Kid Konnection: The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

Arnold Spirit, or Junior, as he known on the reservation, was born with all sorts of medical problems, so he was teased by everyone but his best friend, Rowdy.  Junior turns to drawing to communicate with the world and has big dreams of being well known one day.    When he’s fourteen and attending the reservation high school, he’s stunned when he receives his mother’s old geometry book on the first day of school.  Seeing his mother’s name in that book makes him realize that he’ll never get the quality education that he craves, and deserves, as long as he attends the reservation school, so he talks his parents into allowing him to transfer to a high school in a nearby affluent community.

Going to the new school isn’t all that easy, though.  First of all, there’s no bus going to the school, and Arnold (as Junior’s called at the new school) has to be creative to find ways to get there.   Then there’s the fact that the only other Indian at the school is its mascot.   Also, Rowdy and a lot of the other Indians feel that Arnold has turned his back on them.

Sherman Alexie’s semi-autobiographical novel, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, chronicles Arnold’s first year at his new high school, and what a year it is!  The book is told from Arnold’s point of view, and he’s a fantastic character – he’s hormonal and determined, proud and sincere, and scared and eager.  He loves his family and his people, yet wants to rise above the poverty and disease that surrounds him.  My heart ached for Arnold and I rooted for him throughout the book.

The best thing about this book, besides Arnold, is reading about the Indian culture.  The reservation helps preserve the tribe’s culture, but it’s filled with despair, alcoholism and shattered dreams.    The main occupations seem to be selling trinkets to tourists or working at the casinos.  When Junior dreams of leaving and seeing the world, he’s accused of trying to “be white.”  It just makes you wonder why nothing is being done to improve conditions there.

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian won the 2007 National Book Award for Young People’s Literature and for good reason.  Alexie does a masterful job of writing in the voice of a fourteen year old and I was engrossed in this book right from the beginning, at turns I found myself laughing and crying.  It’s a fabulous coming of age story about a young man who wants to improve his lot in life.   I absolutely loved Arnold and this book and can’t say enough good things about it.   The book also contains some wonderful illustrations by Ellen Forney.  There is some language and a little sexual content, so it’s not for the younger YA set, but I’d recommend it to older YA readers on up.  This book is fantastic!

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