Book of the Week: The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian imparts a universally valuable lesson for high school students on how to deal with pressure and what it means to be brave. This semi-autobiographical tale written by Sherman Alexie for YA readers focuses on one year in the life of Arnold Spirit, a 14 year-old living on the Spokane Indian Reservation in Washington State. The beginning of the school year gets off to a rough start for Arnold, a.k.a. Junior. Readers and Junior are forced to take stock of all the hardships he has to maneuver daily because he is a stereotypical target for bullying and feels true hopelessness at this point in his life. The clear conclusion, that Junior is at a breaking point, is one most teenagers can relate to in one way or another.
After the desperate and heartfelt suggestion of one of his teachers, Junior sets his sights on the promise of hope outside of the reservation. Breaking through boundaries set by his friends, family, school and community, Junior transfers to Reardan, an all-white school twenty miles away from home. Through a balanced storyline that is both frank and humorous with tremendous black-and-white pencil sketches by artist Ellen Forney, readers are pulled deep into Junior’s daily courage and determination. Junior proves able to lay claim to the hope that first lead him on a path away from the reservation to where he now finds himself. By the end of the book, now more than a “part-time” Indian, Junior allows readers to share in how he may reconcile the harsh reality of contemporary life on the reservation and his future ahead.
