Sherman Alexie
This novel traces the life of high school freshman Arnold Spirit Jr. He is a member of the Spokane Indian tribe and has decided early in the novel to go to school off the reservation at the local white school. Alexie not only illuminates the traditional difficulties of a teenager in a new environment, but is able to bring to light many of the particular difficulties that an American Indian would face. Addressing topics like alcoholism, suicide, racisim and abuse head on, Alexie presents a picture of overcoming both extreme personal and cultural obstacles. Arnold is clearly an exceptional person and by the end of the novel he is truly a hero. I listened to this as an audio book read by the author and was thinking that it would not be nearly as good if I had read it myself. However, I noticed that the print version includes lots of cartoons "drawn" by Arnold, and was left wondering what I was missing. My guess is that one would be pleased with either the audio or print version, thinking that full enjoyment could not be achieved with the other.
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