The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
Sherman Alexie
This book was beyond fabulous. The pictures give it this Diary of a Wimpy Kid kind of a look, but forget it–it’s nothing to take lightly. It tells the story of Junior, a teenager who needs to figure out what it means to want more out of life than rotting on the rez without betraying his tribe or himself.
I loved reading it–the narrator has a very truthful and witty way of explaining the circumstances of his life to the reader and it made me, as both an outsider to his tribe as well as a stranger to his life feel like I could trust him to help me see through his eyes.
And he did. Without complaining about the lot handed to him, he tells it like it is. He paints a realistic picture of his tribe, his white school, and his relationship with both as he straddles the borderland and loses things that are most important to him. Also, he’s completely hilarious and refreshingly honest. It’s great.
I highly recommend you pick it up. And while you’re at it, pick up a copy for a friend.