I'll Go and Do More is the story of Annie Dodge Wauneka (1918–97), one of the best-known Navajos of all time. A daughter of the popular Navajo leader Chee Dodge, Wauneka spent most of her early years herding sheep and raising nine children. After her father's death, she entered politics and was often the only woman on the Navajo Tribal Council during the quarter century that she served. Wauneka became a forceful and articulate advocate for Indian health care, education, and other issues, working both on the reservation and in the halls of Congress to improve the lives of the Navajos.

 

Carolyn Niethammer draws on interviews with family and friends, speeches, and correspondence to offer an arresting and readable portrait of this complex Navajo woman. Wauneka's professional and personal triumphs and challenges—her temper was legendary—are rendered vividly, enabling readers to better appreciate the enduring accomplishments of the Navajos' Legendary Mother.

Carolyn Niethammer is the author of American Indian Cooking: Recipes from the Southwest (Nebraska 1999) and Daughters of the Earth: The Lives and Legends of American Indian Women.

“Niethammer has done an excellent job with this well-written biography. Using both written and oral sources, she presents a fascinating portrait of Annie, accompanied by enough stories and anecdotes to make her subject come alive to the reader.”—Journal of Arizona History

“Wauneka's life is elegantly captured in this aptly titled narrative.”—Choice

“Scholarly but accessible, this latest entry in Nebraska's American Indian Lives series should appeal to students of modern Native American history.”—Publishers Weekly

“Carolyn Niethammer's thoroughly researched and strongly written biography of the Navajo Nation's most remarkable woman, who died in 1997 at age 87, brims with such fascinating stories. Niethammer has crafted an admiring yet nuanced portrait of a strong-willed, visionary woman who understood the art of politics on Capitol Hill as well as in the chambers of the Navajo Tribal Council, where she served for many years.”—Jerry Kammer, The Arizona Republic

“A very satisfying book, skillfully blending Navajo tribal history with Wauneka's story simultaneously providing insight into both twentieth-century tribal politics and the personality of a remarkable individual.”—Sherry L. Smith, New Mexico Historical Review

“Interviews with Zah and the others enable the author to flush out a full portrait of her subject in a lively narrative. . . . This book, one of an extensive series on the lives of American Indians, is a worthy addition to that collection. . . . Given the opportunity to make a difference, Annie Dodge Wauneka did more than take it; she thrived on it, and hers is a life worth learning about.”—Dave Devine, Tucson Weekly

“I highly recommend reading I’ll Go and Do More; especially for American Indian women who have goals and aspirations of becoming a leader in their community. Dr. Annie Wauneka was a special and unique individual who lived ahead of her time.”—Peterson Zah, former Chairman and President of the Navajo Nation