Errr.., you know what I mean. Don’t devour the writer, only his work.
On my way to work this morning, I heard Sherman Alexie being interviewed about his new book. Full confession: I’ve never read anything by Sherman Alexie. And – now this is embarrassing – because he has “Alex” in his name, I was certain that he wrote the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency book series, which I have also never read. When I looked him up on Goodreads this morning, I was confused about why that series didn’t pop up in his feed, and that’s simply because he didn’t write them at all. But he has written at least two things that I want to buy immediately: You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me: A Memoir and The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian.
His interview this morning was heartwarming and breaking. His newest book, “You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me,” is about his relationship with his mother. He dives into the painful world of living with a difficult mother and seems to not shy away from all of the conflicting emotions that can bring. I was tearing up while listening to this interview because it all felt so familiar. At one point, the interviewer was commenting about how it was “universal,” — he and I both said the word “universal” at the same time.
I didn’t know that he was a Native American and spent much of his life living on a Reservation. It looks like “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian,” while fiction, is based on his experiences growing up in his Native culture. I am so excited to learn
more about his world and what it was like for him growing up. I would imagine both of the books referenced in this post has fascinating insights into life on the Reservation. I cannot wait to read them!
I looked him up on Twitter, and it looks like he decided to leave Twitter at the beginning of this year. I can’t say I blame him – Twitter magnifies so much of what is painful and damaging in life today. But I do wish he was still posting because I’d love to hear his voice weighing in on the daily outrage. I still followed him, just in case he decides to return.
Short post tonight, but I just wanted to share that moving interview. I thought some of my fellow book lovers would enjoy it as much as I did!
The Cozy Burrow 