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Dreamkeepers: A Spirit-Journey into Aboriginal Australia
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List Price: $17.00
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Manufacturer: Harper Perennial
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Average Customer Rating:  
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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 301
EAN: 9780060925802
ISBN: 0060925809
Label: Harper Perennial
Manufacturer: Harper Perennial
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 252
Publication Date: 1995-04
Publisher: Harper Perennial
Studio: Harper Perennial
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Editorial Reviews:
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Cast a aside all things familiar and join Harvey Arden on an extraordinary spirit-journey into the minds, hearts, and dreams of australia's aboriginal peoples, custodians of the oldest culture on earth. Through haunting photographs and an exquisitely crafted narrative, dreamkeepers brings to life a world where aboriginal "Dreamtime Ancestors" -- the rainbow snake, the lightning brothers, and the mysterious wandjina, or cloud-beings-still sustain the visionary belief system of a proud ancient, and gifted people.
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: ,0reamy
Comment: One of the best i've read recently, so much so I was almost sorry to reach the end. Arden spins the non-fiction tale of his journey through the Australian outback to hear Aborigines' tales of mystery, in the stories of their ancestore; and tragedy, in the segregation and near-annihilation suffered by them, although the tale also had laughs. A trip!
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Summary: How to know a dream
Comment: This is a very helpful and earnest book if you want to know about aboriginal life and thought in Australia now. By talking with several men and women in many different places the author gives us simple and sensitive reports accompanied by photographies. This means he tells us what he was told and how and when, as well as about his feelings and doubts, the relationships he did or didn't establish with the people, what he learned and what he couldn't learn but tried to.
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Summary: In Their Own Words
Comment: Dreamkeepers is subtitled, "A Spirit-Journey into Aboriginal Australia." That's important to emphasize because the spirit-journey is the author's, more so than the Aboriginals.
Harvey Arden is a former editor-writer for National Geographic and co-author of Wisdomkeepers, a book on Native Americans in the United States. In the prologue, he writes,
"I had hoped to garner a few stories from the Dreamtime on this `spirit-journey' of mine into Aboriginal Australia.'" (2)
With that quest clearly stated, he and his guide travel across The Kimberley to seek out and interview a dozen or so Aboriginals to glean from them an understanding of Aboriginal faith and practice, as well as current issues affecting the plight of Aboriginals in Australia today.
Arden is a seasoned journalist and, to his credit, he gives voice to individuals who would not otherwise be heard. This is the strength of the book: The people he interviews are real people with real thoughts and feelings and stories to tell. They deserve to be heard in their own words, and Arden is there to provide the opportunity.
The reader is apt to enjoy Arden's adventures in the bush; his impromptu conversations with Mike, his guide; and, throughout, his humility. He writes,
"I was no anthropologist or scholar or historian ... I wanted to relate to them as human being to human being, ... but no less." (3)
Having said this, the book lacks breadth and depth: The Kimberley is one of many vast areas of Australia, and the spokespersons singled out are but a dozen of hundreds Arden could have just as easily chosen to interview. What's more, the anecdotal nature of the book leaves one hanging. Where is the historical perspective and theological reflection?
The book is what it is - one man's spirit-journey into Aboriginal Australia. If you're willing to accept that, you'll find it worthwhile; if you're expecting more, you might be disappointed.
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Summary: An Ancient Window
Comment: There is so much mystery surrounding the Australian Aborigines and white Australians seem to want to keep it that way, to sweep these people under the rug. This book doesn't reveal all but provides a window into the rich and ancient Aborigine culture. Best of all, the window is opened by the people themselves. They are not beautiful by western standards, but they radiate goodness and truth and it makes them beautiful. I offer much gratitude to Arden for searching them out and respectfully writing down their stories and showing their pictures. This book is side-by-side on my shelf with "Wisdomkeepers," Arden's beautiful book about our own North American Aborigines. The theme is the same: To honor and respect these ancient people.
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Summary: The Persistence of Truth
Comment: Like any indigenous people who have encountered European cultures, profound disorientation has taken place amoung the Australian Aborigals. This book demonstrates the subtle continuance of their personal connection to something far greater than anyone can conceive. A centeredness, a natural power wiser than the intellect persists, is healing, gaining ground.
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