Good evening.
My name is Gina Stuart-Richard, and I'm a master's student
here at the University of Arizona
in American Indian studies.
Before I introduce tonight's author,
I would like to reflect just a moment on the craft
of the storyteller.
The job of a storyteller is much harder than it looks.
The craft is in how to blend history, traditions,
core values with a modern perspective,
and ancient wisdom.
In some ways, it could be considered
the same as maybe building a bridge over the Grand Canyon,
not knowing how the message will be received on the other side.
But once in a while, a storyteller
comes into our midst who is able to do all of these things
in a way that few can.
In fact, the old adage is that those
who are true masters of their craft
are the ones who make it look easy.
Tonight's author is one of those masters.
Growing up on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota,
she earned her PhD at the University of New Mexico.
After working as a visiting professor at the University
of Nebraska, she's now an associate professor
in the American Indian Studies program,
as well as the Department of English,
here at the University of Arizona.
Her very first novel, Elsie's Business,
was published in 2006, and was the second-place winner
in the first novel category ever awarded by the Western Writers
Of America, and was called "An outstanding, original, engaging
narrative of a native community and survivance"
by Gerald Vizenor.
And it's now required reading for literature classes
at universities across the country.
Her second novel, The Sacred White Turkey,
was published last year and has already
been described as a tour de force of storytelling
by critics.
With a third novel scheduled for publication
by the end of the year, and while authoring
a biography of Louise Erdrich scheduled for the year after,
she's managed to squeeze in several academic articles
in peer-reviewed journals, written the foreword
for yet another book, and has graciously, somehow,
found the time to be with us tonight.
Ladies and gentlemen, please join me
in welcoming poet, novelist, author, and storyteller Frances
Washburn.
[APPLAUSE]