Book excerpt: Whether it's the Oglala Lakota, Sioux, or Arapaho, Native cultures across the continent hold a special place in their hearts and culture for horses. This tradition of horses in Native American culture is depicted in A Song for the Horse Nation through images, essays, and quotation - including stories and songs collected nearly a century ago by Frances Densmore, and poems by brilliant contemporary writers Sherman Alexie (Spokane/Coeur d'Alne), Luci Tapahonso (Navajo), and Linda Hogan (Chickasaw). A Song for the Horse Nation gives powerful and passionate voice to the emotional dimension of the relationship between the horse and mankind. In September of 2004, after years of planning, the National Museum of the American Indian opened the doors of its new museum on the National Mall to the 1.2 million people that visit them each year. Among the many exhibits and thousands of artifacts housed in this spectacular building, one overriding theme is the horse. Horse objects in their collection encompass everything from the most utilitarian (a curved knife with a horse-head handle, for example) to the most decorative blankets, beaded ornaments, and even masks for horses to wear on ceremonial occasions.