Alexie is the author of War Dances, the Book of the Year at both Humboldt State and College of the Redwoods. The book has been described by the Los Angeles Times as “sophisticated, yet playful, a subtle way to bring lightness to heavy topics such as senility, bigotry, cancer and loneliness.”
In this collection of stories, Alexie explores the precarious balance between self-preservation and external responsibility in art, family, and the world at large. His stories center around ordinary men on the brink of exceptional change: In the title story, a son recalls his father’s “natural Indian death” from alcohol and diabetes; one story dissects a vintage clothing store owner’s failing marriage; another story examines what happens when a politician’s son commits a hate crime.
Winner of the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction, the PEN/Malamud Award for Short Fiction, a PEN/Hemingway Citation for Best First Fiction, and the National Book Award for Young People’s Literature, Sherman Alexie is a poet, short story writer, novelist, and performer. A Spokane/Coeur d’Alene Indian, Alexie grew up in Wellpinit, Wash., on the Spokane Indian Reservation. Alexie’s appearance is made possible, in part, by contribution from the Bear River Casino and the Smith River Rancheria.
For more information about this event, contact Sarah Fay Philips, 707-826-5589 or sp252@humboldt.edu.