The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian


By Sherman Alexie



The Book

1. The main character is a poor, but cheerful Spokane Indian named Arnold “Junior” Spirit. Despite his life’s misfortunes he remains optimistic through out his experiences.



2. In the beginning of the book Arnold begins High School on the reservation and quickly looses hope in his future. After being inspired by his math teacher he goes to a school off of the reservation and the middle is about what happens to him there. In the end of the book Arnold copes with the death of three of his family members and friends, but he also finishes his first year at Reardan High School.

3. Arnold faces plenty of problems and bad experiences in one year, but he manages to continue with his life. The moral of the book is never give up.



The Issues

1. One of the biggest issues in the story is Alcoholism. Arnold’s Grandmother is run over by a drunk driver while walking home from a powwow. His dad’s friend is shot while fighting over who should get the last sip of wine with a drunk man. His sister passes out from drinking in her trailer and dies when it burns down and she doesn’t get out.



2. One event that stands out is on Arnold’s first day at the Indian Reservation High School he gets the same book that his mother had. Arnold’s hope is crushed. After high school his sister just moved to her parent’s basement and stayed there. Arnold feels just as hopeless. These two events show that underfunded reservation schools just escalate the problem of reservation poverty. It makes the reader sad to know that this is happening right now.