Latest Read: “Sharing the Skies: Navajo Astronomy”

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“Sharing the Skies: Navajo Astronomy” by Nancy C. Maryboy, PhD and David Begay, PhD

I find these kinds of books fascinating because they provide us another indigenous perspective outside of the western mindset.  I see similarities amongst the Navajo and our own people, the Tlingit.  The Navajo stories like our own are inspirational; more often than not they lead me to envision a robe or painting or some form of art piece.

This book provides a cross-cultural view of Navajo and Western astronomy.  “Sharing the Skies” provides a look at traditional Navajo astronomy, including the constellations and the unique way in which Navajo people view the cosmos and their place within it.  In addition, this book offers a comparison of the Navajo astronomy with the Greek (Western) perceptions.  Beautifully illustrated with original paintings from a Navajo artist and scientifically enhanced with NASA photography.

The authors are Nancy C. Maryboy and David Begay.  Marboy is a Cherokee/Navajo scholar working in the area of Indigenous Science, with a focus on astronomy.  she is the President and Executive Director of the Indigenous Education Institute located in Bluff, Utah and Santa Fe, New Mexico.  She teaches Indigenous Astronomy at Northern Arizona University.  She works with NASA educational outreach projects and with University of California, Berkeley, Space Science Labs on National Science Foundation projects.  She lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico and San Juan Island, Washington.

David Begay is a scholar and member of the Navajo Nation, and one of the founders of the Indigenous Education Institute.  He works with University of California Berkeley, Space Science Labs in areas of Western and Indigenous science with support from NASA and the National Science Foundation.  He lives on the Navajo Nation and works as an independent contractor with federal, state, tribal and corporate entities.

You may purchase a copy of this book for $14.95 from Rio Nuevo Publishers in Tucson, Arizona (www.rionuevo.com) or when you visit the Mesa Verde National Park visitor’s center gift shop, like I did !