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The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
Alexie, Sherman
ISBN 978-0-316-01368-0
2007 Little Brown and Company, New York
Plot Summary:
This book begins with Junior, a teen boy living on an Indian Reservation, getting into some serious trouble at school. He get so angry when he sees that his textbook is so old that his own mother used it, too, that he gets himself suspended with his reaction. After his suspension, his teacher Mr. P encourages him to push to make his life better.
Junior decides to go to school in a neighboring white community. In that school he's the only Native American student and he goes by the name Arnold. On the Rez he's Junior and in town he's Arnold and his life is split between those identities.
As his life goes on he is isolated on the Reservation because they treat him as a traitor and even his best friend, Rowdy, turns on him. In Rearden, Arnold makes friends with Gordy and starts dating Penelope.
The curse of the alcoholism on the Reservation takes Junior's grandmother because of drunk driving. His sister and her husband become victims of the addiction, too. He learns to cope with the problems of life with the help of his old friend and his new friends.
Critical Evaluation:
This book is written in frank and realistic language. That fact caused some of the problems with challenges to the text (2014 Beech). The filth that made some adults uncomfortable with the text is exactly what makes it accessible to teens. This shows that the protagonist is a relatable character for teens. Being able to relate to the character is a fundamental part of how teens can be brought into the emotion of a story.
Another aspect of this novel that is superior is the foreshadowing of the problems associated with poverty and alcohol abuse. One of the first things we see is that Junior's dog is shot because they cannot afford vet bills. Later on, he hides his poverty from his Rearden friends, but is found out by Penelope. The poverty on the Reservation influences the Rez School's inability to defeat Rearden in sports.
Junior speaks frankly about the use of alcohol, so the losses he experiences because of it are not a surprise to the audience. This use of foreshadowing softens the blow of the loss of his grandmother, family friend and sister.
Dealing with these problems does not make Junior oblivious to the fact that even the rich kids have problems. He finds Penelope throwing up in the bathroom and sees that her quest to be thin is a different cross to bear.
Reader's Annotation:
Junior leaves his Rez school to go to an all white school where he has to deal with cultural differences, interpersonal adjustments and devastating consequences of substance abuse.
Author Information:
Winner of the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction, the PEN/Malamud Award for Short Fiction, a
PEN/Hemingway Citation for Best First Fiction, and the National Book Award for Young People's Literature, Sherman Alexie is a poet, short story writer, novelist, and performer.
He has published 24 books including What I've Stolen, What I've Earned, poetry, from Hanging Loose Press; Blasphemy: New and Selected Stories, from Grove Press; and The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, a novel from Little, Brown Books for Children.
He has also recently published the 20th Anniversary edition of his classic book of stories, The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven.
Smoke Signals, the movie he wrote and co-produced, won the Audience Award and Filmmakers Trophy at the 1998 Sundance Film Festival.
A Spokane/Coeur d'Alene Indian, Alexie grew up in Wellpinit, Washington, on the Spokane Indian Reservation.
Alexie has been an urban Indian since 1994 and lives in Seattle with his family.
Retrieved from http://fallsapart.com/press/
Genre(s):
Coming of age, Teen boys, Native American Experience, Realistic Fiction
Curriculum Ties:
History, Native Americans, Education, Substance Abuse
Book Talk Ideas:
This would go well with a book talk on drawing/illustration. Another book talk topic is racial
segregation and education.
Reading Level: grade 7+
Interest Age: 12+
Challenge Issues:
This book has been challenged for its frank treatment of sexuality and masturbation, language and anti-Christian references.
Challenge Defense File
Why I Chose This Title for My Collection:
I live near Meridian, Idaho, where this book was recently banned in the schools. Youth in the community made a valiant effort to make sure that everyone had access to the book, with the help of Rediscovered Books in Boise and the book’s publisher. This book is a fantastic example of how a story can show us a glimpse of a certain story and be a part of a bigger story in the world where it is published.
Citations:
Beech, H. (2014). Debated “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian” novel will stay in classrooms. Idaho Press Tribune: Sept, 10. http://www.idahopress.com/members/debated-the-absolutely-true-diary-of-a-part-time-indian/article_47858b50-38b1-11e4-8b8c-001a4bcf887a.html
http://fallsapart.com/press/
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