Paul Trotto, Class of 2023
“There are certain life lessons that you can only learn in the struggle.”
― Idowu Koyenikan
In The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, Junior is forced to face racism everyday; when all seems lost, he perseveres through the tough times, Junior doesn’t let this challenge faze him. Reading this book allowed me to look into the world of Junior, a slightly different Native American kid living on a reservation with his family. The combination of the book’s compelling story, easiness to read, and well thought out plot helped me reflect on the differences between my community here in the town of Concord, and his on the Reservation.
Racism plagues the minorities of the world. Junior and his family face constant prejudice and adversity because of their Native American heritage. Junior is an outcast and bullied by the white kids of Reardan High School because of his race. His dad has been stopped by the cops in Reardan three times in a week for “DWI: Driving While Indian.” They live a life of adversity for aspects in which they cannot control. When Junior was born, he had ten extra teeth. In order to get them removed, he had to visit the Indian Health Service, which only funded major dental work once per year. Due to this lack of funding, Junior’s white dentist needed to pull all ten teeth in one day, but the dentist’s racist beliefs caused Junior to have a painful experience. “Our white dentist believed that Indians only felt half as much pain as white people did, so he only gave us half the Novocain.” [2]
One day, Penelope and Junior are discussing the limits of the small towns that they live in and their dreams in life. Penelope spoke about traveling the world, which made Junior laugh, and then about becoming an architect. He soon realized that he can’t laugh at that. “And I couldn’t make fun of her dream. It was my dream, too. And Indian boys weren’t supposed to dream like that.” [112] Junior couldn’t dream because of his race; Junior experienced unnecessary pain because of his race, and Junior faced constant adversity because of his race. The white people who live nearby the rez “don’t always like the Indians much” [100]. The people in Junior’s community and on the rez have been changed by the systematic racism of the outside world. Prejudice weighs the world down.
Just because something is easy doesn’t mean it’s bad. Reading The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian allowed me to enjoy an impactful story without dedicating hours of time. I was able to enjoy this book at a quick but appropriate pace that allowed me to understand and connect to each character better. I planned to read this book according to our class schedule. I wanted to read as little as possible while still being able to keep up with my peers. After reading the first few pages I was hooked, I had never read a book chosen by my school as good as this one. I was easily reading up to 50 pages a class, however, midway through the book, I started losing interest. I noticed myself reading less and less in and out of class. I was more interested in other activities, like the upcoming Fenn hockey season. I stayed in this uninterested faze for around a week, until I got within the last 75 pages of the book.
After my long break from reading, I couldn’t wait to finally read the book’s ending. I easily finished the book within my next English class period, satisfied with my dedication to finishing the story. After reading the book I learned not to judge something based on its difficulty level. Any experience can be worthwhile, no matter how useless it may seem. I know now that I will go into the future with a more open mind. While this was one of the easier books I’ve read throughout my entire Fenn career, It was still one of my favorites. Don’t judge based on quantity, judge based on quality.
Reading this book was more than just an experience, it was a lesson. It showed me how I could engage with the characters and themes of the story. These lessons have opened my eyes to what life is like for others outside my community.
