By Robin Wall Kimmerer

Get the book

 

 

 

Keepunumuk- Weeâchumun's Thanksgiving Story book coverKeepunumuk: Weeâchumun’s Thanksgiving Story

by Danielle Greendeer, Anthony Perry, and Alexis Bunten

Get the book

 

 

Code Talker book coverCode Talker: The First and Only Memoir by One of the Original Navajo Code Talkers of WWII

by Chester Nez and Judith Schiess Avila

Get the book

 

 

 

Crazy Brave book coverCrazy Brave: A Memoir

By Joy Harjo

Get the book

 

 

 

Native American Heritage Month: Heart Berries book coverHeart Berries: A Memoir

by Terese Marie Mailhot

Get the book

 

 

 

Tallchief American's Prima Ballerina book coverTallchief: America’s Prima Ballerina

By Maria Tallchief

Get the book

 

 

 

Black Elk Speaks book coverBlack Elk Speaks

by John G. Neihardt

Get the book

 

 

 

Killers of the Flower Moon book coverKillers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI

by David Grann

Get the book

 

 

 

 

Fiction

Sabrina & Corina book coverSabrina & Corina

by Kali Fajardo-Anstine

Get the book

 

 

 

To Shape a Dragon's Breath book coverTo Shape a Dragon’s Breath

by Moniquill Blackgoose

Get the book

 

 

 

House Made of Dawn book coverHouse Made of Dawn

by N. Scott Momaday

Get the book

 

 

 

Native American Heritage Month: The Night Watchman book coverThe Night Watchman

by Louise Erdrich

Get the book

 

 

 

The Plague of Doves book coverThe Plague of Doves

by Louise Erdrich

Get the book

 

 

 

There There book coverThere There

by Tommy Orange

Get the book

 

 

 

Moon of the Crusted Snow book coverMoon of the Crusted Snow

by Waubgeshig Rice

Get the book

 

 

 

The Seed Keeper book coverThe Seed Keeper

by Diane Wilson

Get the book

 

 

 

Firekeeper's Daughter book coverFirekeeper’s Daughter

by Angeline Boulley

Get the book

 

 

 

Elatsoe book coverElatsoe

by Darcie Little Badger

Get the book

 

 

 

Native American Heritage Month - Ceremony book coverCeremony

by Leslie Marmon Silko

Get the book

 

 

 

 

Poetry & graphic novels

Native American Heritage Month: An American Sunrise poetry collection coverAn American Sunrise: Poems

by Joy Harjo

Get the poetry collection

 

 

 

The Death of Sitting Bear poetry collection coverThe Death of Sitting Bear: New and Selected Poems

by N. Scott Momaday

Get the poetry collection

 

 

 

This Place 150 Years Retold graphic novel coverThis Place: 150 Years Retold

Anthology by 11 Indigenous authors 

Get the graphic novel

 

 

 

The Barren Grounds grahpic novel coverThe Barren Grounds: The Misewa Saga

Writing by David A. Robertson

Get the graphic novel

 

 

 

Documentaries

Lakota Nation vs. the United States documentary posterLakota Nation vs. the United States

Watch on: Amazon Prime Video, Vudu, Apple TV

 

 

 

 

Without a Whisper documentary posterWithout a Whisper — Konnón:Kwe

Watch on: PBS Short Film Festival

 

 

 

 

Warrior Women documentary posterWarrior Women

Watch on: Warrior Women Project 

 

 

 

 

Mankiller documentary posterMankiller

Watch on: Gumroad

 

 

 

 

Native American Heritage Month: Words from a Bear documentary posterN. Scott Momaday: Words from a Bear

Watch on: PBS, Amazon Prime Video 

 

 

 

 

We Breathe Again documentary posterWe Breathe Again

Watch on: Amazon Prime Video 

 

 

 

 

Shiloh documentary posterShiloh

Watch on: Amazon Prime Video 

 

 

 

 

We Shall Remain documentary posterWe Shall Remain (Documentary Series)

Watch on: PBS, Amazon Prime Video  

 

 

 

 

 

Movies

War Pony movie poster

War Pony

Watch on: Amazon Prime Video, Vudu, Apple TV

 

 

 

Killers of the Flower Moon movie posterKillers of the Flower Moon

Amazon Prime Video

 

 

 

 

Smoke Signals movie posterSmoke Signals

Watch on: Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, Apple TV

 

 

 

 

Songs My Brother Taught Me movie posterSongs My Brother Taught Me

Watch on: Amazon Prime Video, Google Play, Apple TV

 

 

 

 

Indian Horse movie posterIndian Horse

Watch on: Netflix

 

 

 

 

Powwow Highway movie posterPowwow Highway

Watch on: The Criterion Channel

 

 

 

 

Wind River movie posterWind River

Watch on: Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV 

 

 

 

 

 

 

TV Shows & Comedy Specials

Alaska Daily tv show posterAlaska Daily

Watch on: ABC

 

 

 

 

Reservation Dogs tv show posterReservation Dogs

Watch on: Hulu

 

 

 

Dark Winds tv show posterDark Winds

Watch on: Roku, AMC+, Amazon Prime Video

 

 

 

 

Rutherford Falls tv show posterRutherford Falls

Watch on: Peacock

 

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