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heymanda's review
5.0
I read this book over six months ago, and I still think about it daily. I enjoyed it so much that I've even begun entertaining this fantasy where I'm sitting in a restaurant reading Flight, and I look up and see Sherman Alexie sitting right in front of me. He waves.
It's safe to say this book has invaded my psyche. Here are some thoughts I had while reading:
1. Sherman Alexie is hilarious. And deliciously un-PC. Example:
The narrator, Zits, meets a teenager while in jail, and the teen asks about Zits' acne. Zits says,
"'Why do you care so much about my face...You some kind of fag?' I don't care if he's a fag. I just know that fag is a powerful insult.
'Just talking,' he says. 'I'm not looking for a fight.'
He stares at me with kindness. Real kindness. I just met this guy, and I feel like he cares about my skin and me. His complexion is so clear that it's translucent. I can see the blue veins running through his skin like rivers. I have to admit, he's a good-looking guy. In fact, he's pretty like a girl. Damn, maybe I'm a fag."
2. It reminds me of Octavia Butler's Kindred, which is also about using time travel to explore cultural/racial identity. And in both, the narrators are transported to a new time just as they are about to be hurt or killed. In terms of plot, it makes sense because these books can't really continue if the main character is dead. But I wonder if these instances have a deeper thematic meaning.
3. It made me really think about trust. Zits says, "I am surrounded by people who trust me to be a respectful stranger. Am I trustworthy? Are any of us trustworthy? I hope so." I'd never thought about this before, about how many people we trust every day not to hurt us. We all trust someone, even if we think we don't. Without some sense of trust in our societies, we'd all be too paranoid to function.
4. There's a part in Chapter 10 when Zits sees young soldiers at the airport playing keep-away with their nerdy comrade's luggage. Zits talks about how we're sending children to fight men's wars, kids who are "immature and goofy and mean and acne-scarred and funny and stupid and silly and unsure about everything," kids just like Zits. I love his use of a clear image to illustrate his point. The scene he depicts is so poignant it's scary.
I should stop before my review is longer than the book. (It's less than 200 pages!) But this book really surprised me. I thought I'd like it, but I never imagined it would be one of my new favorites. Definitely worth a read...and a re-read...and a book club discussion...
It's safe to say this book has invaded my psyche. Here are some thoughts I had while reading:
1. Sherman Alexie is hilarious. And deliciously un-PC. Example:
The narrator, Zits, meets a teenager while in jail, and the teen asks about Zits' acne. Zits says,
"'Why do you care so much about my face...You some kind of fag?' I don't care if he's a fag. I just know that fag is a powerful insult.
'Just talking,' he says. 'I'm not looking for a fight.'
He stares at me with kindness. Real kindness. I just met this guy, and I feel like he cares about my skin and me. His complexion is so clear that it's translucent. I can see the blue veins running through his skin like rivers. I have to admit, he's a good-looking guy. In fact, he's pretty like a girl. Damn, maybe I'm a fag."
2. It reminds me of Octavia Butler's Kindred, which is also about using time travel to explore cultural/racial identity. And in both, the narrators are transported to a new time just as they are about to be hurt or killed. In terms of plot, it makes sense because these books can't really continue if the main character is dead. But I wonder if these instances have a deeper thematic meaning.
3. It made me really think about trust. Zits says, "I am surrounded by people who trust me to be a respectful stranger. Am I trustworthy? Are any of us trustworthy? I hope so." I'd never thought about this before, about how many people we trust every day not to hurt us. We all trust someone, even if we think we don't. Without some sense of trust in our societies, we'd all be too paranoid to function.
4. There's a part in Chapter 10 when Zits sees young soldiers at the airport playing keep-away with their nerdy comrade's luggage. Zits talks about how we're sending children to fight men's wars, kids who are "immature and goofy and mean and acne-scarred and funny and stupid and silly and unsure about everything," kids just like Zits. I love his use of a clear image to illustrate his point. The scene he depicts is so poignant it's scary.
I should stop before my review is longer than the book. (It's less than 200 pages!) But this book really surprised me. I thought I'd like it, but I never imagined it would be one of my new favorites. Definitely worth a read...and a re-read...and a book club discussion...
vlmitchell's review
4.0
When I finished this book I somehow felt really hopeful AND like I had just been kicked in the gut.
That is the magic of Sherman Alexie.
That is the magic of Sherman Alexie.
katieparker's review
4.0
We watched the movie “Smoke Signals” in my Washington State History class back in ninth grade, and that was my first exposure to the work of Sherman Alexie. Everyone was quoting it for weeks afterward, and this part in particular:
“Hey Victor! I remember the time your father took me to Denny’s, and I had the Grand Slam Breakfast. Two eggs, two pancakes, a glass of milk, and of course my favorite, the bacon. Some days, it’s a good day to die. And some days, it’s a good day to have breakfast.”
I had been eyeing his book Flight for a while, but it isn’t available for the Kindle yet, so I wasn’t sure when I would get to it. It’s hard to go from reading on an e-reader device to a book with actual pages, which is why I hadn’t tried in nearly two years. But I bought a paperback copy of it at Barnes & Noble a few weeks ago, and when I was having trouble picking a Kindle book to read, I thought, “Screw it,” and grabbed it off my bookshelf. What a wise decision.
Flight is about an angry and violent fifteen-year-old called Zits, a half Native American and half Irish boy living in Seattle. His drunk Indian father left the moment he was born and his mother died when he was six, and since then he’s been shuffled between foster homes and getting into trouble for a long string of crimes. One day in jail Zits meets a seventeen-year-old boy named Justice, who later teaches him about guns and convinces him that doing a Ghost Dance might bring back his mother. But in this case, a Ghost Dance is going to a bank and killing innocent people. Just as he enacts this plan, Zits is transported into the body of an FBI agent in the 1970s, thus beginning a journey through time and space. At one point he finds himself in the body of a young Indian boy in the 19th century, and at another time he is an old, feeble Indian tracker. Sometimes he is a by-stander in these different settings, and at others he is a full participant, but along the way he learns about humanity and the stakes of revenge.
This is a really short book (181 pages, with huge type) but an awesome one nonetheless. Alexie’s writing is both humorous and honest, and I thought Zits came across similar to Holden Caulfield in Catcher in the Rye. There is a lot of coarse language, due to the narrator being a troubled fifteen-year-old boy, but it doesn’t feel out of place. I highly recommend the book to anyone looking for a quick but substantial read.
“Hey Victor! I remember the time your father took me to Denny’s, and I had the Grand Slam Breakfast. Two eggs, two pancakes, a glass of milk, and of course my favorite, the bacon. Some days, it’s a good day to die. And some days, it’s a good day to have breakfast.”
I had been eyeing his book Flight for a while, but it isn’t available for the Kindle yet, so I wasn’t sure when I would get to it. It’s hard to go from reading on an e-reader device to a book with actual pages, which is why I hadn’t tried in nearly two years. But I bought a paperback copy of it at Barnes & Noble a few weeks ago, and when I was having trouble picking a Kindle book to read, I thought, “Screw it,” and grabbed it off my bookshelf. What a wise decision.
Flight is about an angry and violent fifteen-year-old called Zits, a half Native American and half Irish boy living in Seattle. His drunk Indian father left the moment he was born and his mother died when he was six, and since then he’s been shuffled between foster homes and getting into trouble for a long string of crimes. One day in jail Zits meets a seventeen-year-old boy named Justice, who later teaches him about guns and convinces him that doing a Ghost Dance might bring back his mother. But in this case, a Ghost Dance is going to a bank and killing innocent people. Just as he enacts this plan, Zits is transported into the body of an FBI agent in the 1970s, thus beginning a journey through time and space. At one point he finds himself in the body of a young Indian boy in the 19th century, and at another time he is an old, feeble Indian tracker. Sometimes he is a by-stander in these different settings, and at others he is a full participant, but along the way he learns about humanity and the stakes of revenge.
This is a really short book (181 pages, with huge type) but an awesome one nonetheless. Alexie’s writing is both humorous and honest, and I thought Zits came across similar to Holden Caulfield in Catcher in the Rye. There is a lot of coarse language, due to the narrator being a troubled fifteen-year-old boy, but it doesn’t feel out of place. I highly recommend the book to anyone looking for a quick but substantial read.
ula_j's review
5.0
I read this over 2 mornings (actually almost all of it in 1 sitting) and it's so beautifully written, devastating, and gripping. This is my first book by Sherman Alexie and I am absolutely going to read more. It's the story of an orphan Indian teen in Seattle that time travels, which sounds weird but the story is wonderfully executed.
linzer712's review
4.0
This was a quick, powerful read. An interesting journey through time and responsibility. I'd love to see thsi book become part of our Soph curriculum.
haleyhamfan's review
5.0
Cloud Atlas meets Catcher in the Rye. I'm always excited to read Alexie's work but this one took me by surprise in the best way. Even if "time-traveling Indian boy" doesn't catch your eye - though it totally should - please give this book a chance anyway.
mnboyer's review
5.0
Once I actually started reading this book, it took two hours, and I'm in love
Flight is a fantastic novel that describes the plight of a young, urban Indian boy named Zits. Alexie begins by playing with several key factors that effect urban Indians--Zits has not family (an absent, alcoholic father and a dead mother), he has been transferred from foster home to community homes back to foster homes (some of which include sexual abuse), he himself experiments with drugs and alcohol, he lacks a proper education, he has no connection to his Native identity (because he does not even know his Native father)--the book is simply full of negative aspects of Indian lives in contemporary urban settings. At first, Zits' only coping mechanism is to drink with other Indians he finds in alleys or to react violently to the situation around him.
After meeting a boy named Justice, Zits ends up walking into a bank where he shoots several individuals. A guard shoots him in the head, but this actually just starts a series of momentary flashes in which Zits finds himself in other people's bodies. He is not always in a Native body, but moves back and forth between both Native bodies and white bodies. Much of the narrative revolves around Alexie's commentary on war: there is good/bad on both sides of war, which cannot be determined by skin color. Yet, it seems that, through Zits, we are meant to understand that killing is never "right" no matter what the justification is.
Throughout the novel, there are several small inserts and allusions to Native American statistics and lifestyles. For example, Zits comments on how after the end of the Indian Wars, Indians were forced to go to boarding schools where their Native traditions were taken away, their languages were banned, and their hair was cut--these small suggestive moments help to describe how the urban Indian community has come to be, and explains, in part, how so many negative postcolonial traumas effect that community. In terms of allusions, there are many that reference Native issues. But keep in mind the opening line, "Call me Zits," is an allusion to [b: Moby Dick|153747|Moby-Dick; or, The Whale|Herman Melville|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327940656s/153747.jpg|2409320].
I absolutely loved this novel--I'm working with it for a Ph.D. paper on American Indian young adult literature and its potential benefits in the junior-high and high-school classroom for Native students. This book is great for this project. But this book is great for so many other purposes! I recommend that everyone pick and and spend some time with [a: Sherman Alexie|4174|Sherman Alexie|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1333515890p2/4174.jpg], even if it is not this book (but you will not regret this rich story!).
Simply wonderful and crafted with a keen eye. Highly recommended!
Flight is a fantastic novel that describes the plight of a young, urban Indian boy named Zits. Alexie begins by playing with several key factors that effect urban Indians--Zits has not family (an absent, alcoholic father and a dead mother), he has been transferred from foster home to community homes back to foster homes (some of which include sexual abuse), he himself experiments with drugs and alcohol, he lacks a proper education, he has no connection to his Native identity (because he does not even know his Native father)--the book is simply full of negative aspects of Indian lives in contemporary urban settings. At first, Zits' only coping mechanism is to drink with other Indians he finds in alleys or to react violently to the situation around him.
After meeting a boy named Justice, Zits ends up walking into a bank where he shoots several individuals. A guard shoots him in the head, but this actually just starts a series of momentary flashes in which Zits finds himself in other people's bodies. He is not always in a Native body, but moves back and forth between both Native bodies and white bodies. Much of the narrative revolves around Alexie's commentary on war: there is good/bad on both sides of war, which cannot be determined by skin color. Yet, it seems that, through Zits, we are meant to understand that killing is never "right" no matter what the justification is.
Throughout the novel, there are several small inserts and allusions to Native American statistics and lifestyles. For example, Zits comments on how after the end of the Indian Wars, Indians were forced to go to boarding schools where their Native traditions were taken away, their languages were banned, and their hair was cut--these small suggestive moments help to describe how the urban Indian community has come to be, and explains, in part, how so many negative postcolonial traumas effect that community. In terms of allusions, there are many that reference Native issues. But keep in mind the opening line, "Call me Zits," is an allusion to [b: Moby Dick|153747|Moby-Dick; or, The Whale|Herman Melville|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327940656s/153747.jpg|2409320].
I absolutely loved this novel--I'm working with it for a Ph.D. paper on American Indian young adult literature and its potential benefits in the junior-high and high-school classroom for Native students. This book is great for this project. But this book is great for so many other purposes! I recommend that everyone pick and and spend some time with [a: Sherman Alexie|4174|Sherman Alexie|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1333515890p2/4174.jpg], even if it is not this book (but you will not regret this rich story!).
Simply wonderful and crafted with a keen eye. Highly recommended!