claire_melanie's review against another edition
5.0
Some of these stories sing and others punch you right in the guts. The author is a complete short story genius
dave37's review against another edition
5.0
You know when you finish a book sobbing that's it's been a good one. Great to re-read old favorites and be mesmerized by new additions to Alexie's incredible body of work. I admit to a strangely powerful connection to him, but my most objective self posits that these are GREAT short stories.
missprint_'s review against another edition
2.0
Blasphemy: New and Selected Stories by Sherman Alexie (2012)
I've read several of Alexie's earlier story collections as well as his novels Flight, Reservation Blues and The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. Alexie is an incredibly talented writer shining a light onto a part of America's culture that is very rarely seen in modern literature.
That said, his work is never easy to take filled with wasted potential, sadness and a pervasive sense of everything that an entire culture has lost thanks to Western expansion and modernization. It is a bleak, cold world. It is bleaker and colder if you are an Indian in an Alexie story.
While Alexie provides some moments of whimsy and wonder, his stories are generally heavy. Clocking in at 480 pages Blasphemy is even heavier than earlier collection or novels. It is also not at all indicative of The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian so if you're expecting that kind of story here just walk away now.
The collection is comprised of new and older stories so it's a nice introduction to Alexie except that most of my favorite stories ("Somebody Kept Saying Powwow", "Distances", "Saint Junior", "A Good Story") are not found in this collection though other familiar ones including "The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven" and "The Toughest Indian in the World" do appear.
My favorite of Alexie's collections is either The Business of Fancydancing or The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven. They were shorter, more balanced collections that tempered the inherent sadness of many stories with lighter stories of hope and sometimes even redemption. Even the characters who didn't get that happy ending had a certain dignity--something the felt lacking to me in this collection.
You can find this review and more on my blog Miss Print
I've read several of Alexie's earlier story collections as well as his novels Flight, Reservation Blues and The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. Alexie is an incredibly talented writer shining a light onto a part of America's culture that is very rarely seen in modern literature.
That said, his work is never easy to take filled with wasted potential, sadness and a pervasive sense of everything that an entire culture has lost thanks to Western expansion and modernization. It is a bleak, cold world. It is bleaker and colder if you are an Indian in an Alexie story.
While Alexie provides some moments of whimsy and wonder, his stories are generally heavy. Clocking in at 480 pages Blasphemy is even heavier than earlier collection or novels. It is also not at all indicative of The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian so if you're expecting that kind of story here just walk away now.
The collection is comprised of new and older stories so it's a nice introduction to Alexie except that most of my favorite stories ("Somebody Kept Saying Powwow", "Distances", "Saint Junior", "A Good Story") are not found in this collection though other familiar ones including "The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven" and "The Toughest Indian in the World" do appear.
My favorite of Alexie's collections is either The Business of Fancydancing or The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven. They were shorter, more balanced collections that tempered the inherent sadness of many stories with lighter stories of hope and sometimes even redemption. Even the characters who didn't get that happy ending had a certain dignity--something the felt lacking to me in this collection.
You can find this review and more on my blog Miss Print
pattieod's review against another edition
4.0
Funny, poignant, and you hear them in Sherman Alexie's voice (if you're an NPR listener).
I'd give it 5 stars if I didn't hate basketball so much.
I'd give it 5 stars if I didn't hate basketball so much.
bookswithbrittanica's review against another edition
4.0
This novel was one of the most enjoyable to read out of his short stories, but I think they may be because he combines all of his great former short stories into this collection. I also liked the fact that I skipped a few because I have already read them in his other collections such as "War Dances". A good collection overall- and a few good surprises.
I just wish he wrote stories that were a little more different. Even though it may be a different scene, it could be the same kind of Indian or same name he has used multiple times. Switch it up man....
I just wish he wrote stories that were a little more different. Even though it may be a different scene, it could be the same kind of Indian or same name he has used multiple times. Switch it up man....
spiderfelt's review against another edition
4.0
It is heartbreaking to see all the ways a relationship can fall apart, all the ways a life can break apart. Another title for the book could be Fifty Ways to Fall Down. Sherman Alexie is a brilliant writer who breaks my heart in the most beautiful ways.
duskyliterati's review against another edition
5.0
Wonderful collection of short stories. Enjoyed each one.
leilaniann's review against another edition
4.0
This is a collection of new and old stories. The old stories are all well-picked, and the new ones were great. I was just disappointed because most of the new ones were so short! The older stories were definitely the bulk of the book.
lazygal's review against another edition
4.0
This collection of stories is not all new, which dropped the rating (not because they're not good stories, but because I'd already read them and really would have loved more new stuff).
What Alexie means by "Blasphemy" is, I think, that he's unafraid to talk about the things that most Indians don't want to talk about: the alcoholism, the HUD homes, the poverty of the rez, etc.. Very few of the stories fail to touch on one, if not all, of those themes, hammering home again and again how the Indian's lives are not on par with white lives, let alone those of other immigrant groups. The people here before any of the rest of us have been reduced to a population that is largely uneducated, addicted to alcohol and drugs, and absent a hopeful future.
It's difficult to choose a favorite from among this collection, but "Whatever Happened to Frank Snake Church" and "Basic Training" brought tears to my eyes.
ARC provided by publisher.
What Alexie means by "Blasphemy" is, I think, that he's unafraid to talk about the things that most Indians don't want to talk about: the alcoholism, the HUD homes, the poverty of the rez, etc.. Very few of the stories fail to touch on one, if not all, of those themes, hammering home again and again how the Indian's lives are not on par with white lives, let alone those of other immigrant groups. The people here before any of the rest of us have been reduced to a population that is largely uneducated, addicted to alcohol and drugs, and absent a hopeful future.
It's difficult to choose a favorite from among this collection, but "Whatever Happened to Frank Snake Church" and "Basic Training" brought tears to my eyes.
ARC provided by publisher.