The Rediscovery of America: Native Peoples and the Unmaking of U.S. History | Ned Blackhawk

Yes, exceptionally so. The book achieved the absolute pinnacle of contemporary historical non-fiction success by officially winning the prestigious 2023 National Book Award for Nonfiction. It was also named a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize and widely celebrated as one of the best books of the year by The New Yorker, The New York Times, and The Washington Post.

It functions as a monumental, sweeping re-examination of five centuries of American history. Rather than operating as an isolated tribal monograph, it serves as a macro-historical narrative designed to rewrite standard national textbooks, seamlessly integrating Indigenous political networks into the very core of the traditional American story.

Ned Blackhawk forcefully argues that American history cannot be understood without placing Native Americans at the center of the narrative. He demonstrates that European empires, the American Revolution, the drafting of the Constitution, and the rapid expansion of the United States were all fundamentally shaped, driven, and challenged by ongoing political, military, and diplomatic interactions with Indigenous nations.

The book is written by Dr. Ned Blackhawk, a highly distinguished Native American scholar and a member of the Te-Moak Tribe of Western Shoshone. Serving as the Howard R. Lamar Professor of History and American Studies at Yale University, his deep archival access and decades of rigorous scholarship give this volume immense institutional authority.

The narrative spans from the initial Spanish encounters of the late 1400s straight into the modern era. The second half of the book delivers crucial, meticulous coverage tracking the 20th-century legal battles for tribal sovereignty, the high-stakes policies of termination and relocation, and the powerful rise of the modern self-determination movements.

All books, box sets, and multi-volume collections offered by Bust-Down Books are sold in pre-owned, used, and second-hand condition, unless explicitly designated as new in the individual product listing.

Condition Details & Grading:

• Previous Ownership: These items have been previously owned, handled, and read. As such, copies may exhibit typical signs of shelf wear, including but not limited to minor creasing, scuffing, edge wear, bent page corners, remainder marks, or spine softening.
• Markings & Personalization: Items may occasionally contain inscriptions, library stamps, owner names, marginalia, or highlighting. Individual item descriptions reflect significant deviations from standard acceptable condition.
• Supplemental Materials: Secondary and digital components—such as publisher access codes, CD-ROMs, bonus inserts, dust jackets (for select hardcovers), registration keys, or workbook activity pages—are not guaranteed to be included, active, or unredeemed unless specifically stated in the product description.

First Sale Doctrine & Non-Affiliation Statement:

All items sold on this platform are original, lawfully acquired copies being resold under the protection of the First Sale Doctrine (codified under U.S. copyright law, 17 U.S.C. § 109, and applicable international equivalents permitting the secondary resale of lawfully manufactured goods).

Bust-Down Books, LTD. is an independent, secondary-market bookseller. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, authorized by, or sponsored by the original authors, copyright holders, publishers, or trademark owners of the titles offered for sale. All registered trademarks, author names, book titles, and publisher imprints remain the sole property of their respective owners and are used strictly for nominative identification and descriptive purposes.