The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian-Sherman Alexie

So remember how I was complaining about being in a total book slump? THE SLUMP IS OFFICIALLY OVER!! And it's all thanks to The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian.

I'm sort of ashamed to admit how hesitant I was to read this book. I'd even checked it out from the library a few months ago, but returned it unread. It had gotten such rave reviews, that I was a little wary. I've gotten burned a few times this year by the "omg you HAVE to read this!!1!" reviews on some other blogs. I'd rush out to read those books and, while there was nothing wrong with them, per se, they just suffered from my too high expectations. Anyway, I was cautious.

From the first paragraph, I was totally hooked. I could instantly hear Junior's voice in my head, loud and clear. He's smart, he's funny, he's sarcastic, he's confused and, well, he's awesome. Seriously, I would totally hang out with this kid.

I loved the honesty of it all. Junior pulls no punches in describing all the things that are wrong with the reservation and with the people on it. He traces every problem back to its source; booze. But though he acknowledges these issues, he's also attached through the strong bond of love and loyalty to the Rez. When his math teacher tells Junior that he has to leave the Rez in order to survive, Junior takes his words to heart and decides to go to high school at Rearden. Rearden is off the Rez and full of white kids. Though he knows he's going to be looked on as a traitor, Junior also knows that his teacher is right; if he wants a different life for himself, he has to leave the rez.

I really loved Junior's relationship with his family. They have their issues (dad's a drunk prone to disappearing for days on a bender, mom is an enabler and his older sister is sort of a hermit) but the love and devotion they all have for one another is wonderfully apparent. Who hasn't thought their family was totally weird and effed up, and loved them anyway?

It would have been easy for the story to devolve into stereotypes and absolutes. Instead, the story is beautifully crafted and feels incredibly real. This could be because it's loosely based on Sherman Alexie's own experiences growing up on a reservation. Still, it's the mark of a great writer when you can read their work and not think of the author all the time. Instead, you're thinking about the characters. After all, that's the point of story telling.

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian is at turns heartbreaking and hilarious. A book can get me to both laugh out loud AND cry? How rare (and awesome) is THAT?

I finished this book in a day, and was totally bummed that it was over. Luckily for me, Sherman Alexie is "hard at work" on a sequel, tentatively titled The Magic and Tragic Year of My Broken Thumb. I can't wait to have Junior's voice in my head again.