Reservation Blues in Around the World in 80 Books

Nov 02, 2011 Laura (booksnob) rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011, literature, book-club

Reservation Blues takes place on the Spokane Indian Reservation in Washington. Three young men with nothing better to do form a band called Coyote Springs and begin to feel the pride and pain of success. One plays an enchanted guitar and with virtually no experience this band takes off. Later two women join the band and so begins their mystical, rock n' roll odyssey as they travel wide and far in their blue van from bar to bar.

Every chapter begins with a song, lyrics included, and you can downl ...more

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Mar 08, 2018 Lindsey Z added it

How do I rate or review a novel that says so much about the struggles and celebrations within the Spokane Reservation community but was written by a man who has continually perpetuated assault, abuse, and oppression towards Native women, a startling reality of which he himself is so acutely aware? If you plan to read Alexie's work and don't yet know the (recent as of March 2018) news about his 20 year history of abusing his power to sexually harass and assault aspiring female writers, I suggest How do I rate or review a novel that says so much about the struggles and celebrations within the Spokane Reservation community but was written by a man who has continually perpetuated assault, abuse, and oppression towards Native women, a startling reality of which he himself is so acutely aware? If you plan to read Alexie's work and don't yet know the (recent as of March 2018) news about his 20 year history of abusing his power to sexually harass and assault aspiring female writers, I suggest you get caught up on his reality and the reality of his victims. And I'm sorry but knowing this information will definitely change how you read his stories, will forever taint them for you as they have for me. A fortunate outcome has come about as a result: my 11th grade students, who have been reading this novel for weeks, have been inspired to write letters to Alexie and his victims, contemplate curriculum design, critically think about how and why we study Native writers in an American literature course, and attempt to answer for themselves: what happens when an artistically talented writer, artist, celebrity, and even someone whom we love and respect breaks our shared moral code? So even though Alexie's assault and harassment of many women over the years have ruined his stories for most of my students, the disruption of our unit has yielded rich and meaningful discussions and reflections. With my full support, some of my students refused to read the final chapter of this novel, and instead chose to read the works of Alexie's victims and of other Native writers. And I witnessed organic student-led inquiry. What a gift that has been for me. But I cannot any longer, in any good conscience, recommend his work to others lest we all perpetuate the idea that, just because someone has power and is talented, they can do, as one of my students put it so well, "whatever the hell they want," to the children in our lives who, one day, will also have to make decisions about how to use their own power. ...more

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