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luanndie's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.5
Honestamente, creo que las historias cortas de Alexie no me hubieran gustado mucho antes de su escándalo, pero después de él son difíciles de leer porque el tratamiento de las mujeres en sus historias no hace sino recordar el tema. Además esa tendencia a incorporar datos biográficos hacen que, aunque las historias no lo sean necesariamente, siempre parezca que el protagonista es el autor. En general, aunque el estilo narrativo me gustó, el foco de la historias no me generó tanto interés y algunos relatos me parecieron un poco sin un claro objetivo. Los poemas me gustaron más, pero son una minoría dentro de la colección.
bergsteiger's review against another edition
4.0
This is my second Sherman Alexie book and I enjoyed it as much as the first. He does an excellent, and seemingly paradoxical, job of finding humor in serious situations, while not taking the stock, canned, progressive view of tough social issues. He is, in a word, nuanced. Ultimately this is a collection of short stories and like old school CDs, there are some not so good tracks in there with the gems. Personally loved "Breaking and Entering", "Paul the Nonetheless", and "Salt". At any rate, well worth the read. he even manage to write a couple of halfway decent poems ;) Go ahead and grab this collection off the shelf. 4 stars.
jrosenstein's review against another edition
4.0
Just another reason to love Sherman Alexie. When writing fiction for adults Alexie is best off sticking to short stories, though he writes excellent novels for teens. I've been a fan of his for a long time, and there's a nice sense of continuity here. You can see how this is the guy who wrote The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven 15 years down the road. He's moved from the reservation to the city. He's older, more concerned with families and the relationships between parents and children. He's looking out at the world, not just at his own painful past. He tries to understand people who are very different from himself, and find some common humanity even in men who do awful things. Alexie's writing is still strongest when it seems grounded in his own experience, but his empathy and striving for emotional truth are always moving.
wanderinglynn's review against another edition
emotional
sad
3.75
I'm not sure what to think or how to describe what I'm feeling. This book is an interesting mix of poetry and short stories that were also poetic. The stories are not beautiful or fantastic but they are sad and real, which makes them lovely in their own way. Especially the last one, "Salt," which will stomp your heart into tiny little pieces and not apologize for it. The poetry is what really ties this collection together.
the_enobee's review against another edition
5.0
I always forget how great Sherman Alexie is until I pick up another one of his books. War Dances is a concise powerhouse of hilarity, emotion, bitter truth, and even more bitter revelations about history and the American experience. Alexie proves to be a master of the short form here, featuring poems, essay-like meditations, and short stories. The Ballad of Paul Nonetheless (which is the inspiration for the red Pumas on the cover) might be the funniest, most intelligent heartbreaker I've read in years. I'm not sure I could enjoy a short story more. The rest of the collection is top notch as well, and would serve as an excellent intro to Alexie and is a must-read for his fans. Enjoy!
milktoast's review against another edition
4.0
Alexie is one of my favorite authors, and this book did not disappoint. I saw him speak shortly before I read War Dances and he talked about wanting to create a new type of Native literature--one where the characters are film editors and lawyers, one where they have hardships and joys that are understandable in a modern world instead of only stories of genocide and reservation hardship.
This book does a good job of that. The stories are well-written and captivating; the poetry playful and sometimes sad. Overall, though, this book doesn't "pop" the way some of his previous works do. In getting less angry and more intellectual, Alexie's voice is not as well realized. Hopefully in future volumes he'll find a way to achieve his previous emotional highs with his new tempered mind.
This book does a good job of that. The stories are well-written and captivating; the poetry playful and sometimes sad. Overall, though, this book doesn't "pop" the way some of his previous works do. In getting less angry and more intellectual, Alexie's voice is not as well realized. Hopefully in future volumes he'll find a way to achieve his previous emotional highs with his new tempered mind.
sakeriver's review against another edition
I had a lot of trouble figuring out exactly what I thought of this book. On the one hand, it was very well written and the poems were consistently interesting to me. On the other hand, the short stories were somewhat... vexing. Most of them are stories about (and from the perspective of) men who are deeply flawed in very male ways, but who are at most only marginally self-aware, and who are often awful, sometimes completely reprehensible. Now, as a critique of masculinity, I think there's some value here, but these men are often rendered with enough detail and complexity that I feel you're invited to empathize with them. I'm not sure exactly what I think of that. Because I do feel like empathy is important, and empathy for a person needn't mean that you condone their bad beliefs or behaviors. But I also found it unpleasant to live in these men's heads, and I wondered at times whether these stories functioned more as critique or apologia. Maybe it's best to have a book that doesn't deliver pat conclusions, and which doesn't fully tip the author's hand about what he believes. But something still felt unsatisfying to me about many parts of this book.
dude_watchin_with_the_brontes's review against another edition
4.0
I listened to this read by the author. Now I will read all of his books with his voice in my head.
pattydsf's review against another edition
4.0
I think I have fallen in love with Sherman Alexie's voice. I do not usually listen to talking books done by the author. Unfortunately the ability to write is not tied to the ability to narrate. However, this is the second book I have listened to by Alexie and I can't imagine going back to just reading his stories and poems. Last time I used a Playaway, this time I had the book in MP3CD format.
This book is a collection of over 20 stories and poems. I found most of them to be wonderful and many to be thought provoking. I especially liked "Bird Watching at Night" and "The Ballad of Paul Nonetheless". A couple of times I hit back track to hear a poem again. Also I found myself turning off the player so I could mull over the last story.
Which brings up my only complaint. I was very happy that the producer made each poem a separate track. That was helpful. However, there was not enough of a pause between stories. I am not sure how that would work, but I wished for about 45 seconds of blank space between each piece.
This book is a collection of over 20 stories and poems. I found most of them to be wonderful and many to be thought provoking. I especially liked "Bird Watching at Night" and "The Ballad of Paul Nonetheless". A couple of times I hit back track to hear a poem again. Also I found myself turning off the player so I could mull over the last story.
Which brings up my only complaint. I was very happy that the producer made each poem a separate track. That was helpful. However, there was not enough of a pause between stories. I am not sure how that would work, but I wished for about 45 seconds of blank space between each piece.