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drifterontherun 's review for:
The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven
by Sherman Alexie
This collection has become something of a modern classic and is likely one of the most assigned books in American English classes today. I've known of Sherman Alexie and this, his most famous work, for years now, but it was only when traveling through Washington state that my desire to read more local authors finally led me to pick this one up.
As the blurb on my edition says, this is a collection of "everyday" stories, as if that means anything. "Everyday" for whom? Based on these stories, each new day in Alexie's life is pretty much the same as the last one, full of the same characters, the same sorts of metaphors, the same nondescript dreams.
You read one of these stories, you've pretty much read them all. The same tone and voice echo throughout.
Why are this book and its author so worshipped? I think it has something to do with the fact that for years Alexie was the only Native American author writing about Native Americans that anyone knew of. If he was a white author, I don't think anyone would give a damn because the writing on its own isn't anything special.
It's vitally important that literature features a wide variety of viewpoints and that the authors we read reflect the diversity of the world we live in. Fortunately, authors today are far more reflective of America and the world in general. Native writers like Tommy Orange are winning awards for their writing.
That's the key. The identity of the author shouldn't play a part in determining what is or is not great fiction. If you slapped a blank cover on "The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven" and excluded the author's info, would anyone deem this one worth remembering?
As the blurb on my edition says, this is a collection of "everyday" stories, as if that means anything. "Everyday" for whom? Based on these stories, each new day in Alexie's life is pretty much the same as the last one, full of the same characters, the same sorts of metaphors, the same nondescript dreams.
You read one of these stories, you've pretty much read them all. The same tone and voice echo throughout.
Why are this book and its author so worshipped? I think it has something to do with the fact that for years Alexie was the only Native American author writing about Native Americans that anyone knew of. If he was a white author, I don't think anyone would give a damn because the writing on its own isn't anything special.
It's vitally important that literature features a wide variety of viewpoints and that the authors we read reflect the diversity of the world we live in. Fortunately, authors today are far more reflective of America and the world in general. Native writers like Tommy Orange are winning awards for their writing.
That's the key. The identity of the author shouldn't play a part in determining what is or is not great fiction. If you slapped a blank cover on "The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven" and excluded the author's info, would anyone deem this one worth remembering?