Intro: “The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven, published in 1993 by Atlantic Monthly Press, was Sherman Alexie’s breakthrough book. Composed of twenty-two interconnected stories with recurring characters, the work is often described by critics as a short-story collection… The book’s central characters, Victor Joseph and Thomas Builds-the-Fire, are two young Native-American men living on the Spokane Indian Reservation, and the stories describe their relationships, desires, and histories with family members and others who live on the reservation. Alexie fuses surreal imagery, flashbacks, dream sequences, diary entries, and extended poetic passages with his storytelling to create tales that resemble prose poems more than conventional narratives.” – Wiki.
Characters:
- Victor Joseph – used to be a good ball player, gets sober as an adult, has an epic trip with Thomas to pick up his deceased dad’s body
- Thomas Builds-the-Fire – young, always telling stories, two braids, most Indian bro ever, likes to chat with people,
Quotes:
- “Re-reading them, I suppose my critics have a point. Everybody in this book is drunk or in love with a drunk. And in writing about drunk Indians, I am dealing with stereotypical material. But I can only respond with the truth” (xxv)
- “…Victor’s mother would rise with her medicine and magic. She would pull air down from empty cupboards and make fry bread. She would shake thick blankets free from old bandanas. She would comb Victor’s braids into dreams” (5)
- “It was summer. Hot. But she kept our shirts on to hide our beer bellies and chicken-pox scars. At least, I wanted to hide my beer belly” (44)
- “A reservation hero is a hero forever. In fact, they status grows over the years as thee stories are told and retold” (48)
- “She and I never tried to hurt each other physically. I did love her, after all, and she loved me. But those arguments were just as damaging as a fist. Words be like that, you know?” (185)
- “One Indian doesn’t tell another what to do. We just watch things happen and then make comments. It’s all about reaction as opposed to action” (216)
buy the book: The Lone Ranger & Tonto…
