I wanted to get the full scholarly outline of the history of the interaction between the European colonialists from initial contact up to the present day, preferably from the indigenous perspective.. Though, surprisingly, there weren't many books that fit the bill precisely this one did just that. I will probably want my own copy as this book is fully referenced and thus provides lots of jumping-off points. Most of the history books I remember as a child referred to indigenous people in ungenerous terms. The story, in particular in Canada, does not follow the lines of a cowboy movie or an adventure for English boys. The Indigenous people were cultured and nuanced from the beginning and it was the advancing colonial and corporate (HBC being one of the first, back when they had to be chartered by the King) interests that were ignorant and uncomprehending. Most of the "savagery" was committed by colonial authorities and succeeding governments of the Dominion of Canada (see British Commander Jefferey Amherst advocating the distribution of smallpox infected blankets) and so it continues to this day. The culture and nuance still exists and will influence the direction of this country, and undoubtedly the world, well into the future. ( )