In an attempt to celebrate great examples of sci-fi and fantasy books with Native American protagonists, I'm writing down a list of my favorites. It's part of a series of posts covering SFF stories with non-white protagonists. See also
SFF stories with Asian Leads,
SFF Stories with Black Leads, and
SFF Stories with Middle Eastern Leads.
First...
The Aggregate Stats
- Total number of works/series/authors on the list: 17/5/6
- Author with most works on the list: Patricia Briggs by a landslide - 8 books and 1 short story.
- Most common trope: Coyote. A close second is the female half Native American/half white tomboy protagonist with grease under her fingernails from all her work as a mechanic or mechanical tinkerer. She can handle her own in an adventure and is prepared to defend herself if she has to, but would rather be left alone, especially since she has secrets to hide. Unfortunately, her secrets draw her into the preternatural world she's trying to avoid. Seriously, this describes half the protagonists!
- Biggest overall surprise: There's only one full-blood Native American, and there are no (non-urban) fantasies on the list. There are also no stories set within a Native American culture (or magical version thereof), the stories always have the protagonist living in a white world.
and now for...
My Favorites
