The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

Alexie, S., & Forney, E. (2007). The absolutely true diary of a part-time Indian. New York: Little, Brown. ISBN 0316068209

Plot Summary

                      Arnold Spirit, a dorky teenager who plays basketball and draws cartoons to help him figure out his world, makes the difficult decision to transfer from the hopelessly underfunded school on the reservation, or “rez,” after a teacher beseeches him to search for more than the limited landscape of his home.  Seen as a sellout by almost everyone he knows, including his rough but loyal best friend Rowdy, and as an oddity by everyone at the new school, Arnold struggles to navigate both worlds.  Meanwhile, it is tragedy and sadness as usual on the rez, and Arnold has to deal with family deaths and rampant alcoholism on top of his more normal school concerns like girls and basketball.  His involvement in these two vastly different communities ultimately comes to a head in the form of a basketball game in which he must compete against his best friend turned rival.  This is a funny and deeply affecting coming of age story that spares no one in its unflinching examination of humanity at its best and worst.

Critical Analysis

                       Sherman Alexie has written a difficult and profound story.  There are cultural observations evident in the comparison of what life is like on the reservation with what life is like on the outside that are not easy to read.  The hopeless alcoholism in Arnold’s family, the careless deaths and suicide, the violence that exists as a daily reality among this community – these are the realities with which he was raised.  His status quo is a nightmare.  When he escapes this world, there is a sense of guilt and betrayal that he must overcome.  The white children in comparison seem to have it so easy, Arnold is completely foreign to them – and they to him.  Their lives could not be more different.  But the beauty of this story lies in Arnold’s eventual discovery that people are people and that it is possible to relate to someone so different from you it seems you came from another planet, if they will only give you the chance.  The tone of this very heavyweight story is comparably light and easygoing.  Arnold is a funny and sharp and endearing character.  Examples of his cartoons peppered throughout the book serve to illustrate how he copes with his difficult life, and as such are both hilarious and touching.  The supporting characters are tragic, resilient, and sometimes heartbreaking.  The reader is dismayed and depressed by Arnold’s home life, but Alexie shows that his family is not simply neglectful, but trapped within their own personal hells.  Rowdy is both good and bad, perfectly complex, definitely not a typical best friend sidekick character.  He poses the most trouble for Arnold, as Rowdy is one of his only allies, for better or worse, and his abandonment is difficult for Arnold to handle.  The setting of the reservation is heartbreakingly clear, even darker and dirtier against the pristine white high school.  The numerous examples of contrast in this book constantly play off of each other and give the reader a very sharply drawn picture of this wonderful character and the complicated world he must navigate.

Reader’s Annotation

                              Arnold Spirit sends shockwaves through his life on the reservation when he makes the decision to transfer to the rich white high school several miles away instead of accepting an inadequate education.  In the face of disapproval and opposition, he must learn how to navigate a completely new world, while remaining in touch with his old one.

About the Author

                           Sherman Alexie was born on the Spokane Indian reservation in Wellpinit, Washington.  He made the conscious decision to further his education beyond what was available on the reservation by transferring to a nearby white high school, just like his character Arnold Spirit from The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian.  Also like Arnold, Alexie played basketball, and is now a noted writer on the subject.  He began writing seriously in college and published a volume of poetry after graduating.  Currently he is a founding board member of Longhouse Media, a nonprofit organization that teaches film making to Native American youth.  He lives in Seattle with his wife and their two sons.

                              In addition to his large collection of novels, short stories, and poetry Alexie collaborated with a director on a film adaptation of one of his short stories and created the award-winning Smoke Signals.  He has been honored with many awards for his fiction as well, such as the National Book Award for Young People's Literature, the PEN Faulkner Award, and the PEN Malamud Award for Excellence in the Art of the Short Story, among many others.

Genre

        Contemporary – identity (ethnic/racial)

Challenge Issues

                          Possible challenge issues in this book include violence, alcoholism, drug use, suicide, sex, profanity, and sacrilegious images.  In the event of a challenge, I would consult the challenge defense file prepared for this book.  The challenge defense file would include: positive reviews from credible sources for the purpose of proving merit to the challenger; negative reviews in order to inform me on what might be challenged; a written explanation of my own rationale for including the book in the collection as well as a summary of the plot; the American Library Association Bill of Rights; a review of my branch’s selection policy; and, as a last resort, an explanation of the reconsideration policy for my library and an official reconsideration form.

Curriculum Ties

                       English and Writing: voice, character development, humor, and form (use of cartoons).

Booktalk

            Arnold Spirit finds himself stranded between two worlds and he doesn’t quite fit in either.  He is seen as a traitor to his race by choosing to get a better education at the nearby white high school.  He must find a way to reach his full potential without isolating his family and friends who are content with what they have. His journey to figuring this out is hilarious and heartbreaking and anything but simple.

Reading Level and Interest Age

                                               Grades 9-12.

                                                  

Why I Included This Book

                                       The issues Alexie explores in this novel are profound and unflinching – as evidenced by the numerous challenges leveled against it.  The way in which he explores these issues are hilarious and touching.  This book is not light reading, but it is entertaining enough to keep teens engaged from beginning to end.       

References

Sherman Alexie. (2011). Wikipedia.org. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherman_Alexie

Alexie, S. (2011). Biography.  Retrieved from http://www.fallsapart.com/biography