Book excerpt: "Nellie M. Thompson has thrived even before she learned to read at the age of 88. A descendent of Chief Pushmataha ... her powerful memoir tells of growing up as a Choctaw Indian in the small-town Midwest of Oklahoma, Arkansas, Texas, and eventually California in the late 1940s. Her faith in God was shaped after she was healed of polio by an Indian medicine man at the age of eight-- this experience dictated her personal commitment to a lifetime of service. She herself became an Indian Medicine woman treating human ailments with herbs and Indian techniques. This inspiring account of a Choctaw Indian woman, whose courage and faith in God move her through many difficult trials, weaves memorable anecdotes into a fresh, first-hand perspective of her history and culture."--Provided by publisher.