The Way to Rainy Mountain is a historical fiction novel by American author Navarre Scott Momaday. The book follows the path of a nomadic group of Native Americans known as the Kiowa, a tribe with which Momaday's ancestors were associated. The Kiowa have records that confirm that they were in existence at least by 1732, so this is around the time when the book takes place. The novel also combines Kiowa folklore into the mix, as well as a bit of Momaday's own occurrences, which makes it part memoir. The book is written in the format where the thoughts and actions of different characters are changed to those of another character every chapter.
Navarre Scott Momaday was born in 1934, and The Way to Rainy Mountain was published in 1969. A Pulitzer Prize winning Native American author, Momaday has references to his own past and life in many of his works, and is quite proud of his heritage. In 2007, he honorable received the Presidential Medal of the Arts in person from President George W. Bush. Momaday has worked at several universities during his time, including Stanford. The Way to Rainy Mountain was his third published work.
