Doodem and Council Fire: Anishinaabe Governance through Alliance

"Bohaker develops each of her five chapters—Doodem Tradition, Family in All Four Directions, Anishinaabe Constitutionalism, Governance in Action, and Doodem in the Era of Settler Colonialism—with great care, excellent writing, and in an authentic voice. Her insights are contextualized and supported by detailed maps and illustrations."

Honours and Awards Committee, OHS Joseph Brant Award

"With sound and up-to-date scholarship, Doodem and Council Fire has the potential to leave a great impact on Indigenous Studies. Bohaker brings great imaginative intellect to this study by connecting graphic representations of the environment to actual places, animals, and plants fundamental to Anishinaabe culture, economy, and politics. This book demonstrates how scholars must pay close attention to the impact of Indigenous cultural traditions on the history of any place, while simultaneously thinking more deeply about the graphic representations of intercultural exchange."

Nancy Shoemaker, Department of History, University of Connecticut

"Thoroughly researched and carefully considered, Doodem and Council Fire makes a convincing case for doodem imagery as a key to understanding Anishinaabe treaty making, political geography, and survival. There is no other book quite like it."

Colin G. Calloway, Department of History, Dartmouth College

"Doodem and Council Fire is a work of deep scholarship that could only have been written by someone who has spent years studying doodem images and pondering their meanings. A clear labour of love, Heidi Bohaker’s work of encyclopedic scope is a terrific addition to the literature and should be acquired by the library of every university where First Nations history is taught."

Daniel K. Richter, Department of History, University of Pennsylvania