Tuesday, January 11, 2011

THE ABSOLUTELY TRUE DIARY OF A PART-TIME INDIAN by Sherman Alexie

Sherman Alexie's THE ABSOLUTELY TRUE DIARY OF A PART-TIME INDIAN is a thought-provoking story about a fourteen-year-old boy named Junior, living an impoverished and hopeless existence on a Spokane Indian "rez."

Junior is an endearing and complicated character whose energy and voice hooked me in the first page. In spite of his having overcome several medical conditions, this witty, sarcastic and intelligent young boy has all but given up on aspiring to a better life. He spends his days indoors for fear of being bullied, and on a near daily basis loses a friend or loved one to alcohol abuse.

He offers the reader a glimpse of how he perceives himself when he says:
"It sucks to be poor, and it sucks to feel that you somehow deserve to be poor. You start believing that you're poor because you're stupid and ugly. And then you start believing that you're stupid and ugly because you're Indian. And because you're Indian you start believing you're destined to be poor. It's an ugly circle and there's nothing you can do about it." 
What changes for him?

A teacher who recognizes his artistic talent tells him he's a fighter and encourages him to seek out a better life outside the reservation, advising him, in what I think is one of the most crucial scenes in the book, that the only way he'll find hope is by getting as far away from the reservation as possible:

"When I first started teaching here, that's what we did to the rowdy ones, you know? We beat them. That's how we were taught to teach you. We were supposed to kill the Indian to save the child."
"You killed Indians?"
"No, no. It's just a saying. I didn't literally kill Indians. We were supposed to make you give up being Indian. Your songs and stories and language and dancing. Everything. We weren't trying to kill Indian people. We were trying to kill Indian culture." 
A couple pages later the teacher goes on:
"If you stay on this rez," Mr. P said, "they're going to kill you. I'm going to kill you. We're all going to kill you. You can't fight us forever."
It took a teacher encouraging Junior and planting a seed of hope for him to get the courage to ask his parents' permission to transfer to a wealthy, all-white school outside his reservation. And although just getting to and from the school is a challenge, he adjusts, makes friends, gains confidence, overcomes preconceived ideas and exceeds expectations.

But Junior's success comes at a cost, as nothing prepares him for the feelings of guilt and betrayal that plague him for having left his tribe. Can he still be Indian and be successful? If so, then why is it that the more successful and confident he becomes, the less Indian, more White, he feels?

I loved this book and don't believe it should be banned. Junior's use of profanity is minimal and his thoughts on masturbation are probably authentic to that of any fourteen-year-old boy.

Oh. And before I forget. The illustrations are hysterical, helping to relieve some tension during what might otherwise be a very heavy read.


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"Read. Read one-thousand pages for every one page that you write."
-- Sherman Alexie

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8 comments:

  1. I popped over to check out your blog since you were kind enough to leave a comment on mine. This book isn't one I've read, but I'm curious enough now to pick it up. The question comes to mind of how a young boy from a poor home on a native reservation is so easily accepted into that "wealthy, all white school outside his reservation". I'll have to read it to see how Alexie made it all credible.

    Carol Garvin

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  2. I look forward to hearing what you think about it, Carol. I'd never met a character like Junior before. He's a refreshing, irreverent, tortured little soul. I really hope you enjoy it. Thank you for commenting! : )

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  3. I loved this book too! I can't imagine anyone banning this book. Kids use language far worse than that every single day.

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  4. I'm glad you loved it! Hooked me in the first line and had laughing and crying all the way through. My first Sherman Alexie book, too. Wonderful voice, colorful writing, uplifting message. Thank you for commenting, @bermudaonion.

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  5. Wow, Ezzy...we are SO MUCH alike! I absolutely love Sherman Alexie! Did you see Smoke Signals by the way? Anyway, this is another book that I have been DYING to read! There are so many amazing books that I am taking from your reviews to add to my Goodreads list so that I don't forget them. I've missed so much these past years and I am so thankful to have found your blog because it's so much of what matters to me. <3

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  6. Chantilly, you're the fourth person who's mentioned Smoke Signals. I need to watch it. I also have his TEN LITTLE INDIANS, that's a collection of ten short stories in my TBR pile that's about ready to topple over on me. I'm so glad you're finding books here that you'd like to read. There are scenes in this one, though, that I know you'll totally relate to. I won't say more because I don't want to ruin it for you. Thank you. : )

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  7. He has some really great short stories, which I love! Smoke Signals is basically a compilation of many short stories. If you have the chance to read, "This is What it Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona" I think you'll like it. You could read it in a half hour probably. Not a long story, but a fun read for sure. :)

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  8. Thanks for the recommendation! Phoenix, Arizona keeps popping up in my reading. It came up in THE COLOR PURPLE, too. : )

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