In The Way to Rainy Mountain, author Scott Momaday uses the theme of a journey to drive this story. He begins his journey after the passing of his grandmother, the journey to reconnect and rediscover his own culture. He shares this moment on page 10: “I remember her very often in prayer. She prayed long, rambling prayers driven by suffering and hope, having seen many things... the last time I saw her she prayed standing beside her bed at night, naked to the waist, the light of a kerosene lamp that moved on his dark skin…I don't speak Kiowa, and I never understood his prayers, but there was something intrinsically sad in the sound, a simple hesitation on the syllables of pain.” The disappearance brought him the awareness of having to keep culture alive. He can barely speak Kiowa, while his grandmother was one of the few members who spoke perfectly fluently. I believe this book is an invitation to his tribe to embark on the same journey that Momaday did. The structure of how Momaday is interesting. He divides the book into three sections: The Starting Out, The Going On and The Closing in. I can't tell much difference between the sections other than progression throughout the story. For example, in “The Setting” they begin with a creation story. It has three different voices in each of these sections: one mythological, one historical, and one personal. Another aspect of the book that caught my attention was the occasional image illustrated by Al Momaday. They are simple images, with a single subject, in black and white. Do they intend to emphasize the corresponding story or simply add another visual element to the text? Only the illustration on page 63 depicts a man. It appears that the man is attacking a buffalo. The other photos are never...... middle of paper......times in his Kiowa stories. “That's why” and “That's how it was” also appear in the text. What I wish Momaday had done to finish the book was explain how connected he feels to his tribe after reaching the end of his journey. I felt there wasn't a proper ending, other than reaching his grandmother's grave. What does he do after reaching the tomb? I also wish Momaday would try to connect with the reader on a more personal level. I enjoyed his stories, but I feel like there was a lack of personal paragraphs for each story. He wrote a lot in the second person, which is good for the narrative aspect. I wish he had elaborated more on the meaning and why he chose the stories and not left the interpretation up to the reader. Personally, I have learned not to leave my writings hanging, because they always seem misunderstood.