The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
First edition cover
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| Author | Sherman Alexie |
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| Illustrator | Ellen Forney |
| Cover artist | Kirk Benshoff |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Young adult fiction |
| Publisher | Little, Brown and Company |
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Publication date
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September 12, 2007 |
| Media type | Print (hardcover & paperback) |
| Pages | 230 |
| ISBN | |
| OCLC | 154698238 |
| LC Class | PZ7.A382 Ab 2007 |
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian (Diary) is a 2007 novel for young adults written by Sherman Alexie and illustrated by Ellen Forney. The book won several awards, and was the first young adult fiction work by Alexie, a stand-up comedian, screenwriter, film producer, and songwriter who has previously written adult novels, short stories, poems, and screenplays. Alexie stated, "I did [write the book] because so many librarians, teachers, and teenagers kept asking me to write one."
The Absolutely True Diary is a first-person narrative from the perspective of Native American teenager Arnold Spirit Jr., also known as "Junior", a 14-year-old budding cartoonist. The book is a bildungsroman, detailing Junior's life on the Spokane Indian Reservation, and his decision, upon encouragement from a reservation high school teacher, to go to an all-white public high school in the off-reservation town of Reardan, Washington. The novel has 65 comic illustrations by Forney, which sometimes act as punchlines while also revealing Junior's character and furthering the plot.
The Absolutely True Diary is controversial for its discussion of alcohol, poverty, bullying, violence, and sexuality, as well as for the tragic deaths of characters and for the use of profanity and slurs related to homosexuality and mental disability. As a result, some schools have banned the book from school libraries or inclusion in curricula.
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