The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie ; art by Ellen Forney.
01. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie ; art by Ellen Forney. 2007.
[http://www.amazon.com/Absolutely-True-Diary-Part-Time-Indian/dp/0316013684/]
229 pgs. Fiction: Realistic, * * * * 01/08/2008
Audience: grades 8-11
Summary: Budding cartoonist Junior leaves his troubled school on the Spokane Indian Reservation to attend an all-white farm town school where the only other Native American is the school mascot.
Review: This was an excellent book. It was funny, thoughtful, shocking, provoking, and heartbreaking, all rolled into one marvelous package.
Alexie doesn't pull any punches in this book. Junior's struggles with the racism that he faces at the white, rural farm school seem very realistic, as do his reactions. Everything is bittersweet. Junior is able to inject even the worst things in his live with humor and beautiful drawings, and yet even the best things that happen to him and those around him end up having a dark twist to them.
Still, Junior perseveres-- at home, at school, and in his mind-- and this coming-of-age novel follows him every step of the way as he begins to experience success.
A special note must be made regarding Ellen Forney's illustrations. They capture Junior's emotion and artistic skill so effortlessly that the novel would not be possible without them.
Awards: National Book Award (Young People's Literature), 2007.
Similar: The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven, by Sherman Alexie (High School/Adult); The Brave, by Robert Lipsyte (grades 7-12); Diary of a Wimpy Kid, by Jeff Kinney (grades 5-8).
[http://www.amazon.com/Absolutely-True-Diary-Part-Time-Indian/dp/0316013684/]
229 pgs. Fiction: Realistic, * * * * 01/08/2008
Audience: grades 8-11
Summary: Budding cartoonist Junior leaves his troubled school on the Spokane Indian Reservation to attend an all-white farm town school where the only other Native American is the school mascot.
Review: This was an excellent book. It was funny, thoughtful, shocking, provoking, and heartbreaking, all rolled into one marvelous package.
Alexie doesn't pull any punches in this book. Junior's struggles with the racism that he faces at the white, rural farm school seem very realistic, as do his reactions. Everything is bittersweet. Junior is able to inject even the worst things in his live with humor and beautiful drawings, and yet even the best things that happen to him and those around him end up having a dark twist to them.
Still, Junior perseveres-- at home, at school, and in his mind-- and this coming-of-age novel follows him every step of the way as he begins to experience success.
A special note must be made regarding Ellen Forney's illustrations. They capture Junior's emotion and artistic skill so effortlessly that the novel would not be possible without them.
Awards: National Book Award (Young People's Literature), 2007.
Similar: The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven, by Sherman Alexie (High School/Adult); The Brave, by Robert Lipsyte (grades 7-12); Diary of a Wimpy Kid, by Jeff Kinney (grades 5-8).