Wakinyan is an excellent overview of Lakota religious thought and practice, introducing readers to its essential components. Through finely detailed descriptions of rituals and various types of religious figures, Stephen E. Feraca explains the significance of such practices as the Sun Dance, sweat lodge ritual, vision quest, Yuwipi ritual, and peyote use. He also discusses the significance of herbs and religious artifacts and objects and explains the roles and responsibilities of medicine men and other religious practitioners. First written as a report for the Department of the Interior in 1963, Wakinyan has long been recognized as a classic study of Lakota religion. This edition retains most of the original text, with its first-rate ethnographic descriptions of religious practices. The author's new endnotes bring the reader up to date on changes in Lakota religion during the last three decades.

The long history of the Black Hills controversy between the Sioux Nation and the U.S. Government involved Yellow Thunder Camp. While the issue has been amply analyzed in many books, it has never been related by someone like this author. It is a first-hand account: the writer lived at YTC, attended court proceedings and established solid friendships with Lakota individuals. In addition to years of research into the Lakota culture, she worked with elders throughout the reservation and was accepted as associate member of the Pine Ridge Grey Eagle Society. She joined them in visits of Black Hills sacred sites.