Navajo Tradition, Mormon Life

Robert S. McPherson is a professor at Utah State University Eastern-San Juan Campus, USA.He is author of a number of books on Navajo and Ute culture and history, including As If the Land Owned Us: An Ethnohistory of the White Mesa Utes (The University of Utah Press, 2011). Jim Dandy has worked both on and off the Navajo Reservation teaching, coaching, and counselling Native American students for forty years. Sarah E. Burak received her BS in anthropology from Troy University in Alabama. She was an Americorps VISTA volunteer in Utah and currently works for the National Park Service.

"Jim Dandy is a story of a success in the Mormon Placement Program. He was knowledgeable in the Navajo traditional ceremonial ways and viewed them not as an obstacle but as a strength in his Mormon doctrinal studies. From time to time when he encountered problems, he would go back to traditional training for answers."-Henry Walters, Emeritus Director of Hatathli Museum, Navajo elder, and Medicine Man "Though the book is essentially the story of one man, it's also an excellent dialogue about the transition of a deeply spiritual people into an oft-times unsettling world. It's written simply enough for those with a mild interest in Indian affairs to read, but its depth will attract scholars and history buffs as well." -Deseret News "Navajo Tradition, Mormon Life is a creative combination of personal narrative and scholarly work. [McPherson and Dandy] have created a landmark study for finding a common ground between Mormon and Navajo teachings."-BYU Studies Quarterly "Jim Dandy has much to say that is of great importance.... I have learned so much from him, and will be forever grateful for having read his story."-Association for Mormon Letters "Jim Dandy is a fascinating person, not just a successful educator, community leader, and role model, but also someone with very interesting beliefs about many topics... [His is] the story of a contemporary Navajo who continues to bridge multiple worlds and successfully combine traditional Navajo, Mormon, and Anglo approaches to life while remaining actively involved even after retirement. " -American Indian Culture