"War Dances" by Sherman Alexie

BOOK TITLE: War Dances
AUTHOR: Sherman Alexie
YEAR: 2009
GENRE: Short Stories and Poetry
SUBGENRE: Dramatic Comedy
GRADE: Pass


On multiple occasions, Sherman Alexie has been described as an author who can make his audience members laugh and cry at the same time. To do such a thing takes the kind of talent only seen in a Pulitzer winner such as him. In this short story and poetry collection, the reader bears witness to stories about a homophobic senator’s son, an adulterous used clothes salesman, a young obituary writer, a creatively stifled screenwriter, and many more that end either tragically or only with a small shred of hope remaining. I as a reader haven’t cried since 2007 and came very close to breaking my record upon reading “War Dances”.

One of the ways in which Sherman Alexie infuses comedy into his depressing stories is through his narrative style. When he writes, he sounds like he’s physically talking to his audience with the energy and pop culture references of a motivational speaker. Trust me, you’re going to need all the energy you can muster up if you’re going to make it through this book without bursting into a waterfall of tears.

And since the pop culture references (along with the elitist culture references) bring about an energetic writing style, these references could only work within topics that were equally interesting to write about. These topics could be deep and meaningful such as race relations or grieving after death. Then again, they could also be as out of the blue as a short-lived romance or the mix tapes used to woo that special someone. Because this book is a collection of stories and poems instead of a whole novel, there’s going to be a massive variety of topics swirling into the pool of words that is War Dances.

Choosing one story from this book to call a favorite would be like choosing one limb to keep after being tortured and butchered. This choice might not be a “favorite” in the traditional sense of the word, but it is the one that strikes the biggest chord with me. It’s called “Fearful Symmetry” and it is about an author who tries to create artistic literature in Hollywood with his screenplays, but keeps having his work altered in sacrilegious ways by the director.

The writer wanted to create a William Blake-esque story from a real life account of firefighters escaping from a wall of flame in the forest. The director wanted to make it sexy and violent and that didn’t sit well with the writer. The writer was eventually fired and lost his creative urge in that crushing blow. This story pulls at my heartstrings because being a screenwriter was something I originally wanted to do as I was getting my English degree at Western Washington University. After reading “Fearful Symmetry”, I was grateful that the screenwriting ambitions never materialized. I wouldn’t want my own work scrutinized by someone with cheap creativity and enough power to force his vision on everyone.

I’ve been a fan of Sherman Alexie ever since reading “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian”. At first it was all about fast pacing to me since I was a slow reader with low eye endurance. Now my enjoyment of his writings is about so much more than that. It’s about emotional connections. It’s about having a favorite author I can always count on to come through for me. I know of many authors who are like that, but none of them will ever take the place of Sherman Alexie. A passing grade is what this book shall get.

Categories

Garrison’s Library has been up and running since the summer of 2012 and it’s not slowing down anytime soon. Over the years, blogging has become more fun for me creatively than writing short stories or novels. That’s not to say I won’t write short stories or novels anymore, because I will. It’s just that blogging allows me more freedom to do certain things. I’m allowed to publish material about other media without fear of copyright lawsuits. I can show or tell as much as I want to (because I’m technically not telling a story). I only have to write one page worth of material for each post, as opposed to short stories which are generally three.

I originally started this blog with the idea of touting fast-paced books that I’ve read throughout my life. It was supposed to be an internet mecca for Brett Battles’ “The Cleaner” and Sherman Alexie’s “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian”. When I ran out of books to talk about, I began writing posts dealing with creative writing tropes. Only occasionally did I talk about a piece of media other than a book I already blogged about.

As of today, I’ve divided my posts into multiple categories. They are…

　

1. Fast-Paced Book Touting. I could always do this on Good Reads, but if I did that, I this blog wouldn’t have been born.

2. Creative Writing Tropes. This was my way of sharing my knowledge of the writing game with my readers. I think of the relationship between myself and the audience as a teacher and my students. You know, without the forced extroversion, detention notices, and heartbreaking grades.

3. Unemployed Characters. These are characters I’ve used in past works or haven’t used at all who no longer have a story to call home. Deus Shadowheart was constantly “losing work” and needed a new “job”, if we can use economic lingo for a moment. First he was a videogame character, then he was a movie star, then he was a pro-wrestler, and now I’m planning on using him as a forest-dwelling barbarian. If he loses this job, he just might have to file for unemployment benefits or food stamps. No, I don’t know what that means either.

4. Songs for Creative Fuel. It’s no secret that I’m a music lover. I love a good heavy metal riff as well as the complete opposite of that, which would be a gentle piano lullaby. But sometimes I don’t want a shallow relationship with my music. The songs I choose to blog about have affected me so deeply over the years that if I don’t use them as creative fodder for my stories, it would be a wasted opportunity for me.

5. Dreams. I don’t always remember my dreams by the time I wake up. There are even some that aren’t really noteworthy. For the ones that are, I try to analyze them as best as I can so that they too can be used for creative inspiration. I’ve been trying to access my subconscious for a long, long time now. If it takes a sensory deprivation tank or a good night’s sleep to do it, then let’s dive right in.

6. Couples. I’m writing this blog entry to introduce this one as a new category. I didn’t grow up with much of a romantic life. I’ve had an online girlfriend and I have a current girlfriend who I’m very shy around. Living vicariously through other couples, real or fictional, is another source of creative fuel for me. Whenever I’m not writing about orcs and elves kicking the shit out of each other, I’m usually writing about the love between people and how much they care about each other.

　

Garrison’s Library is coming up on its second anniversary pretty soon. So now I’m pouring a glass of fruity beer and toasting to that. Goodnight, everybody! Sweet dreams! And if you do have sweet dreams, don’t forget to use them as creative fodder!

　

***FACE BOOK POST OF THE DAY***

“The Lego Movie proves once again that Master Building is a natural function.”

-Me-

"Flight" by Sherman Alexie

For those of us who grew up with a difficult past, it’s easy to get lost in the anger and that anger can often beget violence. Such is the case for half-Irish, half-Indian teenager known only as Zits (because of his poor complexion). His Indian father left him when he was just a baby and his mother died of cancer when Zits was only six years old. Ever since then, Zits has been bounced around from foster home to foster home with nothing but rage boiling inside of him. The burning hot anger gets too be too much and with the guidance of another troubled youth only named Justice, Zits comes within moments of shooting up a bank full of strangers. Before he can actually pull the trigger, the Indian youngster gets sent back to various moments in time in which the people he inhabits had to make violent choices as well, from nineteenth century Indian warriors to corrupt FBI agents. In each of these moments, Sherman Alexie is doing what a book critic once said he did all along, which was break our hearts and make us laugh at the same time. The laughter comes from the pop culture references and snappy dialogue, all of which coming from the narrative mind of Zits. The heartbreak takes the form of various deaths and tragedies that the people Zits wakes up as had to endure. Killing another human being isn’t nearly as easy as our angry consciences make it out to be. Yes, we can be angry enough to punch someone out or shoot someone into oblivion, but after the fact, it becomes hard to live with. Committing violent acts isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be. It’s not relieving. It’s not therapeutic. It’s hurtful. Pain begets pain. Anger begets more anger. Blood doesn’t wash away no matter how much dish soap you use to scrub your hands with. Only a cold-blooded mercenary could ever live with himself after committing murder. Zits is not a cold-blooded mercenary. He’s just a kid who was dealt a crappy hand. And now he’s imagining dealing a crappy hand to complete strangers in return. The blood, the tears, the heartache, is it all worth it? If it’s still worth it to you after you read Flight by Sherman Alexie, you missed the point entirely. Life isn’t an Arnold Schwarzenegger movie. It’s not even a Jason Statham movie. It’s a cycle of violence that tears away at us until there’s nothing left. Think about that for a minute, if you have the stomach for it.

　

***WRESTLING QUOTE OF THE DAY***

“Shawn Michaels claims to be this great Christian who loves everybody and then he goes out and shoots innocent animals with a high-powered rifle.”

-Jim Cornette-

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

“The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian” is the main reason why I consider Sherman Alexie to be one of my personal influences. I’d like to read more work from this wonderful author, but I don’t know where to continue. But for now, consider this book to be one of the fastest and most enjoyable ones you’ll ever read. In this piece of autobiographical fiction, an Indian teenager named Arnold Spirit describes his dismal life of being bullied around on the Indian reservation in Spokane, Washington and how he went to an all-white school to get away from that. Just from this synopsis alone, you’d probably guess that there’s a lot of heartache for the reader to empathize with. But with every piece of heartache, there’re also some giggly moments. In fact, when a reviewer once said that he was “laughing while his heart was breaking”, I thought to myself that I couldn’t have said it better. One of my favorite lines in the whole book is when Arnold says, “It’s like stomping on the backs of baby seals on the way to the beach to protest seal clubbing.” I can’t remember what exactly it was he was describing, but it’s one of the giggly moments that you can enjoy while maintaining a quick flow. It made me wonder if having comedy increases the pace of the writing. It was certainly true for Carl Hiaasen’s work and “Napalm and Silly Putty” by George Carlin, so maybe that’s one of the reasons for Sherman Alexie’s breakneck pace. I’ll even go so far as to say that it doesn’t matter if you’re laughing like a hyena or smiling a Mona Lisa smile, because you won’t want to put the book down if you’re having a good time. It might also help if you the reader can relate to some of the themes of this book such as bullying, being in love, poverty, death, and friendship. While nobody could be compared to Arnold Spirit, you’ll still have plenty of reason to cheer him on as the story progresses. If you’re a writer and you need inspiration for whatever market you’re catering to, buy a copy of “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian”. Or if you just want to cry and laugh at the same time, that’s perfectly alright as well.

　

***WRESTLING JOKE OF THE DAY***

Mr. Anderson is a real TNA-hole.