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

Summary

In his first book for young adults, bestselling author Sherman Alexie tells the story of Junior, a budding cartoonist who leaves his school on the Spokane Indian Reservation to attend an all-white high school. This heartbreaking, funny, and beautifully written tale, coupled with poignant drawings that reflect the character's art, is based on the author's own experiences and chronicles the contemporary adolescence of one Native American boy as he attempts to break away from the life he seems destined to live.

Buy Hardback - $16.99
Pre-purchase Paperback (Releases March 2009) - $8.99
Sherman Alexie Web Site

Awards & Honors

2008 Book Sense Book of the Year Children's Literature Honor Book
2008 Pacific Northwest Book Award
2008 American Indian Library Association American Indian Youth Literature Award
2007 National Book Award for Young People's Literature
Publishers Weekly 2007 Best Books of the Year - Children's Fiction
The New York Times Notable Children's Books of 2007
Los Angeles Times Favorite Children's Books of 2007
National Parenting Publication Gold Winner 2007
Amazon.com Best Books of 2007
Barnes & Noble 2007 Best for Teens
School Library Journal Best Books of 2007
Kirkus Praise Best Young Adult Books of 2007
Horn Book Fanfare Best Books of 2007
The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books Blue Ribbon Winner
Kansas City Star's Top 100 Books of the Year

Praise

"...Sherman Alexie, grew up on the Spokane Reservation in tiny Wellpinit, Wash., and made his name as a poet before expanding into short stories, novels, screenplays, film directing and stand-up comedy. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian is Alexie's first foray into the young adult genre, and it took him only one book to master the form. Recently nominated for a National Book Award, this is a gem of a book. I keep flipping back to re-read the best scenes and linger over Ellen Forney's cartoons." — New York Times

"When was the last time a book not only made you a little bit nauseous but excited as well? THE ABSOLUTELY TRUE DIARY OF A PART-TIME INDIAN by Sherman Alexie is such a magnanimous stew of reality and hope — and the particular traumatic existence of a reservation teen in contemporary America — that you can't possibly put it down, no matter how sad, disgusted or freaked out it makes you." — Teenreads.com

"While he's not the first to dress up autobiography for a younger audience, Alexie's book is great. The comic drawings by Ellen Forney add to the voice of a smart, lovable narrator and the more expository elements of life on "the rez" are handled with style. It would be easy to slip into a pedantic tone, but Alexie doesn't break character to educate uninitiated readers about the realities of American Indian life."
— San Francisco Cronicle

Buy Hardback - $16.99
Pre-purchase Paperback (Releases March 2009) - $8.99
Sherman Alexie Web Site