Michael Dorris books

Michael Dorris (1945-1997) was a Native American author and scholar known for A Yellow Raft in Blue Water and the award-winning memoir The Broken Cord.

Anthologies

Title Published Buy on Amazon
Growing Up Native American 1993 Buy
Rethinking Popular Culture and Media 2011 Buy

Collections

Title Published Buy on Amazon
Working Men: Stories 1993 Buy

Non-Fiction

Title Published Buy on Amazon
Guide to Research on North American Indians 1983 Buy
The Broken Cord 1989 Buy
Route Two 1990 Buy
Rooms in the House of Stone: The “Thistle” Series of Essays 1993 Buy
Paper Trail 1994 Buy
Guests 1995 Buy
The Most Wonderful Books: Writers on Discovering the Pleasures of Reading 1997 Buy

Short Stories/Novellas

Title Published Buy on Amazon
Morning Girl 1990 Buy

Standalone Novels

Title Published Buy on Amazon
A Yellow Raft in Blue Water 1987 Buy
The Crown of Columbus 1991 Buy
Sees Behind Trees 1996 Buy
The Window 1997 Buy
Cloud Chamber 1997 Buy

Michael Dorris (1945-1997) was an American author and anthropologist of Modoc descent. He was one of the first unmarried men in the United States to adopt a child and later founded the Native American Studies program at Dartmouth College. His most acclaimed works are the novel A Yellow Raft in Blue Water (1987) and the memoir The Broken Cord (1989), which describes raising his adopted son who suffered from fetal alcohol syndrome.

Dorris also co-wrote The Crown of Columbus (1991) with his then-wife Louise Erdrich. His other works include children’s books like Morning Girl and Sees Behind Trees, as well as essay collections and scholarly non-fiction about Native American life and culture.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many books has Michael Dorris written?

Michael Dorris has written sixteen books across five series.

What was Michael Dorris's first book?

Michael Dorris’s first book is Guide to Research on North American Indians, published in 1983.

What is Michael Dorris best known for?

Dorris is best known for his novel A Yellow Raft in Blue Water (1987), which tells a multi-generational story of Native American women, and his memoir The Broken Cord (1989), which won the National Book Critics Circle Award for its account of fetal alcohol syndrome.

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