The Southwest is an area with a diverse environment, and the groups of people living in the many areas practice different lifestyles to coexist in harmony with their surroundings. Trimble's photographs are helpful in giving examples of these varied environments, some so surprising that they could not be equaled in the reader's imagination. By seeing the places that these people call home, the reader has a greater understanding of lives that Trimble describes. Trimble approaches this extremely varied area by describing one group at a time...After fully describing their history up to present living conditions, he moves on to the next group. For example, when studying the Pueblo people, Trimble first describes the Anasazi, the people who first practiced the ancient Archaic tradition of adobe and masonry building. As time went on, the Anasazi became several groups of Pueblo people practicing the same traditions. As Trimble says, "The Anasazi grew corn, Pueblo people grow corn" (47).

American movement into the Southwest is the single force that most drastically changed the lives of these Native Americans. Trimble not only states the facts of the events involved in this history, but also gives accounts of the highly emotional attitudes of these people when recalling such events. Thus, the reader is presented with accounts given by the people whose lives were radically changed in our country's history. The Quechan are one of the Colorado River Tribes that used to thrive on the rich farmland around the river...Trimble describes decades of poverty suffered by these people. Harold Chaipos, a Quechan, is quoted by Trimble, saying, "I really miss that big river. Those were good old times" (410).

Personal accounts are also important in Trimble's description of the present status of the Southwestern groups. In his conclusion, called "We Are The Land," Trimble emphasizes the connectedness that these people have with the land. This is something that most Americans do not understand...The attachment that these people have to the land makes attempted relocations and constant environmental threats that have come along with the spread of American inhabitation all the more devastating. According to Trimble, many Southwestern Native Americans feel that they live a life in which they practice a balancing act. In order to survive and protect their land, the groups need to be able to interact with Americans while still upholding their traditional culture...[T]he Southwestern Native Americans continue to live rooted in their homeland, while taking what they know from their cultural traditions and applying it to modern American culture. They say, "We are the people. We are the land. We will persist" (457).

Trimble provides a wonderful source of information about the widely diverse groups of Southwestern Native groups...In The People, Trimble captures the attitudes of the native people of the American Southwest and presents them in a form that educates the rest of the world on aboriginal lifestyles and present Native American values.