This book includes both new essays and revised versions of classic works by recognized authorities on Black Elk. Clyde Roller's introduction explores his life and texts and illustrates his relevance to today's scholarly discussions.

Dale Stover considers Black Elk from a postcolonial perspective, and R. Todd Wise investigates similarities between Black Elk Speaks and the Testimonio (as exemplified by I, Rigoberta Menchu: An Indian Woman in Guatemala). Anthropologist Raymond A. Bucko provides an annotated bibliography and a sensitive guide to the issues surrounding cultural appropriation, a subject also explored through Frances Kaye's engaging reading of Hawthorne's The Marble Fawn. Classic essays by Julian Rice and George W. Linden are included in the collection as well as Hilda Niehardt's reflections on the 1931 and 1944 interviews with Black Elk.

With its unusually broad range of academic disciplines and perspectives, this book shows that Black Elk stands at the intersection of today's scholarly discussions. In addition to scholars of religion, anthropology, multicultural literature, and Native American studies, The Black Elk Reader will appeal to a general audience.