Spider Woman: A Story of Navajo Weavers and Chanters

Albuquerque, New Mexico, U.S.A.: University of New Mexico Press, 2001. Third Printing . Trade Paperback. Very Good. 5" x 8. 287 Pages plus Index. Introduction by Louise Lamphere. This lively account of a pioneering anthropologist's experiences with a Navajo family grew out of the author's desire to learn to weave as a way of participating in Navajo culture rather than observing it from the outside. In 1930, when Gladys Reichard came to stay with the family of Red Point, a well known Navajo singer, it was unusual for an anthropologist to live with a family and become intimately connected with women's activities. First published inn 1934 for a popular audience, Spider Woman is valued today not for for its information on Navajo culltdure but as an early example of the kind of poersonal, honest ethnography that presents actual experiences and conversations rather than generalizing the beliefs and hehaviors of a whole culture. Readers interest in Navajo weaving will find it expecially useful, but Spider Woman's picture of daily life goes far beyond rugs to describe trips to the trading post, tribal council meetings, curing ceremonies, and the deaths of family members. The author (1893-1955) was professor of anthropology at Barnard College. Louise Lamphere is professor of anthropology at the University of New Mexico. Colorful photograph of a Navajo rug on front cover. Interior is illustrated with black and white photographs.