Winner of the 2018 John C. Ewers Book Award Winner of the
2018 Donald Fixico Book Award Rosalyn R. LaPier demonstrates that
Blackfeet history is incomplete without an understanding
of the Blackfeet people's relationship and mode of interaction
with the "invisible reality" of the supernatural world. Religious
beliefs provided the Blackfeet with continuity through privations
and changing times. The stories they passed to new generations and
outsiders reveal the fundamental philosophy of Blackfeet existence,
namely, the belief that they could alter, change, or control nature
to suit their needs and that they were able to do so with the
assistance of supernatural allies. The Blackfeet did not believe
they had to adapt to nature. They made nature adapt. Their
relationship with the supernatural provided the Blackfeet with
stability and made predictable the seeming unpredictability of the
natural world in which they lived. In Invisible Reality LaPier
presents an unconventional, creative, and innovative history that
blends extensive archival research, vignettes of family stories,
and traditional knowledge learned from elders along with personal
reflections on her own journey learning Blackfeet stories. The
result is a nuanced look at the history of the Blackfeet and their
relationship with the natural world.