This concise survey, tracing the experiences of American Indians from their origins to the present, has proven its value to both students and general readers in the two decades since its first publication. This third edition, drawing on the most recent research, adds information about Indian social, economic, political, and cultural issues in the twenty-first century, including tribal sovereignty, the Keystone XL Pipeline, and the controversial legacy of Indian boarding schools.

The author traces tribal experiences through four eras: indigenous America prior to the European invasions; the colonial period; the emergence of the United States as the dominant power in North America and its subsequent invasion of Indian lands; and the years from 1900 to the present. Useful features include brief biographies of important Native figures, an updated chronology, and suggested readings for each period of the past four hundred years. Nichols uses both Euro-American sources and tribal stories to illuminate the problems Indian people and their leaders have dealt with in every generation.