The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

          There are times in life when you feel like you have nobody to talk to. You feel all alone without someone you can really open your true feelings to. Sometimes it's because of you wanting to be your true self or because of some weird physical issue you have. Well in the coming of age novel The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian Sherman Alexie really illustrates these feelings with young Arnold "Junior" Spirit. Junior is a teenage boy living on the Spokane Indian Reservation with his parents. He was born with too much "Brain Grease" in his skull, and has suffered from some brain damage from the surgical procedures taken place to flush it all out. He draws MANY cartoons as basically an escape from his bad life on the reservation His sister left the "Rez" because she didn't want to deal with it anymore. Junior has one friend, Rowdy. He is the toughest kid on the Rez and has tons of anger issues. He loves comic books so that's why Junior and Rowdy interact so well together. When Junior left the reservation school to go to Reardan High (an all white school that is 20 miles away from his house) he loses his only friend because he is a "traitor".

          The important themes that I found in this book are love and isolation. When Junior did move there he did befriend a nice attractive girl named Penelope. She is a popular, pretty, smart girl. She basically shocked the entire school when she befriended Junior. I found this to be very sweet and noble of Penelope to not care what others thought of her hanging out with Junior. Her father is also a racist which adds to the amount of bravery she has on the matter of her new friend. Even with these new perks Junior is still feeling depressed. Half Indian at home, half white at school. It seems kind of lonely for him to have to travel 40 miles a day and still not be able to interact with people. He gets bullied everywhere he goes because he looks like the perfect target for oncoming attackers.

          I find Junior to be one of my favorite book characters. He wants to pursue art as his career and have a successful life. His parents used to have dreams when they were Juniors age too. His dad wanted to be a professional musician. But he didn't take the chance to pursue it. That's why I admire the way Junior is so bent on trying to get something he really wants to do, and that is to become a professional artist. I believe that is another reason he left a school. One of my favorite things that Junior says is that "If you speak and write in English, or Spanish, or Chinese, or any other language, then only a certain percent of human beings will get your meaning. But when you draw a picture everyone will get it." (page 5). I like the way he is setting up his future and I cannot wait to see what happens next.