Barkskins, by Annie Proulx

Begins in the late 17th century in New France. Characters include some native people as well as Europeans. Good point-of-view stuff from the natives. This is historical fiction, and necessarily expositive, but this for me is the way to read history. The "real" stuff puts me to sleep.

A mixed review from The NY Times.

Owning it All, by William Kittredge

Essays

https://www.questia.com/library/80861024/owning-it-all-essays

A terrific and eminently readable collection of essays, mostly about the American West. Kittredge writes about southeastern Oregon, specifically the Malheur Lake area--coincidentally the area that was recently in the news due to the occupation of a federal building by some right-wing extremists. He also writes about Montana, especially Missoula and the nearby area.

This is not only nature and geography writing, though those topics are included. It is also concerned with the life of a writer becoming a writer, as he moves away from the life of a rancher to a life of letters. Kittredge has much to say about what humans have done to the once-pristine land of the West. He writes quite a bit about how agriculture transformed the Malheur area, how that has affected the bird life there.