The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian in Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge

Jul 14, 2011 jess rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2011, yaf, audiobook-d, fiction

I listened to the audio book (read by the author!) so I missed the illustrations but I believe I gained a lot from the story telling. This is a coming-of-age (semi?) autobiographical high school memoir. Junior lives on the Spokane Indian reservation. He's frustrated by the limitations of the rez school and the hopelessness that bogs down everyone around him, so he decides to go to the next town over for high school. The white high school offers opportunities and hope that the rez never could, bu I listened to the audio book (read by the author!) so I missed the illustrations but I believe I gained a lot from the story telling. This is a coming-of-age (semi?) autobiographical high school memoir. Junior lives on the Spokane Indian reservation. He's frustrated by the limitations of the rez school and the hopelessness that bogs down everyone around him, so he decides to go to the next town over for high school. The white high school offers opportunities and hope that the rez never could, but lacks familiarity, community and culture he's used to.

Junior is pretty introspective and thoughtful for a teenage boy. His relationships with the flawed but good-hearted people who make up his life were memorable and touching. I loved his best friend, his sister, Grandmother Spirit and his dad's best friend. I loved his kind parents who loved and supported him even as they drank their way through his childhood. He learns to get along with the white kids in his new school, befriend them, date them, learn alongside them and play basketball with them, even though they are so clueless about his reality.

Junior takes issue with Tolstoy ("Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.") in that combative, teenager way that made me cheer for him. Junior's theory: Happy families aside, all unhappy families can trace their unhappiness back to alcoholism. I mean, I live with a teenage boy who takes major issue with some Big Thinkers, so the Tolstoy part felt real to me.

The titular conflict (junior's status as a part-time indian) plays a major role in the plot but it felt less front and center than I anticipated. There is a lot going on in this kid's life, and the two worlds he has to navigate just seems like another thing he has to get through.

This book addresses some pretty deep issues - child abuse, death, identity, poverty, alcoholism, racism, the modern plight of the North American Indian - and has some heart-wrenchingly sad moments, but the overall tone is fairly straight-forward and casual; the book presents a stiff upper lip through some difficult moments. Meghan wrote in her review, "You want to give this book to Holden Caulfield and tell him to stop whining so much." (seriously) It's tough in parts, but the telling is fresh, the characters are endearing and there is a persistent hope to draw you through. ...more

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Oct 26, 2011 Joanna rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011-read, audiobooks, young-adult, rws-2011-fall

Everyone but me seems to love Sherman Alexie and to love this book. I enjoyed hearing the author read his own book. He has a nice voice and gives a good cadence to the text.

This is my second try with this author. At the recommendation of a classmate many years ago, I read Indian Killer, which is about as different from The Absolutely True Diary, but, while I can see the underlying strength of the author, the book didn't really move me.

Here again, the book didn't really do much for me. It was a s ...more

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Feb 17, 2015 Doug rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, ya

I adored this book. I really don't know what else to say. ...more

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Jul 07, 2014 Robyn rated it liked it

Shelves: comedy-or-satire, audience-ya, audience-kids, fiction-general

Junior Spirit was born on a Spokane reservation, near-sighted with brain damage and a lisp. As far as Junior is concerned, he was born with the odds stacked against him, destined to live and die a loser without achieving anything important. But despite this, Junior has hope. He loves to learn and draw, and hopes that these skills will help him get out of the reservation and take control of his destiny. When Junior reaches high school, he makes the decision to transfer out of the reservation scho Junior Spirit was born on a Spokane reservation, near-sighted with brain damage and a lisp. As far as Junior is concerned, he was born with the odds stacked against him, destined to live and die a loser without achieving anything important. But despite this, Junior has hope. He loves to learn and draw, and hopes that these skills will help him get out of the reservation and take control of his destiny. When Junior reaches high school, he makes the decision to transfer out of the reservation school, into a nearby public (and nearly all-white) school. This decision leaves him an outcast in both his new school, where he is viewed as a foreigner, and in his home-town, where he is viewed as a traitor. Armed with a pencil for drawing and unshakable faith in his dreams, Junior navigates the hardships of both worlds and the difficulties of growing up with wit, humor, and bravery.

I've heard a lot about this book and it's been on my "to-read" list for a long time. I'm glad I finally took the time to read it because it was amazing. It's very rare for a book to be hilarious and heart-wrenching at the same time. Sherman Alexie brings Junior to life in one of the most realistic renderings of a teenager I have come across. He does not shy away from using the language a typical teen would use, which means this book is definitely not recommended for younger readers. Junior swears, talks about sex and violence, and uses derogatory terms to refer to himself and others. But this language truly brings Junior to life and makes his story all the more powerful.

Junior has to deal with the realities of alcoholism and violence in his community, but he always finds solace in his drawings and uses humor to heal the pain. With an unswerving refusal to become another victim of circumstance, Junior's actions and determination can serve as inspiration for teens who may be witness to the same difficulties.

Audiobook: Sherman Alexie narrates the audio himself and it is brilliant. His reading captures the complexities of Junior's contradictory nature; both self-deprecating and proud. Hearing Alexie discuss Junior's life from a first-person viewpoint makes the story even more heart-wrenching.

Parents: View the Common Sense Media Review ...more

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Apr 28, 2015 Stacey rated it liked it · review of another edition

I was looking for a bit of a lighter read, but this wasn't it. While there was plenty of laughter there were also heavy issues addressed. A quick read, if not exactly what I had in mind. Junior, an Indian on the rez, is prompted to leave the rez, in search of hope. An outcast in both places he finds the good and the bad along the way. ...more

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Sep 28, 2020 Amy Ellis rated it it was ok

I read this for Banned Books Week. It was okay. I can see why it was banned (Junior loves to touch himself 🤦🏼‍♀️). Ultimately, the constant alcoholism and death that Junior dealt with made me sad, but I do give credit to the author for writing fiction that reads like a memoir.

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