The book is called The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian and is written by Sherman Alexie. The main character is Arnold Spirit and the book is about his life as a Spokane Indian. He lives on a reservation with his family, and the main plot is that he decides to go to an all-white school outside of the reservation in search of having a successful future.

I found it very interesting that Arnold Spirit Had a lot of things wrong with him. The main thing is that he has Acquired Hydrocephalus, or as he likes to call it, “Water on the brain.” Hydrocephalus is a condition where there is too much buildup of cerebrospinal fluid in the brain. This fluid is supposed to cushion and protect the brain. But with too much of it, it can put harmful pressure on the brain. Arnold got Hydrocephalus at birth, so it is called acquired Hydrocephalus. The main symptoms of this condition are genetic and fetal development problems. A common result is an abnormally large head. Arnold Spirit also has 42 teeth, 10 more than normal. His Hydrocephalus also caused him to need glasses since he was nearsighted in one eye and farsighted in the other. Arnold had a very large head and very large hands and feet, but the rest of him was skinny. Arnold said that he looked like a capital L walking down the street.

A quote I found interesting was “I draw all the time. I draw cartoons of my mother and father; my sister and grandmother; my best friend, Rowdy; and everybody else on the rez. I draw because words are too unpredictable. I draw because words are too limited. If you speak and write in English, or Spanish, or Chinese, or any other language, then only a certain percentage of human beings will get your meaning. But when you draw a picture, everybody can understand it. If I draw a cartoon of a flower, then every man, woman, and child in the world can look at it and say, “That’s a flower.” So I draw because I want to talk to the world. And I want the world to pay attention to me. I feel important with a pen in my hand. I feel like I might grow up to be somebody important. An artist. Maybe a famous artist. Maybe a rich artist. That’s the only way I can become rich and famous. Just take a look at the world. Almost all of the rich and famous brown people are artists. They’re singers and actors and writers and dancers and directors and poets. So I draw because I feel like it might be my only real chance to escape the reservation. I think the world is a series of broken dams and floods, and my cartoons are tiny little lifeboats.” I think this quote is very interesting because it is true and makes you think. Drawing and pictures in general are a universal language. Everyone understands it. It is the only thing that all people can understand. One person sees something and the other person can agree that they see the same thing (unless they have schizophrenia, are blind, cross eyed, Alzheimer’s, dementia, macular degeneration, cataract, diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, or are dead, but most of the world population is not). Arnold is also looking into the future and hoping that his drawing skills get him to become a successful artist and off the reservation. He calls his cartoons “lifeboats” because they keep him afloat in the world of “dams and floods.” I think this quote is both meaningful and powerful at the same time.

I rate the book an 8/10 and recommend it to everyone. It is about a 14 year old boy so it is relatable and it teaches people about what they have and to be grateful for it. You also learn about Indian Reservations which still exist to this day.