Scan barcode
martyrbat's review against another edition
3.75
Graphic: Racism, Violence, Grief, and Colonisation
Moderate: Addiction, Mental illness, and Sexual content
Minor: Gun violence, Police brutality, and War
bookishmillennial's review against another edition
Lush prose teeming with justified anger, disillusionment, and exhaustion. I highly recommend this collection of poetry, and “The First Water Is The Body” was my favorite poem. It commented on rivers and humans as mirrors, and not so different. Both worthy of protection, dignity, and reverence.
Overall, this was a thought-provoking and evocative collection of poems, forcing U.S.ians especially to confront our shameful, oppressive, and violent history. I will definitely be buying a physical copy for my home library.
Graphic: Genocide, Misogyny, Racism, Police brutality, Cultural appropriation, and Colonisation
robinks's review against another edition
4.75
Graphic: Racism, Violence, Blood, and Colonisation
Moderate: Addiction, Death, Genocide, Gun violence, and Sexual content
Minor: Police brutality
katharina90's review against another edition
5.0
Favorites include:
-American Arithmetic
-If I Should Come Upon Your House Lonely in the West Texas Desert
-Top Ten Reasons Why Indians Are Good at Basketball
-exhibits from The American Water Museum
"I have a name, yet no one who will say it not roughly.
I am your Native,
and this is my American labyrinth.
Here I am, at your thighs—lilac-lit pools of ablution.
Take my body and make of it—
a Nation, a confession.
Through you even I can be clean."
From: I, Minotaur
"2.
Because a long time ago, Creator gave us a choice: You can write like an Indian god, or you can have a jump shot sweeter than a 44oz. can of government grape juice—one or the other. Everyone but Sherman Alexie chose the jump shot."
From: Top Ten Reasons Why Indians Are Good at Basketball
"Only water can change water, can heal itself. Not even God
made water. Not on any of the seven days. It was already here.
Or maybe God is water, because I am water, and you are water."
From: exhibits from The American Water Museum
"Art of Fact:
Let me tell you a story about water:
Once upon a time there was us.
America’s thirst tried to drink us away.
And here we still are."
From: exhibits from The American Water Museum
"Police kill Native Americans more
than any other race. Race is a funny word.
Race implies someone will win,
implies, I have as good a chance of winning as—
Who wins the race that isn’t a race?
Native Americans make up 1.9 percent of all police killings, higher per capita than any race—
sometimes race means run."
From: American Arithmetic
"At the National Museum of the American Indian,
68 percent of the collection is from the United States.
I am doing my best to not become a museum
of myself. I am doing my best to breathe in and out.
I am begging: Let me be lonely but not invisible."
From: American Arithmetic
Moderate: Racism, Violence, Police brutality, and Colonisation
Minor: Addiction and Sexual content
jessereadsthings's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Genocide, Racism, Police brutality, and Colonisation
dacha's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Racism and Colonisation
Moderate: Addiction, Gun violence, and Police brutality
mayavd's review against another edition
5.0
The Manolete reference also floored me- truly masterful.
Moderate: Death, Genocide, Gore, Police brutality, and Colonisation
becksusername's review against another edition
4.0
Minor: Death, Genocide, Racism, Police brutality, Trafficking, and Grief
gay's review against another edition
3.5
Moderate: Gun violence and Racism
Minor: Police brutality