The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

As a local Spokanite, it was refreshing to see that Sherman Alexie is also from the same area. The illustrations by Ellen Forney make a book centered around the cultural and social conflicts of a young Native American more accessible to a general audience. The main character Arnold, or Junior, faces a common challenge still present for native youth today. The choice of whether to remain completely in his home culture or to attend school off of his reservation. After a heartbreaking and insightful conversation with his parents, the issue of underprivileged native youth is made clear due to social disparagement and economic hardships. Based off this exchange, Arnold decides to transfer schools to be somewhere with more "hope".      

My grandmother, a member of the Arikara reservation in New Town, ND, would often provide me with Native-American legends and other traditional stories. Reading through the narrative, I noticed parallels in the techniques used in the story-telling. For instance, Alexie uses small instances throughout the text to develop and convey larger and more complex moral development. This is almost a call-back to traditional native story telling techniques. Sherman Alexie has taken the best advice any writer can be given and has written what he knows in a format that is sure to captivate the interest of anyone who picks it up. I believe the only obstacle I would find with this novel in introducing it to a class may be found with holding the interest of some girls in the class, as the narrative is told from the perspective of a teenage boy and does not hold back on what captures the interest of the character; sexually or otherwise.

Arnold is a very real and relatable character who can be respected and sympathized with for his decisions and situation. This really is an excellent book and I would recommend it to anyone, let alone include it in my own classroom library.

    

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