In 2004 the National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) opened to the general public. This book, in the broadest sense, is about how that museum became what it is today. For many Native individuals, the NMAI, a prominent and permanent symbol of Native presence in America, in the shadow of the Capitol and at the center of federal power, is a triumph. In this eagerly awaited text that serves as the first sole-authored scholarly book focusing exclusively on the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian, Jennifer Shannon provides an in-depth analysis of the development process for the Our Lives exhibition, one of three inaugural exhibits that opened on the National Mall in 2004. Being present at the creation of the gallery and working closely with both NMAI staff and community collaborators during the process provided her with important firsthand knowledge on the discussions and negotiations taking place behind the scenes. Shannon takes the reader on an illuminating journey through these deliberations, and she provides thoughtful analysis on the process and final outcome. The book is methodologically rigorous and engagingly written. It should be required reading by scholars and practitioners alike, and by anyone interested in understanding the complex process of developing community collaborative museum exhibitions in the twenty-first century. This is museum ethnography at its finest and Jennifer Shannon's work makes an important and timely contribution to the fields of anthropology, indigenous studies, and museum studies. --Amy Lonetree, University of California, Santa Cruz, author of Decolonizing Museums: Representing Native America in National and Tribal Museums Jennifer A. Shannon is Assistant Professor and Curator at the Department of Anthropology and Museum of Natural History, University of Colorado, Boulder.