I overheard someone talking about an author they really like who writes about the life about the Native American (esp. in AZ). It may be about life on the Reservation, perhaps the struggle to not assimulate, and/or general survival in today’s society. It sounded like this author has written some fascinating books that are hard to put down. I WAG these are mostlikely historical fiction novels.
Does anyone know who this author might be?
Uh. . . might be Sherman Alexie, who is Spokane or Couer d’Alene-- something up in that neighborhood-- who writes some poignant and humorous stuff about life on the modern reservation. Great title of a book of short stories of his: “The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fist-fight in Heaven” (or something like that). The film Smoke Signals is based on something by him-- I think much of it was supposed to take place in the southwest but my informants tell me most of it was filmed in Spokane.
Could be referring to Tony Hillerman, who writes detective stories involving Navajo and Hopi Indians on the largest Reservation in the U.S. Even if that’s not the author you’re asking about, I recommend his books.
Tony Hillerman is my guess also, and I second the recommendation to read his work.
Could be Louise Erdrich, who is Ojibwe from a North Dakota reservation. She has written a good many, very highly regarded novels about the Native Americans in that state. Her husband, the late Michael Dorris, was half-NA and founded the Native American studies program at Dartmouth about thirty years ago. He committed suicide on the day Dartmouth was to honor him to mark the 25th anniversary of the program, in Hanover, NH. His book about alchohol-syndrome being inherited by babies at birth, made into a national special on CBS, has come up against criticism as a theory. Louise Erdrich has survived storms of controversy, and the personal flaws of Dorris that led to his suicide. IMHO she is one of the most outstanding fiction writers the US has produced, ever, as well as being one of the most outstanding persons of any descent past or present.