Each year, the faculty chooses a summer reading book to use as a common starting point for the next school year. This summer the entire University community will read The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie. The novel tells the story of Junior, a 14 year-old Spokane Indian who leaves his reservation school to attend a neighboring all-white high school, and was both a New York Times best seller and a 2007 National Book Award winner. It is humorous, honest and thoughtful and will provide avenues for the school to focus on a variety of issues during the 2010-2011 school year.
- Once he leaves the res, how do various groups define Junior? Does he define himself?
- What is the purpose of Junior's cartoons?
- What is the value of hope in the novel?
- How does Junior's short and blunt narration influence your experience of the book?
- What has Junior learned by the end of his freshman year?
- How does Junior's portrayal of American Indian culture match up with what you know about it?
- How is economic status a factor in the novel?
- What responsibilities do we have to ourselves and to our heritage?
While there is no formal assignment tied to summer reading, students are expected to read and reflect on the text, and they will be held accountable for that work. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian is the only book all students are required to read (unless you are signed up for an AP class, in which case your teacher may have other reading assigned), but the faculty has suggested the following novels as additional perspectives on the Native American experience for those students who want more information or a greater challenge:
- Ceremony by Leslie Marmon Silko is the story of Tayo, a veteran of World War II who returns to the Laguna Pueblo Reservation scarred by his experiences.
- Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee by Dee Brown is a historical look at Native Americans in the Late Nineteenth Century America West.
- In the Presence of the Sun by N. Scott Momaday is a collection of short stories and poems centered on Native American heritage and the Plains culture.
- Cheyenne Autumn by Mari Sandoz tells the story of an 1878 band of Cheyenne Indians who set out to return to their Yellowstone homeland form the Indian Territory.
- In Dwellings, Linda Hogan successfully couples a poet's appreciation of phrasing and rhythm with Native American sensibilities and stories, and exquisitely examines both natural and internal landscapes.
- Fools Crow by James Welch follows the members of the Pikuni (Blackfeet) Indians who live in harmony with nature, hunting the "blackhorns" (buffalo), observing a complex system of political administration based on mutual respect and handing down legends that explain the natural world and govern daily conduct.
If you have any questions regarding summer reading, please contact Dave Vesper.
