A review by swaggynikki
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

adventurous dark emotional funny informative reflective 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? No

4.5

This book was very honest, and I loved it for that. I hate when I say things like this because it sounds so reactionary and bad, but I loved that it was a story without an agenda: it wasn't meant to be inspiration porn or some sort of argument for why native american life is great, actually, and they have everything figured out. It was just this really genuine and realistic story. At first the narration was very "I'm a teenage boy and I love jerking off!" which I didn't love even if it is realistic, but the descriptions of his life and the people around him and his decisions definitely made up for it. At first the books starts... not lighthearted, exactly, because there's plenty of dark shit in the beginning, but about halfway through it has this sharp tone shift into ultimate emotionally damaging territory. It was just a really sweet and sad coming-of-age story, and a unique look into the conditions of living on a reservation that I really valued reading.
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