Sherman Alexie's The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian (2007) is a young adult fiction about a 14-year-old Native American boy who does the unthinkable by attending a largely white high school. The American Library Association's Office for Intellectual Freedom listed it as the #1 most banned and challenged book from 2010 - 2019, so naturally I had to read it.

SUMMARY

Arnold Spirit Jr. ("Junior") "was born with water on the brain" and grew up gangly and awkward, sporting government-issue glasses and a pronounced lisp. An easy target for jokes, he spends most of his time creating comics or hanging out with his only friend, Rowdy, who everyone knows is abused at home. Junior's diary illustrates how things like Rowdy's abuse, rampant alcoholism, crushing poverty and hunger, even poor medical care are all facts of life on the Spokane Indian Reservation.

But we reservation Indians don't get to realize our dreams. We don't get those chances. Or choices. We're just poor. That's all we are.

On Junior's first day of high school, the cycle of poverty strikes ~~his teacher~~ him and he resolves to transfer to Reardan, a predominantly white high school 22 miles away. Although his family supports his choice, the rest of the rez treat him like an outsider… and his new classmates treat the only Native American in school like an alien. As a "part-time Indian," Junior struggles to navigate the cultural differences between life on the rez and life in Reardan.

REVIEW

I, a 30-something white woman, did not expect to connect to Junior so well (or to laugh at two paragraphs of a teenage boy explaining that he does, in fact, masturbate), but I did. Junior is an honest narrator who never lets his disability stop him from pursuing his goals, and his diary is thoughtful, funny, sometimes heartbreaking. Sherman Alexie admitted in a 2009 interview that the book is "about 78% true" to his own experience straddling life on the rez and Reardan High.

This was medium-paced and a quick read; the chapters are more like interconnected anecdotes and moments in a larger life, and Junior invites you to share the best and the worst of it. There were so many moments that stuck out to me, from the casual racism he endures in Reardan to the descriptions of life on the rez to his successes and friendships and the loss of his loved ones.

But for whatever reason, as I write this, I can't help but think back to an early moment in Reardan High, when Junior contradicts the teacher, the teacher argues back, and another student confirms that Junior is right. The teacher thanks the other student and Junior notes:

I shrank back into my chair and remembered when I used to be a human being.

This short book made me laugh, made me sad, and opened my eyes to how little I know about Native American culture in general or reservations in particular. Although it does touch on sensitive topics, I recommend it to anyone who has been through -- or is currently going through -- the American school system.

TRIGGER WARNINGS:

So many alcoholics, and alcohol-related deaths. The dog does die off-screen in an early chapter, and the point is driven home to illustrate the reality of poverty. There's some violence, and a side character living with an eating disorder, which Junior handles clumsily but with more grace than many teenage boys.

RATING:

Writing: 5 / 5.
Characters: 5 /5. Junior carries the book, but everyone around him is doing their own thing and living their own lives.
Plot Originality: 3 / 5, as some if it felt... contrived.
Plot Execution: 4 / 5
Personal Feelings: 4 / 5, because the pacing was off at the end.

Final Score: 4.2 / 5

Content Warnings

emdear's review

Go to review page

emotional funny hopeful inspiring sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

mcc004's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.25

Content Warnings

lcg527's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional funny hopeful sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

gays0up's review

Go to review page

dark funny hopeful informative inspiring fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

vixenreader's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional funny hopeful lighthearted relaxing sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

With the allegations against Sherman Alexie, this book may be forever tainted by his legacy.

Content Warnings

jhbandcats's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional funny informative inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

A devastating semi-autobiographical story of a teenaged Spokane Indian who leaves the reservation to break out of the rez cycle of poverty and alcoholism.

This book isn’t very long and it’s very funny, and it has short chapters that move really quickly - but it seemed to take me forever to finish it. I’d put it down and then I’d procrastinate rather than reading more. It was because it’s about the most painful story I’ve read in I don’t know how long. It would be sad enough anyway, but the fact that it’s based on Alexie’s experiences makes it heartbreaking.

I know about Alexie’s sexual abuse of women and the harm that he caused. That infuriates me. For someone so talented and so representative of a minority to take advantage of his position in this way is worse than appalling because it gives a bad name to all in that minority. In addition to my anger, I have mixed feelings about recommending his book. It’s the same with Woody Allen and Roman Polanski movies - how do you separate the reprehensible artist from the spectacular art? Is that even possible?

I don’t know the answer. I just know that this was a phenomenal book that makes me want to read everything else by Sherman Alexie.

Content Warnings

More...