Tony Hillerman, born and raised among Native Americans in Oklahoma, claims to have read practically everything ever written about Navajo history, and to have learned even more about the culture and tradition of "The People" through his years of friendship and interaction with Navajos in New Mexico, where he now lives. His inclusion of effective detail regarding Navajo culture throughout The Blessing Way leads one to believe these claims readily. Hillerman addresses the concerns of the Navajo in particular, and the Native American in general, from a vantage point unattainable, or at least unattained, by most other Anglo Americans. That Navajo Law and Order Lieutenant Joe Leaphorn can successfully operate among a variety of cultures, including white, Hispanic, Navajo, and other Native Americans, indicates Hillerman's optimistic view that a variety of cultures can peacefully, even profitably, co-exist.

As The Blessing Way makes obvious, Hillerman is concerned...