Module 15 – The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian

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Alexie, S. (2007). The absolutely true diary of a part-time Indian. New York, NY: Little, Brown and Company.
   
Summary —

Sherman Alexie’s novel, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian tells the story of a freshman-aged Spokane Indian, Arnold Spirit, Jr.  After acting out at school because he realized his geometry text was a generation old, he’s encouraged by his math teacher to find a place that has hope: there is no hope to be found at the reservation. Junior decides to leave the "rez" school to attend an all-white school in a neighboring town, Reardan.  He faces objections from the Indians on his reservation, who consider him a race-traitor, and he faces some horrible racism in his new school, since he's the only Indian at that school other than the mascot.  But he slowly makes new friends, finds a girlfriend, gets a spot on the varsity basketball team, and in general succeeds in his attempt to find an out from the limited possibilities for a smart kid on the reservation. The narrative is not all joy, as his grandmother is killed by a drunk driver, his father’s best friends is shot to death, and his sister dies in a fire.  Despite the support he receives from his immediate family to try a new school, his father is still an alcoholic who occasionally disappears for days at a time when he goes on a bender. On a more positive note, Junior’s new friends all stand up for him when one of the Reardan teachers mocks him for his number of absences. By the end of the novel, Junior even manages to patch things up with Rowdy, his best friend who had been the most angry when Junior decided to go to school at Reardan. The two spend a day playing basketball one-on-one into the evening, best friends once again, as if nothing had ever happened.

Lucien’s thoughts —

I really enjoyed this book.  It was equal parts hilarious and heart-wrenching, as Junior often uses humor to staunch the pain.  His diary doesn’t flinch from pointing out the inequities of living in poverty, starting the novel with a brief story about how they couldn’t afford to takes his dog to the vet when he got sick, but his dad could afford the bullet needed to put him out of his misery. In general, I think this book is a great example of hope and hard work overcoming adversity. This book would be great for any reader who has ever felt like an outsider because of his or her skin color. The book perfectly captures the ambivalent feelings of leaving your community to strive for something better; it's not all positive emotions.  There are real feelings of guilt and betrayal that accompany the feelings of hope. It's a well-written book, full of humor and wit, but also sorrow and pain.
   
Librarian’s use —

This is a great book to use on a social studies unit on Native Americans and modern life on the reservation. The book points out quite starkly how alcohol is both a coping mechanism and seed of destruction for many Native Americans on the reservation.  Arnold uses a lot of humor as his way of dealing with painful subjects, like poverty, racism, depression, and alcoholism, all problems that are plentiful on the reservation. On the other hand, he points out that in some ways, his family is more present to him than the families of some of his white schoolmates, where fathers are too busy to be a part of their kids’ lives. I think the book is a great way to introduce young readers to a voice from a marginalized culture. Alexie plays with cultural stereotypes, fleshing them out to be real people with real problems.

Other reviews —

Sutton, R. (2007). The absolutely true diary of a part-time Indian. Horn book magazine, 83 (5), 563-564.
   
The line between dramatic monologue, verse novel, and standup comedy gets unequivocally -- and hilariously and triumphantly -- bent in this novel about coming of age on the rez. Urged on by a math teacher whose nose he has just broken, Junior, fourteen, decides to make the iffy commute from his Spokane Indian reservation to attend high school in Reardan, a small town twenty miles away. He's tired of his impoverished circumstances ("Adam and Eve covered their privates with fig leaves; the first Indians covered their privates with their tiny hands"), but while he hopes his new school will offer him a better education, he knows the odds aren't exactly with him: "What was I doing at Reardan, whose mascot was an Indian, thereby making me the only other Indian in town?" But he makes friends (most notably the class dork Gordy), gets a girlfriend, and even (though short, nearsighted, and slightly disabled from birth defects) lands a spot on the varsity basketball team, which inevitably leads to a showdown with his own home team, led by his former best friend Rowdy. Junior's narration is intensely alive and rat-a-tat-tat with short paragraphs and one-liners ("If God hadn't wanted us to masturbate, then God wouldn't have given us thumbs"). The dominant mode of the novel is comic, even though there's plenty of sadness, as when Junior's sister manages to shake off depression long enough to elope -- only to die, passed out from drinking, in a fire. Junior's spirit, though, is unquenchable, and his style inimitable, not least in the take-no-prisoners cartoons he draws (as expertly depicted by comics artist Forney) from his bicultural experience.

Chipman, I. (2007). The absolutely true diary of a part-time Indian. Booklist, 10 (22), 61.

Arnold  Spirit,  a  goofy-looking  dork with  a decent jumpshot, spends his time lamenting life on  the “poor-ass” Spokane  Indian  reservation, drawing cartoons (which accompany, and often provide more insight than, the narrative), and, along with his aptly named pal Rowdy, laughing those laughs over anything and nothing that affix best friends so intricately together. When a teacher pleads with Arnold to want more, to escape the hopelessness of the rez, Arnold switches to a rich white school and immediately becomes as much an outcast in his own community as he is a curiosity in his new one. He weathers the typical teenage indignations and triumphs like a champ but soon faces far more trying ordeals as his home  life begins  to  crumble  and decay amidst  the  suffocating mire  of  alcoholism  on the  reservation. Alexie’s humor and prose are easygoing and well suited to his young audience, and he doesn’t pull many punches as he levels his eye at stereotypes both warranted and inapt. A few of the plotlines fade to gray by the end, but this ultimately affirms the incredible power of best friends to hurt and heal in equal measure. Younger teens looking for the strength to lift themselves out of rough situations would do well to start here.

Module 14 – Who Am I Without Him?

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Flake, S. (2004). Who am I without him? New York, NY: Jump at the Sun/ Hyperion Books for Children.

Summary —

Who Am I Without Him?: Short stories about girls and the boys in their lives is a collection of short stories by Sharon G. Flakes. The book takes its title from the first short story, "So I Ain't No Good Girl."  In it, the girl is faced with the prospect of a boyfriend, Raheem, that has a wondering eye and perhaps a straying heart.  She wonders if she should just ignore it, so that it doesn't cause Raheem to leave.  She rationalizes that she better enjoy what she has instead of pushing him away, because she asks herself, "Who am I gonna be without him?" By the end of the story, she has seen Raheem whispering sweet nothings in the ear of another girl, but she decides to pretend she didn't see it so that Raheem won't leave her.  The book contains ten different vignettes of African-American girls and their relationships with the boys around them.  Often, the narrator of a story is unnamed, though she describes the people in her life.

One of the other stories that really stayed with me is "I Know a Stupid Boy When I see One."  In this one, the narrator is a girl who is pregnant and whose boyfriend, Oscar is in jail.  She hears about a lawyer who will help her sell her baby to a couple looking to adopt, and her father is eager for the money.  While she's away awaiting her baby's birth, she meets a slow boy, Willie Greentea, who hit his head when he was younger, and has been slow ever since.  She manages to get Willie Greentea wrapped around her finger, but eventually Willie realizes that she's going to have a baby.  He buys it from her for a small sum of money, not understanding that the baby is already due to go to another family.  Eventually, the narrator decides to back out of the adoption process, but is visited in the hospital by Willie Greentea, who expects to take the sick baby home with him.  She eventually dies at his hands at the end of the story.

In one of the later stories, “Jacob’s Rules,” Mr. Jacob has a project for his class: he breaks the class into groups, one boy, one girl, and one observer (half of the groups have girl observers, half of the groups have boy observers).  For the next few weeks, the groups have to behave as if they are a couple, working on projects together, shopping around for a house, and researching what is involved in adopting a child.  The story follow Brandon and Marimba, a couple that just can’t seem to get along, mostly because Brandon doesn’t find Marimba attractive, but is instead drawn to their observer, Kenya.  The project is intended to teach the students some of the skills necessary to succeed in a long-term relationship.  As Mr. Jacobs points out, “Young men today think dating is about finding a girl, mounting a girl, and ditching a girl… I want them to see that there’s more to it than that.” By the end of the story, it’s revealed that the observers were specifically chosen because they were attractive kids, and were secretly tasked to try and undermine the relationship they were ostensively observing. Brandon learns the lesson that no one likes to be used.

The final short story is a letter from an absent father giving his daughter advice on how to pick a good boy, not someone who will leave her like he left her mother. Since it’s one of the stories that is not from a teen’s perspective, it’s one of the weakest short stories presented, even if it is full of useful advice about learning to stand for yourself and never letting your dreams be buried for another boy’s affection.

Lucien’s thoughts —

Flake’s story-telling is uneven, as some stories are significantly more compelling than some other ones, but I can see a teenager reading this book identifying with some of the characters.  I think the book is useful in it’s frank portrayal of teenage relationships; the book doesn’t shy away from topics like pregnancy and abusive boyfriends, but it isn’t especially sexually graphic or explicit.  It could find a home in a middle-school library.  The book doesn’t make a huge deal about it, but it’s implied that most of the characters in the short stories are African American, and the book may be used as a way to reach out to students who don’t see very many characters representing their experiences growing up and hooking up. I can see why the book was awarded a Coretta Scott King honors award. While the stories explore serious topics, most of them are infused with a healthy sense of humor.

Librarian’s use —

I think this book of short stories could easily be included in a section on teen romantic fiction.  It’s shorter stories could attract readers who are reluctant to commit to a longer novel, but are interested in teenage dating.  The characters are well sketched by Flake; their characterization feels true. And these are not romantic comedies, where opposites attract and they all end up happily together.  In Flake’s hands, teens often have to face the challenges of a broken heart or crushed dreams.  The book has plenty of life lessons, for those who are looking to read about the often misunderstood needs between boys and girls.

Other reviews —

Rochman, H. (2004). Flake, Sharon G. Who am I without him? Booklist, 100 (16), 1440.

Hilarious and anguished, these 10 short stories about growing up black today speaks with rare truth about family, friends, school, and especially about finding a boyfriend.  Erika is a “ghetto girl” who likes white boys; she can’t help it, and the other black kids in school can’t stand her, because they know.  Class is a big issue for Erin, who steals clothes so he can take a suburban girl to the homecoming dance.  The church girls are forbidden to date, and they get hurt when they go hunting for boys. But their well-meaning parents don’t have it right, and the girls won’t stop looking. As with Janet MacDonald’s fiction, the talk here is wild, angry, and outrageous, but there’s no overt sex or obscenity.  Yes, there are messages, but the narrative is never preachy or uplifting; it’s honest about the pain.  When one girls’ boyfriend hits her, she apologizes “just like my momma does when daddy slaps her.” The best advice comes from a dad who abandoned his family, who now tells his teenage daughter how to avoid getting stuck with someone like him (“you is so much more than a pretty face and a tight pair of jeans, some boy’s girlfriend or some man’s wife”). Not everyone makes it. The stories work because Flake never denies the truths of poverty, prejudice, and failure.

Oluonye, M. (2004) Who am I without him?: Short stories about girls and the boys in their lives. School library journal 50 (5), 147.

Written in the vernacular of urban African-American teens, which Flake captures flawlessly, these 10 stories have universal themes and situations. Some are funny and uplifting; others, disturbing and sad. In "So I Ain't No Good Girl," a teen wants to be with a good-looking popular boy, so much so that she tolerates his disrespect and abuse. In "Wanted: A Thug," Melody writes to a columnist for advice on how to steal a friend's boyfriend, unaware that the friend is the columnist's younger sister. Two of the stories are told from a boy's point of view. The concluding story, "A Letter to My Daughter," in which an absent father gives his daughter his advice about boys and men is sad, poignant, and loving. Flake has a way of teaching a lesson without seeming to do so. Addressing issues and situations that many girls face in today's often complex society, this book is provocative and thought-provoking.

Gordon, L. (2004) Who am I without him?: Short stories about girls and the boys in their lives. Library media connection, 23 (3), 71.

These stories are centered on the theme of adolescent romance. Though all the characters are African American, the author has covered many of the issues that teens of all races experience. In “Wanted: a Thug,” Melody is interested in another girl’s boyfriend and writes
 to an advice columnist who happens to
 be the sister of the other girl. In “I Like White Boys,” the girl yearns for boys that she probably won’t get. “A Letter to My Daughter” is from an absent father who writes to his teenage daughter to give her advice about the men she will encounter and the goals she sets for herself. Other stories concern teen pregnancy, teen boys making wrong decisions to impress girls, and a class experiment on respect and relationships. It is refreshing to see an author who can capture the rhythm of the street and teen culture without needing to add profanity or graphic sex; that makes this book instantly usable in a variety of situations in school beyond its immediate appeal to teens seeking romance. These stories would be appropriate discussion starters in courses that include inter-personal relationships, dating, and sex, such as health, independent living, or family living. Of course, these would be appropriate in English classes too.