Blasphemy

by Sherman Alexie

Paperback, 2012

Status

Available

Call number

813.54

Genres

General Fiction

All Topics

Fiction

Publication

New York: Grove Press, 2012

Description

Combines fifteen of the author's classic short stories with fifteen new stories in an anthology that features tales involving donkey basketball leagues, lethal wind turbines, and marriage. In these comfort-zone-destroying tales, including the masterpiece, War Dances, characters grapple with racism, damaging stereotypes, poverty, alcoholism, diabetes, and the tragic loss of languages and customs. Questions of authenticity and identity abound.

Media reviews

Kirkus

Whether recent or from his earliest period, these pieces show Alexie at his best: as an interpreter and observer, always funny if sometimes angry, and someone, as a cop says of one of his characters, who doesn’t “fit the profile of the neighborhood.”

User reviews

LibraryThing member viviennestrauss

I heard Alexie say that Joyce Carol Oates compared him to Philip Roth, I liken him more to David Sedaris. He writes with the perfect combination of intelligence, humor and sorrow. The more I read, the more I like him! I would be hard pressed to choose a favorite story in this book but if I had to

pick one, it would be The Search Engine. I truly identified with Corliss - her lack of a community and a love of books.

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LibraryThing member jarvenpa

A tender, rough, brilliant collection of stories. No one writes quite like Sherman Alexie. He walks that line between breaking your heart into pieces and making you want to howl or laugh or rush out into the rain just because, declaring your imperfections and humanity. Wow.
(this was a Goodreads

First Reads win, and I read an uncorrected proof).

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LibraryThing member maribou

5 stars for the story "Search Engine"... 4.5 for most of the rest.

LibraryThing member Sullywriter

An amazing collection, half of which are a sampling of Alexie's best previously published stories and the other half new. What always amazes me about Alexie is how he is able to use humor to make palatable the many ugly, tragic things about which he writes. In the hands of a less competent writer,

the humor would trivialize but Alexie's humor brings resonance and profundity. He channels his anger and bitterness into entertaining and poignant prose.

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LibraryThing member abycats

Spectacular writer. Not always a fan of short stories and I didn't enjoy every one of these BUT several of these are just about perfect. Written from the perspective of a Spokane Indian with one foot in the rez and one foot itching to get out, the various tales all ring true. Moreover, despite

their distinctly local milieu, the characters and their reactions & lives are universal. Highly recommended.

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LibraryThing member LibroLindsay

I had forgotten that this collection included previously published stories as well (even though it says so on the cover, durrrr) and was feeling kinda disappointed at first because I just want more, more, more(!!!!) Alexie, but I really loved revisiting stories I hadn't read in years. Some I loved

even more than before--a few got the ol' waterworks going, which I don't think had happened before--and his new stories were great, too...shorter, but some really packed a punch. It was interesting to see it all together, how his writing has developed over the years. It has also inspired me to go back and re-read (or read anew) previous collections of his. Hats off, Sherman!

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LibraryThing member sarahlh

Not an easy book to read but a great book nonetheless. Many of these stories carry Alexie's signature emotional right-hook. I can't imagine reading this whole book in one sitting; a lot of the stories caught me right in the chest and had me taking breaks between them. Naturally, some stories worked

better than other. I prefer his longer pieces to the 1-2 page micro stories, although for micro fiction they were still good. Very much recommended for fans of short stories and fiction in general.

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