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siria's review
2.0
I loved Alexie's narrative voice, which is vibrant and fast-paced and very much alive, but Flight as a whole felt like something of an aborted epic, compressed into the space of a novella. Alexie's narrative skips through time and place—a reservation in 1970s Idaho; a Native American settlement on the eve of Custer's Last Stand—but none of the places we visit feel real, none of them feel as if they existed in three dimensions. With greater subtlety and substantiality, I think this could have been a very good book; as it is, I think only the charm of Alexie's storytelling makes this novella worth reading.
hannahcomer4d's review
5.0
Sherman Alexie is always a master with magical realism, but this novel takes it to a new level, in my opinion. This book explores the idea of shame, revenge, and regret in an incredible way, giving the main character, Zits, as well as the reader the chance to learn to empathize with victims and murderers, the suicidal and cheated, white and Indian. In Flight, there is no room for empty pity--we see the dark side of everyone. However, despite the tragedy upon tragedy, the reader is left with miraculous hope.
meggiecronin's review
5.0
Oh my dear lord, this book. There are SO many different points in this story in which crying is very acceptable, and the essence of these scenes just hit you in the gut. This is so important.
hsienhsien27's review
4.0
{By the way, if I don't indicate that this book was borrowed or if it is an ARC, then that means I bought it. It was not free.}
I also keep forgetting to post my blog. This review was originally published on my blog here:http://wordsnotesandfiction.blogspot.com/2014/08/flight-by-sherman-alexie.html
The first Sherman Alexie novel I had read was during high school, my last year. It was The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. It was one of the few books I have ever read by a Native American writer. I know there are more out there, maybe ones that are better and underrated. Sherman Alexie is probably one of the most mainstream, the most well known. Native American writers aren't seen very often in bookstores or maybe I was just don't see them. I've found more First Nations writers, than Native American writers on the internet though.Which is an odd thing, because I've never read much Canadian literature. So anyway, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, was the first one I read by him and ever since then, I've been wanting to read more by Sherman Alexie. Goodreads and Youtube has also suggested or exposed me to more writers like him. So Flight happened to be on sale and I snagged it.
Flight is a novel about a kid who calls himself Zits. He lives a dysfunctional life, his mother is dead and his father has disappeared. He is a Native American and is forced to live in foster homes, that seem to further his misery and anger. After meeting a White kid who has a fascination for Native American culture and a sort of manipulative personality, but Zits inferiority complex and constant idolizing of White people has made his charisma and personality more powerful, Zits ends up taking on revenge, on his ruined life and childhood. With two guns, he shoots down a bank, gets shot in the head, and ends up time traveling into different bodies of people in the past.
That's it for the whole plot, the narrator ends up dieing and his soul floats off in time and into different bodies. From the wars between Native Americans and White Colonists to White police officers to Native Americans and White Americans who have been betrayed and killed off by life's rules that are never fair. This novel is a coming of age and doing all this time travel is sort of a way for Zits to understand himself and the people that surrounds him. It's a literal interpretation of the saying "Stepping into another person's shoes." Flight seems to be the sort of the novel that teaches empathy, to understand and rationalize the feelings of hatred and prejudice, regret and melancholy. To understand that people need to forgive, but they cannot forget or it will repeat. Revenge only causes more unneeded blood shed, more illogical anger and it increases self-righteous ego.
The writing style is quite beautiful, maybe even more poetic and heartfelt than The Absolutely True Dairy a of Part-Time Indian (I'm just gonna copy and paste this title in this post). It still contains that angsty teenage boy voice, but yet, despite the curses and the hormonal sex thoughts that are quite amusing, you can tell that the kid is quite intelligent, despite his claim that he isn't.
However, I feel somewhat confused about this novel, despite that I enjoyed. Some people say or I read somewhere, that Flight was sort of another version of one of his previous novels, Indian Killer, which is about a psychopathic man who is of Native American descent and I think he might also be half White like Zits, but I'm not sure, who skins and kills White men. I've never read it to be honest, but it might appear one day on this blog as soon as I take it out of the library. But apparently Flight was supposed to be a gentle, more friendly and forgiving version of Indian Killer. Although I'm not sure of this. So what am I trying to say here? When it comes to the racism in this book, there was another person on Goodreads who also points this out, the White characters are always portrayed in this glorified way, in a way where it feels like "He killed a person for being non-White, but who cares, he's so beautiful and amazing! So innocent, it's okay!" That sounds a bit exaggerated. But I can't put it in the right words. I understand that the kid has a racial complex and he is half White, but something about those parts kind of rubbed me the wrong way. It's as if he was excusing their violence.
Despite that problem, this novel was rather enjoyable. It has everything that would make a great YA novel. Heartfelt, touching, and trying to understand others in the oddest of angles.
Rating: 4/5
I also keep forgetting to post my blog. This review was originally published on my blog here:http://wordsnotesandfiction.blogspot.com/2014/08/flight-by-sherman-alexie.html
The first Sherman Alexie novel I had read was during high school, my last year. It was The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. It was one of the few books I have ever read by a Native American writer. I know there are more out there, maybe ones that are better and underrated. Sherman Alexie is probably one of the most mainstream, the most well known. Native American writers aren't seen very often in bookstores or maybe I was just don't see them. I've found more First Nations writers, than Native American writers on the internet though.Which is an odd thing, because I've never read much Canadian literature. So anyway, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, was the first one I read by him and ever since then, I've been wanting to read more by Sherman Alexie. Goodreads and Youtube has also suggested or exposed me to more writers like him. So Flight happened to be on sale and I snagged it.
Flight is a novel about a kid who calls himself Zits. He lives a dysfunctional life, his mother is dead and his father has disappeared. He is a Native American and is forced to live in foster homes, that seem to further his misery and anger. After meeting a White kid who has a fascination for Native American culture and a sort of manipulative personality, but Zits inferiority complex and constant idolizing of White people has made his charisma and personality more powerful, Zits ends up taking on revenge, on his ruined life and childhood. With two guns, he shoots down a bank, gets shot in the head, and ends up time traveling into different bodies of people in the past.
That's it for the whole plot, the narrator ends up dieing and his soul floats off in time and into different bodies. From the wars between Native Americans and White Colonists to White police officers to Native Americans and White Americans who have been betrayed and killed off by life's rules that are never fair. This novel is a coming of age and doing all this time travel is sort of a way for Zits to understand himself and the people that surrounds him. It's a literal interpretation of the saying "Stepping into another person's shoes." Flight seems to be the sort of the novel that teaches empathy, to understand and rationalize the feelings of hatred and prejudice, regret and melancholy. To understand that people need to forgive, but they cannot forget or it will repeat. Revenge only causes more unneeded blood shed, more illogical anger and it increases self-righteous ego.
The writing style is quite beautiful, maybe even more poetic and heartfelt than The Absolutely True Dairy a of Part-Time Indian (I'm just gonna copy and paste this title in this post). It still contains that angsty teenage boy voice, but yet, despite the curses and the hormonal sex thoughts that are quite amusing, you can tell that the kid is quite intelligent, despite his claim that he isn't.
However, I feel somewhat confused about this novel, despite that I enjoyed. Some people say or I read somewhere, that Flight was sort of another version of one of his previous novels, Indian Killer, which is about a psychopathic man who is of Native American descent and I think he might also be half White like Zits, but I'm not sure, who skins and kills White men. I've never read it to be honest, but it might appear one day on this blog as soon as I take it out of the library. But apparently Flight was supposed to be a gentle, more friendly and forgiving version of Indian Killer. Although I'm not sure of this. So what am I trying to say here? When it comes to the racism in this book, there was another person on Goodreads who also points this out, the White characters are always portrayed in this glorified way, in a way where it feels like "He killed a person for being non-White, but who cares, he's so beautiful and amazing! So innocent, it's okay!" That sounds a bit exaggerated. But I can't put it in the right words. I understand that the kid has a racial complex and he is half White, but something about those parts kind of rubbed me the wrong way. It's as if he was excusing their violence.
Despite that problem, this novel was rather enjoyable. It has everything that would make a great YA novel. Heartfelt, touching, and trying to understand others in the oddest of angles.
Rating: 4/5
swhitewat's review
emotional
reflective
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
5.0
mimirtells's review
4.5
4/5 Stars (%82/100)
A beautiful story about a young half-Indian boy with some sci-fi elements.
The story revolves around an Indian-Irish boy named Zits. Zits get into trouble all the time since he is orphaned. One day he meets a very wise white kid named Justice and decides to channel his anger, fear, violence, and all those hidden emotions into a shooting. At that moment he is transferred back in time. This happens five times in the story. All of these past memories teach him that violence is not always the answer. Even a lonely and angry Indian boy like him could find happiness.
I LOVED the book. Alexie's humorous yet poetic language is very fun to read. The book is full of tragic events and even I find myself teary-eyed at some point. Definitely a beautiful book with great characters. You could finish it in one sitting like me.
A beautiful story about a young half-Indian boy with some sci-fi elements.
The story revolves around an Indian-Irish boy named Zits. Zits get into trouble all the time since he is orphaned. One day he meets a very wise white kid named Justice and decides to channel his anger, fear, violence, and all those hidden emotions into a shooting. At that moment he is transferred back in time. This happens five times in the story. All of these past memories teach him that violence is not always the answer. Even a lonely and angry Indian boy like him could find happiness.
I LOVED the book. Alexie's humorous yet poetic language is very fun to read. The book is full of tragic events and even I find myself teary-eyed at some point. Definitely a beautiful book with great characters. You could finish it in one sitting like me.
lavendermarch's review
I don't know what to rate this book. It was a journey, from dark, depressing story to dark, depressing, and also uplifting story, etc. The main character was...interesting. I grew to like - or, at least, pity and feel happiness for at the end, so I guess like? the main character. This book starts out weird, and not entirely appealing. It was entirely, and I mean ENTIRELY, out of my comfort zone. But it turned out to be pretty cool. It was very short. I think I'm not going to rate this though. It seems to transcend a rating. I would recommend only those mature enough to deal with the topics it discusses read it, FYI.
aczimprich's review
3.0
Alexie's writing style and his characters and voice is always great but this plot didn't quite work for me.
yourfriendtorie's review
3.0
I am in agreement with the folks who say this is not Sherman Alexie's best. That said, despite its violence, rawness, and unflinching depiction of youth caught in the criminal justice system, this managed to avoid being cliche and sensationalist. Alexie lays the history and motivation of violence in the narrator's life out for the reader. It's not in any way uplifting, and the ending is too pat for words, but apparently sometimes you need out-of-body time travel to show you how things that are happening to us now are the legacy of something perpetrated by individuals in the past.