Loss in "The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian"

     This book was insanely good and I really enjoyed reading it. It grabbed my attention early on and held it during the entire book. Arnold's sarcastic inner-monologue as he shares his perspective was entertaining because it is similar to my type of humor. Despite the well written humor and events in the book, some of the events held a much heavier tone. They were still well written, but they weighed a little more on me as a reader.

    Loss was a big theme in Diary. Like we talked about during our last class, there were different types of loss present in the book. For example, a major topic was the loss of innocence. It's written in an earlier scene when Arnold is with Mr. P and Mr. P tells Arnold "We were trying to kill Indian culture" (Alexie 35). Arnold's thinks about he hates Mr. P in that moment. Growing up on the reservation, he knew how things were between the Indians and the Whites, but until Mr. P explicitly spoke about beating Indians, it seems like Arnold hadn't even thought about it that deeply. It's normal and realistic that Arnold wouldn't have realized it until that moment because he's young and has a more innocent mind. The more the book progresses, you can see how the more Arnold loses some of his innocence. He goes through extremes with his best friend Rowdy, losing his family members, dealing with the people of his school and reservation, etc.

    Another showing of loss is from loss of potential. That can mostly be seen through Arnold's sister Mary. She dreamed of becoming a writer and having her own romance novels. Mr. P shares that Mary "kept writing in her book...and then she just stopped" (Alexie 39). Arnold questions why because he doesn't understand why she stopped if she wanted to accomplish her dreams. Mary simply faded into what was expected of her in her community and she lost her potential. I read research somewhere and someone connected Mary moving into the basement as a burial. Thinking deeper, it's true. Although she was still physically alive, she had stopped living and it was similar to how she left and unfortunately died.

    One of the biggest roles of loss was through loss of life. It was evident in much of the second half of the book. The loss of people and family members in this book weighed heavily on me for a few days. I was crushed when I read that Eugene, his father's friend, and his sister had died. The one that hit me the hardest was his grandmother's death. Arnold tried to use dark humor to cover most of the heaviness, but even humor couldn't cover some of it, especially to the people that are reading it have expierenced such loss. When his grandmother died, Arnold talks about how his mother wept. He says that "She'd lost her mother. When anybody, no matter how old they are, loses a parent, I think it hurts the same as if you were only five years old...I think all of us are always five years old in the presence and absence of our parents" (Alexie 157). Honestly, I cried when I read that passage and those lines have popped back up in my mind several times over the last two weeks. As someone who lost their father a few months ago, Arnold's words ring absolutely true. You do feel like you're five years old. Even if you go about the daily motions and you're an adult who should know better, it's as if you have no idea how to do anything anymore. There is a lot of second guessing your choices and longing for your parent to just scoop you up as if you were a little child and tell you that everything will be alright. Alexie wrote so well about losing someone close like a parent. Loss doesn't only feel heavy to the reader, Arnold also realizes the weight of loss. Arnold felt like it was completely his fault and that he had somehow cursed his family. Through his innocence, he can't see that he physically had nothing to do with their deaths, it was just the misfortunes of life.

    Overall, I really enjoyed the book and I can see myself going back for another read in a few years or even sharing the book with someone who is in the adolescent age range. I think everyone going through adolescence should read the book at least once. It's a good way to see into the perspective of a fourteen year old boy as he goes through these troubles, even the more minor struggles. Even for those who think they wouldn't relate to a young boy who comes from a reservation, there is always something in a book to be taken away. I believe this book can offer something to everyone if they open their mind to it!