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brettp's review
5.0
Finished "War Dances" by Sherman Alexie. A collection of short stories with a Native American slant that opens strong and has many quotable lines.
lizlogan's review
4.0
I always enjoy Sherman Alexie although at times, I get a little tired of the regurgitation of his life story and the same characters. He takes "write what you know" to extremes, but he does it very well.
canislatrans's review
4.0
Alexie really put me into the heads of his characters, and I suppose his own, in the more autobiographical bits. He writes very directly, and his stories, and several of his poems, have an uncanny mixture of dark comedy and dead seriousness. Very much worth reading, especially for grumpy middle-aged men. I speak here with some authority.
jramm's review
3.0
This: http://billmoyers.com/segment/sherman-alexie-on-living-outside-borders/
And this:
Another Proclamation - Sherman Alexie
When
Lincoln
Delivered
The
Emancipation,
Who
Knew
that, one year earlier, in 1862, he’d signed and approved the order for the largest public execution in the United States History? Who did they execute? “Mulatto, mixed-bloods, and Indians.”
Why did they execute them? “For uprising against the State and her citizens.” Where did they execute them? Mankato, Minnesota. How did they execute them? Well, Abraham Lincoln thought it was good.
And
Just
To
Hang
Thirty-eight
Sioux
simultaneously. Yes, in front of a large and cheering crowd, thirty-eight Indians dropped to their deaths. Yes, thirty-eight necks snapped. But before they died, thirty-eight Indians sang their death songs. Can you imagine the cacophony of thirty-eight different death songs? But wait, one Indian was pardoned at the last minute, so only thirty-seven Indians had to sing their death songs. But, O, O, O, O, can you imagine the cacophony of that one survivor’s mourning song? If he taught you the words, do you think you would sing along?
And this:
Another Proclamation - Sherman Alexie
When
Lincoln
Delivered
The
Emancipation,
Who
Knew
that, one year earlier, in 1862, he’d signed and approved the order for the largest public execution in the United States History? Who did they execute? “Mulatto, mixed-bloods, and Indians.”
Why did they execute them? “For uprising against the State and her citizens.” Where did they execute them? Mankato, Minnesota. How did they execute them? Well, Abraham Lincoln thought it was good.
And
Just
To
Hang
Thirty-eight
Sioux
simultaneously. Yes, in front of a large and cheering crowd, thirty-eight Indians dropped to their deaths. Yes, thirty-eight necks snapped. But before they died, thirty-eight Indians sang their death songs. Can you imagine the cacophony of thirty-eight different death songs? But wait, one Indian was pardoned at the last minute, so only thirty-seven Indians had to sing their death songs. But, O, O, O, O, can you imagine the cacophony of that one survivor’s mourning song? If he taught you the words, do you think you would sing along?
bookfarmer's review
3.0
After listening to an audiobook of Alexie's prize-winning young adult book, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, I wanted to read more of Alexie's work. This collection includes both poems and stories. Most offer an enjoyable read, I especially liked "The Senator's Son" and the title story, "War Dances." Many of his other books received better reviews, and I plan to seek those out, but this provided a taste of the writer's strengths and weaknesses.
burnourhistory's review
3.0
This collection left me torn. I really wanted to love it as much as his recent memoir. It just didn't have the same effect. Possibly because of the depth of the content in that book vs. this one, but I can't say for sure.
I listened to it in audio format because I find understand his tone, his purpose, better when he speaks the words he's written. Some of the stories were enjoyable, like The Senator's Son and Fearful Symmetry, and a few of the poems, like Ode to Mixed Tapes, were amusing and almost whismical. The rest was okay but didn't grab me or strike me in the way I'd have liked.
I listened to it in audio format because I find understand his tone, his purpose, better when he speaks the words he's written. Some of the stories were enjoyable, like The Senator's Son and Fearful Symmetry, and a few of the poems, like Ode to Mixed Tapes, were amusing and almost whismical. The rest was okay but didn't grab me or strike me in the way I'd have liked.
greeniezona's review
4.0
I've been meaning to read this book for ages, I don't know why it's taken me so ridiculously long. But when I had a rare moment to actually step over into the adult fiction section in the library, in between talking Solomon down from putting every Go, Diego Go! DVD in the entire system on hold at once, this book jumped out at me.
I confess it took a bit for me to get into this collection. I prefer Alexie's poetry and longer stories, often finding his short stories a little dry. (Of course, I admit also to a long held prejudice against short stories themselves as a format.) Where Alexie won me over was with the story "War Dances," which somehow manages to be everything I associate with Alexie, and then again with "Fearful Symmetry," which is about so many things, but the part I especially loved was about the crazy Hollywood machine and how it treats screenwriters.
The very first story in the collection, "Breaking and Entering," didn't connect at first, but as time went on, I think I've thought about this story more than any other. About a man who accidentally kills a youth who he fins breaking into his home, it is just so relevant to everything that I think of it often.
I confess it took a bit for me to get into this collection. I prefer Alexie's poetry and longer stories, often finding his short stories a little dry. (Of course, I admit also to a long held prejudice against short stories themselves as a format.) Where Alexie won me over was with the story "War Dances," which somehow manages to be everything I associate with Alexie, and then again with "Fearful Symmetry," which is about so many things, but the part I especially loved was about the crazy Hollywood machine and how it treats screenwriters.
The very first story in the collection, "Breaking and Entering," didn't connect at first, but as time went on, I think I've thought about this story more than any other. About a man who accidentally kills a youth who he fins breaking into his home, it is just so relevant to everything that I think of it often.
sophiavass's review
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75