Sherman Alexie
Sherman Alexie
Sherman Joseph Alexie, Jr., born October 7, 1966) is an American poet, writer, and filmmaker. Much of his writing draws on his experiences as a Native American with ancestry from several tribes. He grew up on the Spokane Indian Reservation and now lives in Seattle, Washington...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionNovelist
Date of Birth7 October 1966
CityWelpinet, WA
CountryUnited States of America
successful feelings want
I had the feeling I was going to be successful, and I didn't want to be another disappointing Indian.
writing literature condescension-and
I thought I'd been condescended to as an Indian - that was nothing compared to the condescension for writing young adult literature.
cancer heart dying
...And nostalgia is a cancer. Nostalgia will fill your heart up with tumors. Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's what you are. You're just an old fart dying of terminal nostalgia.
culture storytelling grew
I grew up in a storytelling culture, a tribal culture, but also in an American storytelling culture.
order culture ceremony
I don't have to participate in another culture's ceremonies in order to respect that culture.
art art-is exploitation
All art is exploitation.
men imagination romance
And then I realized that my sister was trying to LIVE a romance novel. Man, that takes courage and imagination. Well, it also took some degree of mental illness, too, but I was suddenly happy for her. And a little scared. Well, a lot scared.
book independent roots
I wanted to do a weird book and reestablish my independent, small-press roots.
night maps realizing
At the halfway point of any drunken night, there is a moment when an Indian realizes he cannot turn back toward tradition and that he has no map to guide him toward the future.
wall broken promise
But we danced, under wigs and between unfinished walls, through broken promises and around empty cupboards.
book three three-times
Listen you have to read a book three times before you know it.
arrogance tipping be-kind
[F]rank knew he was guilty of arrogance and misanthropy, but he compensated by being kind to strangers and tipping really well at restaurants.
past skeletons watches
Your past is a skeleton walking one step behind you, and your future is a a skeleton walking one step in front of you. Maybe you don't wear a watch, but your skeletons do, and they always know what time it is.
play forever momentum
One play can change your momentum forever.