Cherokee People, Cherokee Tribe.

Y'all remember that tune from the 70's, right? (Oh, google it, you whippersnappers.) I also remember Cher's "Half Breed." And when those dudes decided they wanted Alcatraz back. Everybody had something to protest and the Indians didn't miss the boat.

Let's just get this out of the way. I know it's Native American, not Indian. I'm aware of the PC implications. You're lucky I don't take after Grandpa Tex. But then again, he might show some respect seeing as how it's rumored his family comes from the same line as Quanah Parker, whose mother Cynthia Parker was a famous captive. I don't know how much of all that is true. Everyone is one sixteenth Native American and has a dead Irish grandmother.

I do know that my dad's family goes way back in Texas. A lot farther than I ever thought, and killin' injuns was apparently a big tradition with them. Dig deep enough, and there's an atrocity in every family.

Any way, I finished my latest homework assignment from Tucker. (Why am I always talking about that guy? Discuss.) I read "The Education of Little Tree." It was a big tree-hugger, Native American rights, young adult reader, children's hit back in the 70's.

I didn't like it at first. It's written in dialect and I'm prejudiced against books that are written that way. I used to work at a university press and the managing editor told me that whenever she saw a manuscript and it was written in dialect, it was pretty much a given that it was going to suck. Most of the time, dialect manuscripts don't even get read. They might get thrown in the slush pile for some junior of the junior editors to read, maybe. So my expectations were in the basement.

But it grew on me. I read it in two sittings. I enjoyed it more in the second sitting. Maybe because it got pretty emotional at the end. It was honest and moving. I'm sure it was inspired by the times, but it's a gentle voice. It's not a strident protest that just makes you want to shove a home-made poster down somebody's throat. GET A HAIRCUT, HIPPIE! The book is at its best when the dialect is at the minumum.

It's logical and lets you go your own way. It doesn't fight to convert you. It tells the story simply and allows you to come to your own conclusion by directing you quietly. It's compared to Huck Finn, which makes sense. I think Huck Finn is a much better book, though. It's a good book to pack if you're going camping or if you are like me and have camped enough for a lifetime and now you just want to get a massage and a cocktail at the Four Seasons.

I like the idea of unspoiled wilderness and I think we should preserve as much as possible, but I don't ever want to live in it. Scenic overlooks are a fantastic way to experience the great outdoors and avoid chiggers. So is concrete as far as the eye can see and the Discovery Channel.

Pick up "The Education of Little Tree." ReadBecca gives it thumbs up.