Rating: 
Summary: Utterly captivating
Review: CEREMONY is a stylistic masterpiece worthy of the highest honor. Leslie Silko's refusal to tell her tale in an expected, pedantic format works to pull the reader deeper into the narrative, to feel that he is a part of the story himself. It is not a straightforward narration, but one that twists and turns through more than one character, through more than one time period and finally through more than one style of story telling. Silko somehow manages to make her plot gell with the poetry and mythology employed until at the end all three of these elements come together to create one story and one message. It is also a novel founded deeply in setting. The landscape in this novel-both physical and spiritual-is overwhelming, and the statement Silko makes about her main characters connection to the land and the old ways could not be made outside of these specific settings. It is that connection that Tayo forges between himself and the land that allows for his transformation, and in effect allows the land itself almost to become a character within the story-an active participant within the narrative. The story itself is beautifully, if soberly told, and the narrative, instead of being one of piecemeal patchwork such as you might expect from a work that weaves in and out of prose and ceremonial poetry- instead achieves the hushed, somber, reverential aspect of the ceremonial poems and stories it contains. It is by this achievement that Silko manages to make the stories and the landscape that figures so importantly in them alive to readers. The settings and themes of CEREMONY are specific, but its lessons universal. We all have 'ceremonies'-things we must do to keep us sane, to keep our worlds in balance, and we must accept that these needs change over time. Gorgeous work, not to be missed.
Rating:
Summary: Breathtaking
Review: Tayo is a half-white, half-Laguna man and former POW of the Japanese during WWII. After spending time in a military hospital in Los Angeles and being treated with "white man medicine," Tayo returns to his family on the Laguna Pueblo reservation to find himself even more alone and fearing his grip on reality. Tayo prayed away the rain while he was at war, and he returns to his home to find that a drought has nearly decimated the land and the livestock. Betonie is the medicine man who helps Tayo begin his healing. Along the way, we get to meet various characters who all in some way contribute to Tayo's journey.
The above is an oversimplification of this novel. There are so many elements at work here: one group's struggle to hold on to its culture; the historical oppression of Native American peoples; a man's search for healing and meaning; the role of tradition; and I could go on and on. Silko weaves in Laguna myths through her own poetry and through actual Laguna stories. She writes in a non-linear fashion so that events don't simply occur one after another; time is much more fluid, and all the events from past and present meld together.
It is rare that I read a book that does more than entertain me. This one took my breath away. There was no way I could put this book down until I found out how things turned out for Tayo. And then I read the book again because there are so many moving passages, that it is easy to miss some of the beautiful details of this story. Yes, this can be described as a book about cultural differences and issues. But it is so much more, and Silko does a wonderful job of painting these incredible characters. Her writing is intensely beautiful and lyrical. There aren't a lot of books that bring me to tears, but this one did. I'm very happy to add Ceremony to my book collection, and I can't wait to read more of Silko's works.
Rating: 
Summary: Ceremony compared to Erdrich's Tracks and Love Medicine
Review: Ceremony is an okay book. It is very different than any other novel that I have read. It is somewhat hard to understand; however, if you read some literary critisims and articles about it then that should help you understand it enough to get through the book.
Like I said, I liked this book, but I enjoyed Erdrich's Tracks and Love Medicine much more!
Rating:
Summary: Ceremony - an insight into Native American Culture
Review: It is difficult to write about a culture without making it sound better than it is in real life. Leslie Marmon Silko, a Native American, takes the Native American culture and fairly evaluates it in her book Ceremony in a way that all can begin to understand the struggles that her culture has been experiencing for many years, from both outside and within, due to the great pressures of the surrounding white culture and society.
Tayo, a young Laguna Pueblo male, is forced to see some of the many horrors created by the whites when he is recruited to fight under the United States flag. During the war Tayo witnesses many sights and horrors that deeply affect him. He is not able to cope with the ruthless killings and wasteful behavior of the whites and his mental health quickly declines. Leslie Marmon, the author, portrays Tayo as a weak and helpless young man at the beginning of the story, but this vision soon changes due to the authors vivid descriptions and deep thinking, the reader begins to realize that there is much more to Tayo than a weak Indian. Within the first few days of fighting, Tayo's falls ill mentally and is sent to a mental hospital where he stays for the remainder of the war and some time afterward. It is here that readers begin to see that there is more to Tayo's unusual illness than just sickness. Silko begins description to the reader about how the Native American culture is influenced, for the worse, by white civilization.
Many of the difficulties faced by Native Americans people are described throughout Ceremony, including the intermixing of the White and Native American culture. Tayo is a half-breed, half Native American and half white American. His mother was a Laguna Pueblo, but his father was a white male from outside the reservation. IT was quite common at the time of Tayo's birth for the women of the reservation to be used as objects, rather than being treated as human equals with feeling and lives to live. Silko uses Tayo's mother to represent those who try to leave the ways of the Native American culture to find a better living elsewhere. She is unaware of the unwritten rules and is no longer accepted either on the reservation or by the white populations. Being a half-breed Tayo received the same treatment from both cultures. He was still an Indian as far as the whites were concerned, so he was not accepted or wanted anywhere. Silko uses many other characters throughout the story, not to just represent on individual, but to represent the struggles facing the Native American population as a whole.
Silko spends much of Ceremony, showing that everyone has a place in society, but they cannot necessarily choose their place of acceptance. She also demonstrates through the use of her characters that there is a home for everyone within the depths of a culture where the individual finds it to be comfortable.
Rating: 
Summary: Ceremony is the cure to insomnia
Review: Attention all insomniacs, here's the miracle you have been after for years! Ceremony is guaranteed to make you fall asleep in under a paragraph! Marmon Silko should be ashamed of herself for inflicting this book upon the world, especially disgruntled High School juniors... I am happy for her that she was the first native american woman published, but that is the only rewarding thing about Ceremony. The book's attempt at showing the confusion and disorganization of time, Tayo's struggle after the war, and to convey the Laguna culture is a bitter disappointment. If this is an attempt to mimic the style of Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse Five, then Silko has a dismal failure on her hands. As a friend once said "Ceremony sucks... so it goes...
Rating: 
Summary: Retains a certain mystery
Review: One of the things I enjoy about Silko and some of my other favorite Native American writers is that they retain a certain mystery in their writing. Making use of Indian spirituality, there always seems to be a question as to which events actually occurred and which were part of the vision that lead to the healing. There are also aspects that non-Indian readers can never quite understand, but that is part of the depth. Much of the American Indian literature I have read deals with veterans of Viet Nam so this story of World War II veterans was particularly interesting. In general, no matter what socio-economic group, there is not quite so much literature about the adjustments these veterans made on their return. Though I'm sure it was particularly difficult for American Indians, who, in some ways saw this as an opportunity to be like the warriors of old, but who were fighting a very different war in defense of those who had been their enemies. I found parts of this work a little heavy-handed, especially where Silko feels compelled to spell out the contentions between the white and Native American cultures. This came out in the story, and it didn't need to be hammered home. However, given the time this was written--the 1970's--a time when Native Americans were just beginning to rediscover their culture and find their strength--I think this minor flaw can be overlooked. Over all the poetic language and the strong story make this a fine piece of literature.
Rating:
Summary: Everyman's journey
Review: Never have I read such a novel as cathartic and therapeutic as Silko's "Ceremony". I first encountered it in an English Lit. class in college. As 'sophomoric' as I thought I was at the time, it was not until a few years later that I reread the novel and fully grasped what was being said through the protagonist Tayo and his actions. "Ceremony" is a journey of the soul, a Bataan Death March that we are all forced to experience at some point or another in our lives. That is what makes this novel timeless and accessible to us all. Leslie Marmon Silko, who I believe won a literary award for this novel, opens the heart and mind of the reader to a theme which has been recorded since the ancient Greeks (see Aeschylus' "Oresteia"), that of mathos through pathos, enlightenment through suffering. Having already paid a heavy price as a veteran of WWII, Tayo returns to the suffering of his tribe. It is then that Tayo is able to recover what he never knew he had lost, his heritage and soul that was intricately linked to everyone and everything around him. The author attacks the demons plaguing Tayo with the rich symbolism in Native American culture (pay particular attention to the use of yellow and blue colors) and the aid of an enigmatic medicine man. Silko's weapons are in Native American song and myth, histories that empower Tayo to fight the state of mind that oppresses the Laguna Pueblo people on his reservation. With this, Tayo is able to finish his Bataan Death march once and for all, his past behind him, and his heart born again as true a Native American.
Rating:
Summary: Ceremony
Review: Ceremony, overall, was a pretty good book. It was quite educational even, having known little about Native American culture prior to reading it. Silko writes of the hard times Native Americans went through after WWII, their trouble on the reservations, alcoholism, etc. Tayo, the main character, struggled throughout the novel with a sort of post-war depression. It also dicussed the Native American view of White people, which I found quite intersting. This book was slightly confusing because it jumped around in terms of time period, but as the book continued it was less noticable. Overall, this a good read.
Rating:
Summary: Life Changing Events
Review: I don't know if you recieved my Cermony book review since I haven't heard back from you so I am sending it again. Thanks Lindsay Klausner
Book Review
Ceremony Leslie Marmon Silko's novel Ceremony emphasizes the important role that storytelling plays within the Pueblo culture. Silko portrays the endangered state of the Laguna reservation following World War II. He reveals the treats facing the Pueblo's since World War II as well. Tayo, the main character a war veteran, is part White and part Native American. Not only does he struggle with his identity, but he also has to conquer and survive his mental state. His events in the war have traumatized him and you begin feeling for him as you get into the book. The book starts out very confusing, since it starts off with flashbacks. But as you begining to read on you understand what exactly is going on and see the unfair treatment that the Pueblo's are receiving. This book keeps you wanting to read more and gets you to develop feelings you never thought were there.
Rating:
Summary: A VIEW YOUR NOT USE TO
Review: I read this book for my Intro to Fiction class and I'm glad that I did. This book by Leslie Marmon Silko opens your eyes to a new perspective. Leslie writes this book from the view of a Native American trying to re-adjust himself to the world after going through World War II. I would warn thought that the book can be difficult to read in parts, because the main character Tayo keeps having flashbacks.
Several of these flashbacks consist of his childhood and upbringing. Tayo is half Indian and half Mexican and this causes problems with not only the woman who raises him, but also the society around him. You also read of the horrors he goes through while he is fighting for his country and losing close loved ones around him.
This is a great book about the struggle of not only a man but of a Native American and I would recommend it. You should be prepared to struggle with parts but know that finishing "Ceremony" will be worth it.
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